University of Georgia Athletics
Statistically Speaking by Dave McMahon
November 30, 2012 | Football
Nov. 30, 2012
by Dave McMahon
@dave_mc_stats
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SEC Championship! Yes, the Georgia Bulldogs will be representing the Eastern Division in this season's SEC Championship. This ritual started in 1992 and for the first 10 years Georgia did not appear in the game, but since 2002, Georgia has been in 5 of the last 11 (counting this game.) This game Georgia has extra motivation. There is a good chance with a win; the Bulldogs can play for a BCS national championship. First things first though. But I don't want to forget the tremendous victory over the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. So here is a look back and a look forward and I guess a look now.
So for all you passionate fans, here are some more notes, nuggets and tidbits of information all things Georgia Bulldogs, statistically speaking of course. For the most complete information on a specific upcoming game please check out the individual sport and game you are looking for on www.georgiadogs.com and for even more statistical insights you can follow me on twitter @dave_mc_stats.
And now for the extra stuff...
Football ---
Like I said above, Georgia will be playing in its 5th SEC Championship game. They have the 2nd most appearances in the SEC East and the tied for the 3rd most by any team. Here are the top 5 teams with the most appearances counting this one.
| Florida | 10 |
| Alabama | 8 |
| Georgia | 5 |
| LSU | 5 |
| Tennessee | 5 |
If Georgia wins, the Bulldogs will be 1 of 4 teams with at least 3 SEC Championship victories (Florida, Alabama and LSU being the others.)
As for head coaches in this game, Mark Richt is tied for 2nd if you count this game. One of the people he is tied with is the other coach in this game. Here are the top 4.
| Steve Spurrier | 8 |
| Mark Richt | 5 |
| Nick Saban | 5 |
| Phillip Fulmer | 5 |
Ok, before I get too far ahead, let me look back one more time at the Georgia Tech game. The 42-10 was one of the top 10 most lopsided wins for the Bulldogs over the Yellow Jackets. Here are the top 10 point differentials in the 105 meetings.
| 2002 | 51-7 | 48 points | 1942 | 34-0 | 34 |
| 1968 | 47-8 | 39 | 1945 | 33-0 | 33 |
| 1903 | 38-0 | 38 | 1993 | 43-10 | 33 |
| 1994 | 48-10 | 38 | 2012 | 42-10 | 32 |
| 1981 | 44-7 | 37 | 1931 | 35-6 | 29 |
The scoring came often for the Dawgs and once again the 3rd quarter was very kind for Georgia. The Bulldogs outscored the Yellow Jackets 14-0 in the 15 minutes following halftime. The Bulldogs have now outscored their opponents 155 to 27 in the 3rd which is the highest differential in 3rd quarter, 128 points (Louisiana Tech is 2nd with 98 points.) Georgia also has the highest differential in the 2nd half outscoring its opponents 228 to 78, 150 points (Northern Illinois is 2nd with 148 points.)
In the game Aaron Murray passed for two touchdown passes and now has 89 for his career and is now tied for 2nd all-time in SEC history. Once again here is the top 5.
| Danny Wuerffel | 114 |
| Aaron Murray | 89 |
| Peyton Manning | 89 |
| Chris Leak | 88 |
| Tim Tebow | 88 |
Murray also has 30 on the season. He is the only quarterback in Georgia's history to throw that many and he has done it twice in his career (35 last season.)
As for pass yards if you add the 215 from the Georgia Tech game, it gives Aaron Murray 3,201 pass yards this season. He has the 5th highest in one season by a Bulldog. The funny thing is the 4 of the top 5 all-time were done by players in their junior season.
| Eric Zeier | 1993 | 3,525 pass yards |
| Matthew Stafford | 2008 | 3,459 |
| Eric Zeier | 1994 | 3,396 |
| David Greene | 2003 | 3,307 |
| Aaron Murray | 2012 | 3,201 |
Running the ball was the same dynamic duo I mention in almost every article. Todd Gurley and Keith Marshall each had 2 TD rushes. It was the 3rd time those two have each run for at least 2 TD rushes each (Vanderbilt and Tennessee the others.) Those are also the only 3 times that at least 2 players have had at least 2 TD rushes in the same game under Mark Richt.
Todd Gurley is still 3rd all-time at Georgia for most rush yards in a season by a freshman and he is 2nd among true freshmen, but he is also climbing the charts of the most rush yards by any Bulldog player. Here are the top-10 for most rush yards in a season by a Georgia Bulldog.
| Herschel Walker | 1981 | 1,891 rush yards |
| Herschel Walker | 1982 | 1,752 |
| Herschel Walker | 1980 | 1,616 |
| Garrison Hearst | 1992 | 1,594 |
| Knowshon Moreno | 2008 | 1,400 |
| Knowshon Moreno | 2007 | 1,334 |
| Musa Smith | 2002 | 1,324 |
| Willie McClendon | 1978 | 1,312 |
| Tim Worley | 1988 | 1,216 |
| Todd Gurley | 2012 | 1,138 |
On the receiving end, Georgia is finding many different receivers to throw the ball to. This season 8 wide receivers, 2 tight ends, 2 tailbacks and 2 fullbacks have each caught passes for the Bulldogs. In all, nine different players have caught at least 10 passes this season. That has happened two other times under Mark Richt. In 2003 and in 2007 the Dawgs accomplished this feat. It may grow to 10 or more since Rhett McGowan currently has 9 receptions this season and Keith Marshall has 8.
