Tennessee Has a Rocky Day in Georgia as Bulldogs Top Vols

Time heals all wounds.

Georgia welcomed the bye week to get a little healthy and remove the nightmares of Alabama from its consciousness.

Then they just needed to beat Tennessee.

They exorcised a few Tennessee demons as well, having lost to the Vols the last two seasons.

The Bulldogs welcomed the return of Sr. fullback Brannon Sutherland, and he got the 'Dawgs going early with a one-yard TD run in the first quarter.

Georgia's performance was workmanlike, and there seemed to be no secret that a win was necessary, yet unlikely to help their national championship cause greatly.

While the score, 26-14, reflects a closer game, the Bulldogs dominated Tennessee's offense, allowing 208 yards passing, and one yard—yes, that says one yard—rushing.

The defense, led by Prince Miller and Rennie Curran, swarmed to the Tennessee running backs, making timely plays and backfield tackles.

Tennessee made a few timely plays of its own, however, capitalizing on two Matthew Stafford interceptions inside the Vols' 20, both of which landed the Vols touchdowns.

Tennessee didn't help their cause, however, with 10 penalties for 97 yards. Georgia, the most penalized team in the nation, has yet to fully correct this problem: They were flagged 11 times for 76 yards. However, three of these were delay-of-game penalties to run off clock.

Despite the two interceptions, Stafford had a career day, throwing for 310 yards. Senior wide receiver Mohamed Massaquoi led the way with 103 yards and one touchdown.

Knowshon Moreno was quiet all game until the fourth quarter, when he flexed his running muscle as he led the Bulldogs on a 17-play, 76-yard drive that lasted 10:59 and essentially snuffed out the Vols' hopes of a comeback.  

"They knew we were going to run it; we knew we were going to run it. We were just trying to get first downs and keep our defense off the field to limit their chances of coming back. I challenged the guys up front, and they did a good job of making it happen," Stafford said of his battered O-line and Moreno on that fourth-quarter drive.

Moreno finished the day with 101 yards.

Sanford Stadium heard very little of "Rocky Top" Saturday, and the Tennessee Vols gave the band little reason to play. They, at times, seemed resigned to the belief that this season is a lost one.

Georgia had another critical loss of its own though. Junior left tackle Vince Vance left the game in the second quarter with a knee injury and will not be returning this season.

The Bulldogs' O-line could ill-afford any more injuries, yet they must now figure out how to piece together five players who can protect Stafford and the rest of their season.

"It's critical now. We still have Justin Anderson and Clint Boling who can play tackle. With Kiante Tripp, we will have to do some soul searching and decide what to do. We actually had a tackle jersey ready for him in case we lost one more guy. Cordy (Glenn) is also a capable tackle. We will have to look at that situation and decide what's best," Coach Richt said following the game, regarding a line that has now lost two opening day starters.

With further upheaval in the college football rankings on Saturday, the 'Dawgs remain in the thick of the championship hunt, but the next three games will surely decide the fate of the season.

Vandy is up next on the heels of a disappointing loss to Mississippi State. A game in Baton Rouge follows against what appears to be a flawed LSU team after the loss to Florida.

Finally, the Bulldogs face what looks to have the makings of an epic and season-on-the-line showdown in Jacksonville against Florida.

Few believed Georgia could run the table with this schedule, and they haven't. One loss to what could be this week's top team in the country doesn't look so bad. If they can pull that line together and continue to cut down on those penalties and timely mistakes, this team can still make it to Atlanta in December for at least one championship.

And the second? Well, they've gotten a lot of help so far.