Georgia Bulldogs are Now 4-4, But a Tough Road Lies Ahead

On Saturday night the Georgia Bulldogs beat the Kentucky Wildcats in Lexington for their first road win of 2010. They also got revenge against Kentucky for a close loss in Sanford Stadium last November.

This game was far from close with Georgia quickly racing to 28-3 lead in the middle of the second quarter. Down 14-3 with 3:38 to go in the first quarter, Kentucky failed to convert a 4th-and-1 on their own 38, which quickly shifted the momentum in the Bulldogs favor throughout the game.

With Caleb King still suspended for another game, Washaun Ealey had the best game yet of his career with 157 rushing yards and a school record five rushing touchdowns. His great performance on the ground overshadowed the respectable nights Aaron Murray and A.J. Green.

Due to Ealey's success running the ball, Murray was limited to only 12 passes, but threw for 113 yards. Six of his passes were caught by A.J. Green for 86 yards. Georgia only committed four penalties and a single turnover during the game.

Turnovers were big factors that contributed to the Bulldogs four game losing streak earlier this season, which is something that plagued Kentucky on Saturday night. While the scoreboard shows Kentucky was dominated in the game, the Wildcats did not have trouble piling up yards.

Mike Hartline and the Wildcats passing offense were very productive offensively in the absence of running back Derrick Locke. Kentucky only rushed for 70 yards on 31 attempts, a number that likely would have been higher if Locke had been healthy.

The Wildcats still outgained the Bulldogs by 133 offensive yards and had the possession of the ball for more than 32 minutes. No matter how productive an offense is, its hard to win football games when a team commits four turnovers.

The Bulldogs are currently in 2nd place in the SEC East heading in to Saturday's game against Florida. With a three game winning streak, the Mark Richt hot seat now seems to be cooling down faster than the Fall temperature in Athens. However, Georgia still has four regular season games in 2010 and only game is going to be a cake walk for the Dawgs (the November 6 game with Idaho State at Sanford Stadium).

Mark Richt is 2-7 in his head coaching career against the Gators, with his only wins coming in 2004 and 2007. Georgia is only 3-17 against Florida since 1990. This is a big game not only for the Bulldogs's SEC East title aspirations (surprisingly still a possibility) and Mark Richt's future beyond this season.

Both programs are having down years by their standards, but one of these streaks is assured of ending in Jacksonville this weekend, Georgia's three game winning streak or Florida's three game losing streak. Another reason of hope for the Dawgs in this years's "World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party" after losing 49-10 in 2008 and 41-17 in 2009, is the inconsistency of Florida's offense.

John Brantley has only thrown for six touchdown passes and the Gators have had an inconsistent running attack in 2010. Florida dominated Georgia and other SEC schools the previous with an offensive attack that seemed unstoppable with players like Tim Tebow and Percy Harvin.

Georgia's defense shut down a Kentucky team without Derrick Locke, but Florida's rushing attack of Jeffrey Demps and Mike Gillislee will be a tougher challenge for the Bulldogs to defend on the ground. Another player the Bulldogs will have to be worry about is freshman backup quarterback Trey Burton. He already has eight rushing touchdowns this season, which is half of the Gators' rushing touchdowns. 

Aside from Florida's dominance the last two decades, another concern for the Bulldogs is that Florida is coming off a bye week. Florida will be even more prepared to play their conference rival this Saturday with an extra week of preparation and the motivation to end their losing streak.

A win against Florida would make the season for Bulldog fans at this point after the team performed below expectations during the month of September. It could also eliminate any doubt of Mark Richt's job status in 2011.

A win against Florida would give the Bulldogs a winning a record for the first time since their opening week victory against Louisiana-Lafayette. How much of a lost season would 2010 become for Georgia with a loss on Saturday? It likely erases any hopes of Georgia capturing the SEC East and maintaining their current momentum heading in to November.

Florida is currently a 1.5-point favorite in what should be a much lower scoring and closer game than in recent years. If history repeats itself again, Georgia and Mark Richt will be in for a long day in Jacksonville. That's something that would more daunting for Georgia fans than thinking about the matchup against Cam Newton two weeks later.