Ole Miss poured it on against Georgia, overwhelming the Bulldogs in the rain by a 28-10 count.
It was UGA’s most-lopsided loss since a 37-10 SEC title game defeat at the hands of a Joe Burrow-led LSU team that went on to win the national championship.
The Rebels’ fans stormed the wet field, celebrating after No. 16 Ole Miss (8-2, 4-2 SEC) scored the highest-ranked home win in program history with the win over No. 3-ranked Georgia (7-2, 5-2).
A record-breaking crowd of 68,126 showed out at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium despite the wet conditions, perhaps aware it would benefit the Rebels’ pass game and effective pass rush.
Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart was 13-of-22 passing for 199 yards with a touchdown and an interception.
Georgia quarterback Carson Beck finished 20-of-31 passing for 186 yards and a tipped, fourth-down interception.
The Rebels defense, tops in the nation in sacks, dropped Beck behind the line five times, forcing a blind-side fumble in the fourth quarter.
Ole Miss out-gained Georgia 397-245, making the most of their snaps as UGA controlled the clock 32:15 to 27:45.
The Bulldogs’ receiving targets dropped multiple passes for a third consecutive week.
“They rushed the passer and made it impossible for Carson Beck all night,” Former SEC all-time leading passer and current analyst Eric Zeier said on the George Radio Network broadcast.
“We didn’t have an answer for it, it limited what we could do, we couldn’t protect in the pass game,” Zeier said. “…. we were on our heels getting pushed back the entire game.”
The Bulldogs will quickly turn their attention to the 7:30 p.m. game against Tennessee in Sanford Stadium next Saturday night — it’s first home game in five weeks — in a game Georgia will likely have to win to get into the 12-team College Football Playoff field.
“They have some flaws,” ABC analyst Greg McElroy said. “They have a lot talent, but they need to improve drastically down the stretch, if they’re going to make a run in the postseason.”
Georgia opened the scoring at Ole Miss after safety Dan Jackson picked off Dart on the opening series of the game’s opening drive, returning his interception to the Ole Miss 21-yard line.
It led to Nate Frazier’s 2-yard touchdown run, giving UGA a 7-0 lead.
The Rebels scored the next 16 points before Georgia was driving to cut into the lead in the second quarter.
The drive ended, however, when wide-open Stanford-transfer tight end Ben Yourasek dropped a well-thrown Beck pass at the Ole Miss 34 that would have been a first down.
Beck was sacked on the next play for a 9-yard loss, taking Georgia out of field goal position, and the teams went to intermission with the Rebels holding a 16-7 lead.
The Bulldogs opened the second half driving to the Ole Miss 5-yard line before settling for a 23-yard Peyton Woodring field goal that cut the lead to 16-10.
Ole Miss proceeded to take a 22-16 lead on its next drive, Dart firing a 10-yard TD pass to Antwane “Juice” Wells — a former All-SEC pick at South Carolina — with 6:10 left in the third quarter.
Beck had Georgia driving on the ensuing possession, from his own 25 to the Rebels’ 29, when Frazier had the ball ripped away from him and Texas A&M transfer Walter Nolan recovered.
The Bulldogs’ defense held, but Georgia’s next drive stalled out on a fourth-and-10 at the Ole Miss 27, when Beck’s pass was tipped at the line and intercepted with 7:22 left at the Ole Miss 25.
The Rebels proceeded to drive to the Georgia 7, chewing up time on the clock and forcing the Bulldogs to exhaust their timeouts, before kicking a field goal to make it 25-10 with 3:22 left.
Georgia’s last gasp for a comeback ended just two plays into the next drive, when Florida transfer Princely Umanmielen beat UGA left tackle Earnest Green lll off the edge, looping around to hit an unsuspecting Beck and force a fumble that 2023 Freshman All-American Suntarine Perkins recovered at the UGA 19.
The Rebels ran the ball three times for three yards, draining more time, before booting a field goal for the final 28-10 margin.
“This was a tough loss, it was culmination of being on the road so much playing big, high-stakes games, that can catch up to you, when you think about the gauntlet we’ve been through,” Zeier said.
“Our entire season is in front of us, but have to win every time we step on the field, now.”