Destiny's children?

Georgia's win over Tenn. extends Dawgs' best start since '82

Georgia's Damien Gary makes a catch for a first down in the second quarter. AP

ATHENS, Ga. (AP) -- After 20 years of disappointment, Georgia has that championship feeling again.

The sixth-ranked Bulldogs remained the only unbeaten team in the Southeastern Conference, building a comfortable lead and then holding up against a furious comeback to beat No. 10 Tennessee 18-13 Saturday.

"We set some lofty goals at the beginning of the season, and we're still in position to reach those goals," offensive tackle Jon Stinchcomb said. "We want to win championships."

Georgia (6-0, 3-0 SEC) hasn't won a conference championship since 1982, the last of three straight conference titles with Herschel Walker in the backfield. Since then, it's been nothing but frustration.

This team is determined to end the drought, having survived perhaps the toughest stretch of the season. Last week, the Bulldogs defeated Alabama in Tuscaloosa for the first time ever. Now, they've beaten the Volunteers for the third year in a row.

"We've had a hard time pulling away from anybody," said coach Mark Richt, aware four of the victories have been by a total of 16 points. "But we're doing what it takes to win. There's a lot to be said for that."

Tennessee (4-2, 1-2) had to go without starting quarterback Casey Clausen, sidelined with a shoulder injury. Instead, third-string freshman James Banks went most of the way, running around as though he were back on the playground.

Banks was held in check through the first three quarters, then appeared to wear down the Bulldogs. Tennessee had nearly half of its 344 yards in the final period, when Banks went 6-of-6 for 145 yards.

Tennessee had only 32 yards passing at the end of the third quarter.

"James did a nice job with what he was asked to do," Tennessee offensive coordinator Randy Sanders said. "We felt like we needed to take the pressure off our young quarterback by running."

Tennessee scored two touchdowns in the fourth quarter to make it close. But Georgia recovered an onside kick, and Tony Milton broke off a 25-yard run on fourth-and-2 to clinch the victory with 11/2 minutes remaining.

Georgia's special teams dominated early.

Reggie Brown blocked a punt late in the first quarter. The ball went through the end zone for a safety and a 2-0 lead.

Boss Bailey, putting his 46-inch vertical leap to good use, blocked Phillip Newman's 44-yard field goal attempt in the second period.

Clausen, a three-year starter, hurt his non-throwing shoulder in a six-overtime victory over Arkansas the previous week. He didn't practice all week, but the Vols looked as though they had hardly prepared to play without him.

C.J. Leak started in place of Clausen but did little more than hand off. He gave way to Banks on the third series of the game.

The freshman made things exciting, running in all directions to escape the incessant Georgia rush. He finally got the upper hand in the final quarter.

"Shoot, yeah, we got tired," Bulldogs defensive end David Pollack said. "He was running 50 yards one way, then 50 yards the other way."

Tennessee's top receiver, Kelley Washington, wasn't a factor until the fourth. He actually lost 13 yards on his first two pass receptions and didn't have a deep ball thrown his way until late in the third. Kentrell Curry broke it up, and Washington slapped the grass in frustration.

Georgia quickly realized that Tennessee wasn't going to do much offensively, so the Bulldogs played it safe and slowly built on their lead.

Two field goals by Billy Bennett put Georgia up 8-0 at halftime, and Brown scored the Bulldogs' only touchdown on an 11-yard touchdown pass from David Greene about 6 1/2 minutes into the third quarter.

After Bennett's third field goal pushed the lead to 18-0, Georgia was cruising. But Derrick Tinsley caught a screen from Banks in the backfield, broke several tackles and scored on a 33-yard pass with 11:52 remaining.

The 2-point conversion failed when Banks was drilled on a sweep around left end, nearly winding up in the hedges that ring the field.

Washington finally had a big play, making a leaping catch over the middle and breaking away for a 45-yard gain. That set up a 5-yard halfback pass by Tinsley, who rolled right and found Jason Witten in the back of the end zone.

But the comeback fell short.

Georgia will be a solid favorite the next two weeks in home games against Vanderbilt and Kentucky, meaning they could be undefeated going into the annual showdown against Florida on Nov. 2.

Georgia's 20-year championship drought is the longest in school history. Tennessee has been responsible for much of the disappointment, handing the Bulldogs their first loss three years in a row from 1997-99.

But Tennessee couldn't overcome a key player getting hurt, severely damaging its hopes of getting back to the SEC championship game.

Coach Phillip Fulmer defended the run-oriented philosophy.

"It wasn't conservative play-calling," he said. "It was just hardheaded. It was good, old-fashioned football."

 

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