University of Georgia Athletics
After Splashy Start, Bulldogs Turn To SEC Play
September 13, 2026 | Football, The Frierson Files
By John Frierson
Staff Writer
The No. 2-ranked Georgia football team has played two games, beating overmatched Tennessee State and Western Kentucky by a combined score of 133-23. So what have we learned besides that the Bulldogs' all-white outfit they wore against the Hilltoppers on Saturday was a very good look?
Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said after Georgia beat Western Kentucky 70-20, a week after beating Tennessee State 63-3, that the games are about to get a lot more challenging. The Bulldogs begin SEC play next week at Arkansas.
"On to the SEC league now, and it's just a different league," he said. "You play in this league on the road over the years that I have and coached, it's a different environment. Every game is really hard — especially on the road, especially the first one. So with that, we'll be focusing on Arkansas moving forward."
Quarterback Gunner Stockton hasn't played through the end of the second quarter in either of the Bulldogs' games, because he hasn't had to. When he has played, he's been pretty close to flawless. In the season-opener against Tennessee State, he completed 15 of 16 passes for 202 yards and three touchdowns. On Saturday, he shredded the Hilltoppers with 234 yards and five touchdowns — tying a school record — on 13 of 16 passing.
"It feels good. You always want to execute at the end of the day and just do your job," Stockton said of his play against Western Kentucky.
Georgia's receivers are doing their jobs, too. A lot of them. Fifteen Bulldogs caught passes against Tennessee State, with five scoring touchdowns, and 11 had catches against Western Kentucky. Five different players had touchdown catches on Saturday, highlighted by Sacovie White-Helton's 70-yard score in the second quarter.
"Yeah, the throw and the decision by Gunner was great. It was elite," Smart said of the 70-yard touchdown. "The catch by Sacovie, using all his hands and not his body, was really big. And then his burst, you know, to split the safeties and go make a play. So it was really nice protection and a really nice decision. Great catch and run after the catch."
Smart said Georgia's depth at receiver, and willingness to spread the ball around to a lot of different players, is by design.
"Everybody wants a 1,000-yard receiver and this and that, but we spread the wealth," he said. "That's the way the offense is built, and it's a good thing."
Through two games, Talyn Taylor leads the team with five catches for 59 yards and two touchdowns. White-Helton has four catches for 104 yards, Craig Dandridge Jr. has four for 92, and running back Chauncey Bowens has four for 77, including a 21-yarder on Saturday during which he hurdled over a defender at the goal line.
"That was nice," Stockton said of Bowens' leap. "That was like a video game hurdle."
Georgia's ground game has in some ways been quieter than the passing attack, but the Bulldogs have still been effective running the ball. Nate Frazier touched the ball four times in the opener, and scored three touchdowns. He added another score Saturday, and he heads into SEC fresh, having carried the ball just 10 times this season, for 127 yards and four TDs. Bowens has just five carries, for 28 yards, to go another with the four receptions.
Defensively, Georgia's first- and second-string guys haven't been tested too much. Over the first half of both of the Bulldogs' games, the defense has allowed only nine points. At halftime Saturday, Western Kentucky had just 63 yards on 35 plays. As a team, the Bulldogs had 15 tackles for loss and five sacks.
The defense also produced a touchdown Saturday. Safety Blake Stewart intercepted a pass that bounced off linebacker Terrell Foster's hands and started running the other way. He was then stripped from behind around the WKU 15-yard line, and the ball kept rolling toward the end zone. Just before the ball passed through the back of the end zone for a touchback, safety Tyriq Green dove on it for a touchdown.
"He never quit," Smart said of Green on the play. "He was the backside safety. He kept chasing. It was a hustle play that he made."
Green wasn't done making plays. In the fourth quarter, he returned a kickoff 91 yards for a touchdown. Georgia didn't need defensive or special teams points to roll in its first two games, but any help is always appreciated. And with a tough SEC schedule to come, every aspect of the Bulldogs' squad will need to be at their best.