Moving the ball is what the Bulldogs have done very well this season. Georgia has successfully converted 3rd down plays 46 percent of the time. It is the best percentage under Mark Richt. Here are the top 5.
| 2012 | 46.0 percent |
| 2007 | 44.8 |
| 2003 | 42.7 |
| 2011 | 42.7 |
| 2008 | 42.0 |
And when the Dawgs move the ball they are scoring and not just scoring touchdowns. Once inside the redzone, Georgia has scored 85 percent of the time and has scored a touchdown 73 percent. The 73 percent is the highest under Mark Richt. The previous high under Mark Richt was 70 percent done in 2007. Last season the Dawgs scored a touchdown once in the redzone 62 percent of the time.
Getting to the redzone is easy when you have big plays. So far this season, Georgia has had 24 offensive plays that have gone at least 40 yards. It is the 2nd most in the FBS this season. Here are the top 5 schools.
| Baylor | 27 |
| Georgia | 24 |
| Michigan | 23 |
| Utah | 22 |
| Miami (FL) | 21 |
| Clemson | 21 |
Bacarri Rambo had a big game against the Yellow Jackets. The All-American had 8 tackles, 2 forced fumbles, 1 recovered fumble and an interception. The interception was his 16th of his career which ties him for first in school's history with Jake Scott. He is also tied for the lead among active players in the SEC. Here are the top 5.
| Bacarri Rambo | Georgia | 16 career INT |
| Johnathan Banks | Mississippi State | 16 |
| Robert Lester | Alabama | 13 |
| Prentiss Waggner | Tennessee | 9 |
| Charles Sawyer | Ole Miss | 7 |
Men's Basketball ---
After two hard fought games in which the Bulldogs led at half against ranked foes, Georgia returned home and defeated the East Tennessee State Buccaneers 54-38. The 38 points allowed was tied for the third lowest allowed by the Bulldogs since the 1996-97 season. Here are the five best.
| 2006 vs Alabama A&M | 36 points allowed |
| 2006 vs Southern | 37 |
| 2012 vs East Tennessee State | 38 |
| 2010 vs High Point | 38 |
| 2004 vs Alabama | 45 |
| 2005 vs Alabama | 45 |
Even though the Dawgs scored just 54 points, they shot terrifically. In the game, Georgia was 24-for-38 from the field. The 63.2 field goal percentage was the 4th best since the 1996-97 season and the 2nd best under Mark Fox. Here is that top-5.
| 2001 vs Mississippi State | 70.2 FG Pct |
| 1999 vs Marshall | 65.2 |
| 2011 vs Ole Miss | 63.5 |
| 2012 vs East Tennessee State | 63.2 |
| 2000 vs South Carolina | 62.7 |
Women's Hoops ---
The Lady Bulldogs were successful this week, defeating Furman 83-47. Georgia has a perfect 9 and 0 record against the South Carolina school. That record is tied for the best record among teams that Georgia has a perfect record against. Here are the top 6 schools that Georgia is perfect against and the Lady Bulldogs record against them.
| Furman | 9-0 |
| Tennessee Tech | 9-0 |
| Florida State | 8-0 |
| North Carolina State | 8-0 |
| Florida A&M | 6-0 |
| Savannah State | 6-0 |
Bulldogs in the NFL ---
Right before the monster seasons that Jarvis Jones has been having against opposing quarterbacks, it was Justin Houston wreaking havoc to signal callers of the SEC. Houston has continued his ways. Currently the Kansas City Chief has 9 sacks on the season including the 2 he had last week against the Denver Broncos. He has 14 ½ sacks in his career and maybe before long will reach the top-5 among former Bulldogs in the NFL with the most sacks. Here is that list.
| Phillip Daniels | 62 career sacks |
| Richard Seymour | 57 ½ |
| Mo Lewis | 52 ½ |
| Chris Clemons | 50 |
| Charles Grant | 47 |
We have already talked about Todd Gurley's amazing freshman season gaining over 1,000 rush yards. As mentioned above the last Bulldog frosh with that many was Knowshon Moreno. So far in the NFL he has had some highs and lows. Now with the injury to Willis McGahee, it looks like Moreno will get more of the carries in the backfield. It started last week where the current Denver Bronco gained a season-best 85 yards on the ground against the Kansas City Chiefs. Moreno now has 2,005 for his career. Here are his top-5 best performances as a professional and even though the 85 wasn't his best, his two best were also against that same team.
| 2010 at Chiefs | 161 rush yards |
| 2010 vs Chiefs | 106 |
| 2009 at Redskins | 97 |
| 2009 at Raiders | 90 |
| 2009 vs Patriots | 88 |
| 2009 vs Giants | 88 |
