Georgia wins! Grab your cocktails, the Dawgs are 7-0. It wasn’t pretty, but like so many other games this season, Georgia showed up when they needed to most. Chauncey Bowens had some late-game heroics, the defense showed up when it had to, and it wouldn’t be Saturday in the SEC without some SEC Officiating Controversy. Let’s recap the key storylines coming out of the Dawgs’ fifth straight victory in the World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party (we will accept no other name).
Georgia Wins: Bowens Put Florida on the Rocks
Chauncey Bowens 4th Quarter Runs
Bowens was the player of the game. At one time, that meant a Georgia running back probably carried 20+ times for over 150 yards. Not so much anymore in 2025. Looking at Bowen’s stat line, you would think this writer may have had the wrong running back. Bowens finished the game with nine carries, 70 yards, and a touchdown. It wasn’t about the quantity on Saturday night; it was all about the quality.
Georgia was caught in a slugfest against the Gators. The Dawgs found themselves trailing their opponent in the second half. But this time, the Dawgs were trailing 24-20 with less than five minutes to go in the game. Time and again this season, we have seen a Dawg stand up. Bowens was the guy on Saturday night. On first-and-ten from the Florida 36, Bowens took a handoff from Gunner Stockton, evaded the initial rush, put his foot in the ground, and was off to the races 36 yards that would prove to be the game-winning touchdown. Bowens was done yet, but Florida had to get the ball back with one more chance to pull ahead.
SEC Officiating Controversy Continues
Florida got the ball at the 25 and needed to march 75 yards to try to get the go-ahead score. DJ Lagway made some big plays on Saturday night. He hit a big 40-yard bomb in the first quarter to tie the game, and showed just enough elusiveness to keep Dawgs’ fans on their heels for the Gators’ 4th quarter drive. After a one-yard run and a five-yard pass over the middle, the Gators seemed in business and looking to make a drive.
On third and four, Lagway evaded a Georgia rush and heaved the ball all the way down the field to a wide-open J. Michael Sturdivant. The pass was short, and Sturdivant had to come back diving for the ball. Initially, it looked like the ball bounced before he could catch it (probably wishful thinking from a Dawgs fan). Replay, though, showed what an athletic move that Sturdivant had to make to come back to it. The call on the field was incomplete, and the replay confirmed that there was no conclusive evidence to overturn the play. Did it hit his forearm or the ground?
No angle could give us a certain answer, but no doubt will continue the whining from fans across the SEC about “Georgia getting all the calls.” A few weeks ago, Georgia benefited from an Auburn fumble not being overturned and Kirby Smart not being given a timeout. The trope is tired, but so is the whining.
Ball Don’t Lie
Hats off to Florida interim head coach Billy Gonzalez. Unlike Hugh Freeze, whose reaction to the official’s call signaled doom for Auburn, Gonzalez moved on and decided to go for it on fourth down. Ellis Robinson IV, though, was locked on Lagway and jumped in front of the pass and caused the turnover on downs. For Georgia fans, the ball don’t lie. The third down pass was incomplete. Besides, the Gators had the chance to make one more stop and get the ball back.
Bowens Put the Gators on the Rocks
Florida limited Georgia to three yards and used their timeouts to take just seven seconds off the clock. Georgia faced third-and-seven with 2:56 left in the game and Florida holding its final timeout. Another Gator stop would mean a long Georgia field goal and another opportunity at redemption for the Gator offense. Instead, Bowens called game. Bowens took a pitch around the left side of the line 14 yards to set Georgia up with a fresh set of downs. A Florida false start and a nice run by Stockton sealed the game and the win for the Dawgs.
After Georgia Wins, What’s Next?
Georgia heads to Starkville next week for an 11 am local kick. The Bulldogs are coming off their first SEC win under Jeff Lebby after a late touchdown to push back Arkansas in Fayetteville.
Main Photo: Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
