Georgia Bulldogs Football: Seniors Say Goodbye To Sanford Stadium

by Josh Cagliani
11/15/2007

The Georgia Bulldog seniors will get one more chance to play between the hedges when the Kentucky Wildcats come to Athens on Saturday for the final SEC game of the season.

The ninth-ranked Bulldogs (8-2, 5-2 SEC) have 23 seniors who will be playing their final home game. During their four years at Georgia they have compiled a record of 37-11 with one SEC title.

If the seniors want to add one more SEC title, they will have no choice but to win on Saturday. A win, coupled with a Tennessee loss to Vanderbilt or Kentucky, will guarantee the Bulldogs a trip to the Georgia Dome in Atlanta for the SEC Championship Game.

After getting off to a 4-2 start, the Bulldogs have gone on a tear with four straight wins. In the last three games Georgia has scored over 40 points, the first time that has happened since 1942. A Georgia team has never scored 40 points four games in a row.

“I think Stafford is beginning to relax a little bit and not feel like he has to throw it 100 miles per hour every time he throws it,” Georgia head coach Mark Richt said. “I think that was part of the problem last year - we had three different quarterbacks start.”

Since becoming the starter four games ago, redshirt freshman Knowshon Moreno has rushed for 642 yards and eight touchdowns.

Last week Moreno’s workload was reduced with the return of senior Thomas Brown. That didn’t seem to slow either one of them down as they combined to rush for 182 yards.

“In looking at Georgia, they appear to me to be playing as good as anybody in the conference at this point,” Kentucky head coach Rich Brooks said.

The Bulldogs can’t look past the 22nd-ranked Kentucky Wildcats (7-3, 3-3 SEC). The Wildcats, led by starting quarterback André Woodson, have an explosive offense that averages 37.7 points per game. In the last 16 games, Kentucky has passed for over 200 yards and totaled more than 300 yards in all of them.

“Right now he [Woodson] is playing like a veteran quarterback,” Richt said. “He is calm back there, he knows what to do and he can handle every situation.”

The good news for the Bulldogs is Kentucky’s defense ranks 11th in the SEC in scoring at 28.1 points per game. After putting up 45 points against Auburn’s highly-ranked defense last week, Georgia will look to do the same to the Wildcats.

Kentucky, which beat Georgia for the first time since 1996 last year in Lexington, Ky., knows how to win against the Bulldogs. The Wildcats, however, do not know how to win in Athens. Georgia has won the last 14 games in Athens dating back to 1977.

“This team beat us last year and they beat the number one team in the country this year,” Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford said.

Lately, the Bulldogs have come up with ingenious ways to motivate themselves. The entire team celebrated on the field after the first touchdown in the Florida game, and last week the team had a “blackout” and came dressed in black jerseys, the first time that has ever occurred at Georgia.

No motivational ploys will be needed this week to get the team excited. The Bulldog players know this game could determine whether they play for an SEC championship or not.

“It’s a must win Saturday,” senior strong safety Kelin Johnson said. “We have a lot to play for, and we have a lot to look forward to as well. We know we have to take care of business.”

A Georgia win and a Tennessee loss would mark the fourth time in Richt’s seven years at Georgia he has been to the SEC Championship Game. Georgia’s fate may well be determined on Saturday.

This will be the last chance for seniors to leave a memory in the minds of the Bulldog fans, at least in Athens. The team has one remaining regular season game at Georgia Tech, with a chance to play in the SEC Championship Game. The season will then conclude with a bowl game.

The game will air on Lincoln Financial Sports at 12:30 p.m. Georgia is 3-1 when broadcasted on Lincoln Financial Sports.