ATLANTA — The final score made Georgia’s 34-3 win over Clemson look a lot easier than it really was, and Kirby Smart knew that.

“I think the narrative is out there you’re going to roll the ball out and Georgia is just going to win — because they have a ‘G’, " Smart said. “Football is not that way. That’s a really good football team we just played.”

The No. 1-ranked Bulldogs had to make halftime adjustments and have several new players step up at critical moments before pulling away for the impressive win over the No. 14 Tigers.

Smart, who has now won 21-straight games when having more than a week to prepare for an opponent, told ABC his reaction to the victory was to “win the next one,” pleased his UGA squad had already put one quality win in the books.

Here are some other takeaways from Smart’s comments after the win in Mercedes-Benz Stadium:

1. Barometer Victory

Smart got to see his team challenged by a worthy opponent and learn how different players would respond under pressure.

“…. you’re playing another top-15, top-20 matchup, to me it feels like a playoff game, (and) it’s a great way to try to assess where you are as a team,” Smart said.

“No longer do you have to win every game, but you do have to find out when you’re going to be playing your bet, and you want to be playing your best towards the end of the year, and one of the best barometers is to get quality wins.”

2. Exceptional Scheme

Georgia is known for having more talent than most every opponent it faces, so Smart and his coaching staff often don’t get enough credit for how well they game plan.

But the halftime adjustments in the Clemson win were notable, particularly with so many new pieces and key injuries to overcome.

“I think Coach (Glenn) Schumann and his defensive staff have done a great job of making our defense adjustable, complex without being complex, and you can play more players that way,” Smart said.

“I think Mike (Bobo) and his staff did a good job at halftime looking at pictures, seeing what was there, capitalizing on explosive plays.”

3. Secondary Adjustment

Former Clemson defensive coordinator Brent Venables was one step ahead of Georgia in the team’s last meeting, but this time around it was Smart and his defensive staff winning the chess match.

Smart made the brilliant adjustment of moving All-American safety Malaki Starks to the “Star” with Joenel Aguero a surprise scratch — and sliding Dan Jackson into Starks’ spot and freshman KJ Bolden to Jackson’s role at safety. It appeared to catch Clemson off-guard, as the Tigers’ likely game-planned to go at a first-time starter in Aguero.

“It was really scary because we didn’t have the volume of reps with that makeup,” said Smart, who opened with JaCorey (Thomas) at Star before making the first quarter adjustment of inserting Bolden.

4. Maximizing Walker

Georgia has quite a talent in Jalon Walker, but the genius is in how, when and where Schumann is able to maximize his impact.

Walker made arguably two of the biggest stops in the game in the third quarter, helping to ignite UGA seizing control of the game.

The Bulldogs had taken a 20-3 lead on Nate Frazier’s 1-yard run and Clemson looked to answer, gaining 9 yards on the first play of the ensuing drive on a Phil Mafah run.

But on second-and-1, Walker stopped Mafah for no gain, and on third-and-1 Walker expertly played an option and dropped QB Cade Klubnik for no gain, sealing a three-and-out.

“There’s packages where Jalon plays inside, there’s packages where Jalon plays outside,” Smart said, explaining Walker’s talent, versatility and coach-abilty. “We’ve had to get uncomfortable as coaches to use his skill set, and I think Schumann and the defensive staff have done a great job of finding ways that he can be successful.”

5. Carson’s Confidence

Carson Beck did not have a signature first half, just 1-of-6 on third-down conversions, but utilizing a new rule that allows for I-Pad review helped him make adjustments and bring confidence to the field in the second half.

“We started early (noon) and didn’t have third-down conversions in the first half, and I thought he responded well to that,” said Smart, who saw Beck throw for 152 of his yards and both of his touchdowns in the second half.

“He came in, sat down with the I-Pad, and he told me, ‘When we come out second half, we’re going to go in there and score, Coach, and sure enough, we did.”