No. 1 Georgia suffered from slow starts through its first five games, but it didn't have any problems on Saturday night against No. 20 Kentucky in a 51-13 beatdown at Sanford Stadium in Athens, Georgia.
Quarterback Carson Beck completed his first 12 passes, which included a 40-yard touchdown to Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint and a 15-yard score to RaRa Thomas to jump out to an early first-quarter lead. A 5-yard touchdown strike to tight end Oscar Delp early in the second quarter extended the lead to 21-0, which ultimately proved too much for the Wildcats to overcome.
Beck finished the night 28 of 35 passing for 389 yards and four touchdowns — the last of which was a 21-yarder to star tight end Brock Bowers. Speaking of Bowers, the Heisman Trophy hopeful finished the day with seven catches for 132 yards receiving and the score, marking his second straight game with at least 100 yards.
In handing Kentucky its first loss of the season, the Dawgs exposed a weakness in the Wildcats that their previous five opponents simply couldn't. Georgia held the running game in check as UK only managed 55 yards on the ground. Quarterback Devin Leary has had a solid career between Kentucky and NC State, but inconsistencies through the air when forced to win with his arm were apparent from the moment toe met leather.
What are the takeaways from Saturday's SEC East blowout? Let's dive into them below.
Beck is coming of age
Georgia coach Kirby Smart and offensive coordinator Mike Bobo have done a masterful job easing Beck into the starting role, and the junior is emerging as a star as a result. Saturday night's win was Beck's third straight game with at least 300 yards passing, and he's completed at least two-thirds of his attempts in every game this year. Sure, it helps that he can rely on Bowers, but the star tight end wasn't the focal point early in the game. Rather, Bobo got Rosemy-Jacksaint and Thomas into the mix before weaving Bowers into the game plan after Kentucky was forced to pay attention to Georgia's other weapons.
Bowers is going to get all of the love because, well, he's a cheat code, but Beck deserves a ton of credit for this team's offensive evolution as it looks to three-peat as national champions.
Improvement along the D-line
The Bulldogs entered Week 6 averaging just 1.6 sacks per game and 5.6 tackles for loss, but against Kentucky they had three sacks and four TFLs. Regardless, the most important sign that things are improving in the trenches is that Georgia stuffed Kentucky's run game. Kentucky's star running back, Ray Davis, had just 59 yards rushing at less than 4 yards per touch after a career day of 280 yards rushing and three touchdowns against Florida in Week 5.
It wasn't a giant leap forward, but more of medium-sized step. That's OK. With Vanderbilt and a bye week around the corner, small signs of improvement can make a world of difference as this defense continues searching for its identity.
Missed opportunity
This was Kentucky's best chance to spring an upset on Georgia. The Wildcats recaptured their magic in the trenches through the first five weeks of the season, and Georgia's front seven had been a shell of its former self. Instead, this game showed that Kentucky isn't ready for the national spotlight. In fact, it might be far from it.
Leary was supposed to be the guy to take the 'Cats to the next level. His success at NC State, combined with the return of offensive coordinator Liam Coen, was supposed help Kentucky become Georgia's biggest threat in the SEC East. Instead, Leary completed just 10 of his 26 passes for 128 yards passing and exposed the problems within the offense.
The Wildcats have now lost nine straight meetings against teams ranked No. 1 in the AP Top 25 -- all by at least 10 points. Their last win over a top-ranked team was against LSU in 2007, which was its first since 1964. This was their best shot and reversing those fortunes, but this game was over from the moment they walked out of the tunnel.