Georgia routs No. 10 Ole Miss 42-7, ending Rebels' 16-game home streak in Oxford
Gunner Stockton accounted for five touchdowns as No. 2 Georgia beat No. 10 Ole Miss 42-7, snapping the Rebels' 16-game home winning streak.
No. 2 Georgia went into Vaught-Hemingway Stadium on Saturday night and left with a 42-7 win over No. 10 Ole Miss. The result ended the Rebels' 16-game home winning streak and moved the Bulldogs to 8-1, 6-1 in the SEC. As ClutchPoints noted, it also came on the same night No. 1 Miami lost to Notre Dame, which puts Georgia back in the discussion for the top spot it gave up after the October home loss to Auburn.
Gunner Stockton didn't need much volume. He completed 9 of 15 passes for 186 yards and four touchdowns and added a 15-yard scoring run. Three of the touchdown passes went to Talyn Taylor, who finished with four catches for 140 yards, including scores of 58 and 65 yards. Tight end Ethan Barbour caught the other from three yards out. The ground game carried most of the load. According to Georgia Athletics, the Bulldogs ran for 295 yards on 48 carries, and Nate Frazier led them with 107 yards on 16 attempts. Georgia was up 28-0 at halftime and 35-0 going into the fourth quarter.
The defensive performance may matter more. Ole Miss came in averaging 37.1 points and nearly 440 yards a game, and Georgia held it to 252 yards. Trinidad Chambliss, who has drawn NFL Draft attention, went 18 of 34 for 170 yards with no touchdowns and an interception, and Georgia sacked him five times. The Rebels' only points came on an eight-yard Shekai Mills-Knight run in the fourth quarter. Kirby Smart credited his staff's preparation, telling ABC in comments reported by DawgNation that the players "stuck to the plan." The National Football Post pointed out that the win also avenged Georgia's Sugar Bowl loss to the Rebels last season.
What it means for Missouri week
Georgia's lone loss was a 27-24 home defeat to Auburn. Since then it has won 27-8 over No. 17 Florida and 42-7 at Ole Miss, giving up 15 points in two games against ranked opponents. The Bulldogs have also won at No. 6 Alabama and beaten Oklahoma 41-13, so they now have wins over several of the teams still in the conference race.
Next up is No. 18 Missouri, which visits Athens on Saturday, Nov. 14, on ABC. Missouri is coming in with less momentum than its ranking suggests. Ole Miss beat the Tigers 31-3 in October, and the Rebels team that did it just lost to Georgia by 35. If Georgia gets the same kind of game from its offensive line, it should be able to control the clock against Missouri the way it did in Oxford.
For Ole Miss, the loss drops it to 6-3. All three defeats have come against ranked teams: Georgia, Texas and Florida. With three losses, its College Football Playoff chances depend on how the rest of the season goes. The Rebels play at Oklahoma next Saturday, and Georgia beat the Sooners by 28 earlier this year. Ole Miss has played well at home, beating LSU, Missouri and Auburn there, but it is 1-2 in true road games against ranked opponents and FBS teams outside Vanderbilt. A loss in Norman would likely end its playoff hopes.
