College football is built on rivalries, and no emerging rivalry in the country has become more fierce over the last several years than the one between the South Carolina Gamecocks and the Georgia Bulldogs. Their proximity and the way Steve Spurrier gets under the skin of Bulldogs fans is enough to create an intense dislike for one another, which is only exasperated by a recent history of great games between the two. South Carolina entered the game already needing a win to stay alive in the SEC East, while Georgia was looking to stay undefeated and keep possible hopes of an SEC championship and a berth in the College Football Playoff alive. The matchup was competitive at the start on Saturday in Athens, but Georgia ended up pulling away and blowing out the Gamecocks 52-20 at Sanford Stadium.

After South Carolina was unable to score on their opening possession, Georgia marched down the field on an 11 play, 71 yard drive which was capped off by Marshall Morgan's first field goal of the game. The Gamecocks would rebound, driving 48 yards on their own 13 play drive which ate up 5:40 of game clock, finishing it off with Elliott Fry's first field goal of the half. While he didn't directly factor into any scoring in the first period, one of the most interesting stats of the opening period was that Greyson Lambert started 4/4 passing for UGA after he missed on his first 7 passes last week.

After a low-scoring first, the offenses cranked it up in the second quarter. Led by their strong running game, Georgia would break out to a two touchdown lead. The first score was punched in from two yards out by Nick Chubb to cap off an 82-yard drive. One possession later it was the Sony Michel show, as he carried the offense down the field before scampering a 22-yard touchdown of his own.

The Gamecocks would respond to close the gap. Steve Spurrier pulled out the wildcat offense package with Lorenzo Nunez stepping in at quarterback, and he led much of the drive and got Carolina into position to score. The drive was finished off when starting quarterback Perry Orth returned to the game and ran the ball into the end zone from four yards out. South Carolina's defense could not stop the Bulldogs offensive attack however, as they moved down field once again, this time reyling on Lambert's arm. They finished this drive with a touchdown pass from Lambert to Malcolm Mitchell. On the ensuing kickoff, Shon Carson would return the ball into UGA territory and after a facemask penalty, Carolina had one last chance to score. Elliott Fry came on and kicked a career-best 51-yard field goal. Georgia took a 24-13 lead into the half.

While the first half was a competitive affair for the most part, the second half featured the Bulldogs exploiting a weak South Carolina defensive unit. Georgia scored 1:45 into the third quarter on Sony Michel's second touchdown of the game, this one on a screen pass from Lambert. Following an Orth interception on South Carolina's next possession, Michel caught another screen pass and scored once again, his third of the game. It was more of the same in the coming minutes; the Gamecocks could not get anything going and subsequently gave the ball back to the Bulldogs, who would score again. Nick Chubb punched in his second touchdown of the game to cap a three-touchdown quarter for the Dawgs.

After the onslaught from Georgia in the third quarter it was essentially over before the final period of play even started. Carolina would put up a touchdown at the start of the fourth, as backup quarterback Lorenzo Nunez would run into the end zone to cut the lead to 25 but it was too little too late. On the ensuing drive, the Bulldogs would go on to make some history.

Nick Chubb became the second-fastest player in school history to run for 2,000 yards (he did it 16 games; the only player to do it faster is Herschel Walker). Quarterback Greyson Lambert set the school record for consecutive completions with 20 while also setting the FBS record for completion percentage in a game by completion 24/25 passes (96%). He was pulled from the game following the drive, which saw Keith Marshall run the ball for the first time on the night, which went for UGA's fourth rushing touchdown. Following a couple more fruitless South Carolina drives, the Bulldogs finally put the Gamecocks out of their misery, the final score reading 52-20.

All in all, it was not a good day for the South Carolina Gamecocks. Starting quarterback Perry Orth completed just 6/17 passes for 66 yards with an interception, giving him a passer rating of 56.1 for the game. Backup quarterback Lorenzo Nunez played slightly better, completing 4/5 passes for just 18 yards, but he also led the team in rushing with 76 yards on 10 carries with a touchdown on the ground (Orth also ran for a touchdown). The team's leading receiver was Deebo Samuel, who had 2 catches for 20 yards.

Everything that could have gone right for Georgia did on Saturday evening. Greyson Lambert had a historic night, completing 24/25 passes to set an FBS record. He racked up 330 yards through the air with 3 touchdowns, good for a 246.5 passer efficiency rating. Nick Chubb led the devastating UGA rushing attack, carrying the ball 21 times for 159 yards and 2 touchdowns. Sony Michel also had a stellar day coming out of the backfield, netting 83 all-purpose yards with 3 total touchdowns. Malcolm Mitchell was the game's leading receiver with 8 receptions for 122 yards and a touchdown.

This was one of the most dominating performances across college football in the early part of this season. Many concerns over the quality of Georgia's passing attack likely faded away with Lambert's record-breaking day, while their offensive line and running game are still among the best in the country. For South Carolina, their offense's inability to move the ball consistently and their seive-like defense are cause for great concern in Columbia. While one of these teams has tons of momentum and title hopes still in their sights, the other will spend the coming weeks scrambling for answers. South Carolina will look to bounce back next week when they take on the UCF Knights at home, while Georgia hosts the Southern Jaguars at Sanford Stadium next weekend.

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About the author
Brendan Dzwierzynski
Originally from just outside of Chicago, IL, USA, Brendan is a at the University of Kansas in Lawrence, KS, USA. Brendan has a great deal of experience in broadcasting and journalism. He has won several awards for radio work, including the Best Sports Play-by-Play at the Columbia College Chicago High School Radio Awards, won during his senior year of high school. He currently serves as the FM Sports Director at KJHK-FM. In terms of writing, he currently writes for several publications, including VAVEL, RockChalkTalk.com (an SB Nation website), thewrestlinggame.com, as well as two personal blogs, titled Per audacia ad astra and Press Box Opinions (sports-only). Brendan is a fan of the Green Bay Packers, Chicago Cubs and White Sox, Chicago Bulls, Chicago Blackhawks and all teams at the University of Kansas.