Staff Writer
The No. 2-ranked Georgia football team has played two games, beating overmatched Tennessee State and Western Kentucky by a combined score of 133-23. So what have we learned besides that the Bulldogs' all-white outfit they wore against the Hilltoppers on Saturday was a very good look?
Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said after Georgia beat Western Kentucky 70-20, a week after beating Tennessee State 63-3, that the games are about to get a lot more challenging. The Bulldogs begin SEC play next week at Arkansas.
"On to the SEC league now, and it's just a different league," he said. "You play in this league on the road over the years that I have and coached, it's a different environment. Every game is really hard — especially on the road, especially the first one. So with that, we'll be focusing on Arkansas moving forward."
Quarterback Gunner Stockton hasn't played through the end of the second quarter in either of the Bulldogs' games, because he hasn't had to. When he has played, he's been pretty close to flawless. In the season-opener against Tennessee State, he completed 15 of 16 passes for 202 yards and three touchdowns. On Saturday, he shredded the Hilltoppers with 234 yards and five touchdowns — tying a school record — on 13 of 16 passing.
"It feels good. You always want to execute at the end of the day and just do your job," Stockton said of his play against Western Kentucky.
Georgia's receivers are doing their jobs, too. A lot of them. Fifteen Bulldogs caught passes against Tennessee State, with five scoring touchdowns, and 11 had catches against Western Kentucky. Five different players had touchdown catches on Saturday, highlighted by Sacovie White-Helton's 70-yard score in the second quarter.
"Yeah, the throw and the decision by Gunner was great. It was elite," Smart said of the 70-yard touchdown. "The catch by Sacovie, using all his hands and not his body, was really big. And then his burst, you know, to split the safeties and go make a play. So it was really nice protection and a really nice decision. Great catch and run after the catch."
Smart said Georgia's depth at receiver, and willingness to spread the ball around to a lot of different players, is by design.
"Everybody wants a 1,000-yard receiver and this and that, but we spread the wealth," he said. "That's the way the offense is built, and it's a good thing."
Through two games, Talyn Taylor leads the team with five catches for 59 yards and two touchdowns. White-Helton has four catches for 104 yards, Craig Dandridge Jr. has four for 92, and running back Chauncey Bowens has four for 77, including a 21-yarder on Saturday during which he hurdled over a defender at the goal line.
"That was nice," Stockton said of Bowens' leap. "That was like a video game hurdle."
Georgia's ground game has in some ways been quieter than the passing attack, but the Bulldogs have still been effective running the ball. Nate Frazier touched the ball four times in the opener, and scored three touchdowns. He added another score Saturday, and he heads into SEC fresh, having carried the ball just 10 times this season, for 127 yards and four TDs. Bowens has just five carries, for 28 yards, to go another with the four receptions.
Defensively, Georgia's first- and second-string guys haven't been tested too much. Over the first half of both of the Bulldogs' games, the defense has allowed only nine points. At halftime Saturday, Western Kentucky had just 63 yards on 35 plays. As a team, the Bulldogs had 15 tackles for loss and five sacks.
The defense also produced a touchdown Saturday. Safety Blake Stewart intercepted a pass that bounced off linebacker Terrell Foster's hands and started running the other way. He was then stripped from behind around the WKU 15-yard line, and the ball kept rolling toward the end zone. Just before the ball passed through the back of the end zone for a touchback, safety Tyriq Green dove on it for a touchdown.
"He never quit," Smart said of Green on the play. "He was the backside safety. He kept chasing. It was a hustle play that he made."
Green wasn't done making plays. In the fourth quarter, he returned a kickoff 91 yards for a touchdown. Georgia didn't need defensive or special teams points to roll in its first two games, but any help is always appreciated. And with a tough SEC schedule to come, every aspect of the Bulldogs' squad will need to be at their best.
Assistant Sports Communications Director John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files.
Players Mentioned
RB
/ Football
WR
/ Football
ILB
/ Football
RB
/ Football
S
/ Football
S
/ Football
QB
/ Football
WR
/ Football
WR
/ FootballSaturday, September 12
Saturday, September 12
Saturday, September 12
Friday, September 11