Morning, y’all — happy Monday!

I hope everyone had an amazing weekend.

The Bulldogs still won comfortably this past Saturday, though Vanderbilt definitely tested Georgia in a few ways, despite starting quarterback Jared Curtis not playing.

The Commodores had some success on third down, and the Bulldogs yielded 14 points in the first half, including the first first-quarter touchdown they’d given up all season.

“At the end of the day, you know, you gotta have an identity on third down,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said. “They did a good job executing on third down, mixed cadence, did a good job of that.”

Georgia has a massive Top 10 matchup with Alabama looming, but as we often do on Mondays, let’s analyze what went right (and what could have gone better) on Saturday:

Georgia knows it needs to clean up this key defensive area before ‘Bama

The numbers from the Vanderbilt game don’t tell the entire story.

The box score will show that Georgia stopped Vanderbilt on seven of the 12 third-down attempts it faced, including all three in the second half.

But at halftime, Vanderbilt had picked up five of those nine attempts. On those five conversions, the Commodores gained 134 yards, with 60 coming on a touchdown pass from backup quarterback Blaze Berlowitz to Junior Sherrill.

Georgia pressured Berlowitz often, but he was able to use his legs to evade it. Georgia had just one sack.

That came via Gabe Harris on a first-down pass attempt. On that drive, Vanderbilt’s first of the second half, the Commodores found themselves in a third-and-16.

They gained 15 yards on the play to set up a fourth-and-short, which they converted.

“It was not to the standard,” Georgia defensive lineman Jordan Hall said. “Every team has hiccups. We gave them a lot of stuff. Bad eyes, bad coverage, bad defense that we played. A lot of things we got to correct and get cleaned up for next week and just move forward.”

Hall did qualify that he believed Vanderbilt is a good team, even playing without their 5-star quarterback.

Alabama will have that next week, with Keelon Russell playing at an elite level. He threw for 285 yards on 22 pass attempts, totaling four touchdowns in a win over Mississippi State.

“I mean, in a fight, you ain’t never really tested until you get punched in the mouth,” Hall said. “We got punched in the mouth. We responded in the second half, and we just got to keep moving forward.”

Read Connor Riley’s full story here.

Vanderbilt shows Georgia run game can be slowed, protects QB

Vanderbilt coach Clark Lea found positives in the Commodores’ loss that will have Smart and his Georgia staff hard at work.

The No. 2-ranked Bulldogs scored the final 17 points for a 38-14 win, but not before Vanderbilt found enough success to play UGA within a touchdown for a half.

“We were able to play within a possession there, at the half,” Lea said. “I thought we needed a stop coming out, it was a third-and-5 (pass) that got deflected and fell into the hands of their tight end (Lawson Luckie). Obviously that was a big moment.”

Georgia made the deflection count, as it converted for a first down on the play as Luckie gained 43 yards after the fortuitous moment, scoring six plays later to extend its lead to 28-14.

“I was proud of the way our defense fought for every blade of grass to finish that drive, obviously it ended in a touchdown,” Lea said.

The Vanderbilt coach pointed out that the Commodores’ inability to convert on a fourth-and-2 at the Georgia 40 on the ensuing possession was also pivotal.

“We failed to convert on the fourth down,” Lea said, “and that was that.”

Just as Oklahoma coach Brent Venables said he felt his team was able to go toe to toe with Georgia’s vaunted offensive and defensive lines in a 41-13 loss, Lea felt the Commodores did the same thing.

“It felt like we protected better today. It felt like there was a little more space in the pocket,” Lea said. “It felt like the run game was able to get going; I think that’s a really good defensive front.”

Read Mike Griffith’s full story here.

Georgia football winners, losers as another major ‘Bama matchup looms

Winner: Dwight Phillips Jr.

Nate Frazier made his return to action Saturday, but that was not the main story with the Georgia running back room.

Dwight Phillips Jr. once again excelled for the Bulldogs. His 10 touches resulted in 102 total yards and a touchdown.

But after leading Georgia in rushing last week, Phillips was at his best as a pass catcher against Vanderbilt. He had a game-high five receptions for 75 yards.

Phillips admittedly spent a lot of time working on his game as a pass catcher. That quiet offseason work paid off Saturday.

Coming into Saturday, Phillips had five career receptions.

In addition to catching the ball, he also showed the ability to run through would-be tacklers and make defenders miss in the open field. Add that to his speed and he’s got all the makings of a complete running back.

“Dwight’s awesome,” Smart said. “He’s a great kid to be around, a joy to be with. Like I talked about, everybody’s trying to find ways to get touches, and he capitalized on a lot of his moments today when he had a chance. That’s what part of being a good player is. You take advantage of the opportunities you’re presented with. He’s done that.”

Chauncey Bowens briefly left Saturday’s game, and Frazier is clearly not 100%. Heading into this week’s game against Alabama, another big performance from Phillips would be very welcome.

Georgia running back Dwight Phillips Jr. scores a touchdown during the first half against Vanderbilt at Sanford Stadium. The play was reversed, however. (Jason Getz/AJC)

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Winner: Jordan Hall

Georgia hasn’t just had a great run of success when it comes to defensive linemen. It’s found ones who are also capable of making an impact on special teams.

And although Hall might not yet be Jordan Davis or Jalen Carter when it comes to clogging the middle, the fourth-year defensive lineman found a way to make a winning play on special teams.

Hall got his massive hand on a second-quarter field goal attempt for Vanderbilt.

In addition to the blocked field goal, Hall added another tackle for loss for the Bulldogs. He’s had one in each of Georgia’s past two games.

Entering a massive game against Alabama, Hall is playing his best football of his career.

“So proud of him, and he plays with so much effort,” Smart said. “He’s one of our inspiration leaders. It matters to him. He cares, and he chose to come here from out of state, and he plays really hard, and leads really hard, and I’m just glad he got his finger on that.”

Georgia’s defensive line mauled Alabama in last year’s SEC championship game. The Crimson Tide finished with minus 3 rushing yards.

If Hall can help replicate that effort — he missed that win with a knee injury — it will go a long way for the Georgia defense against what should be an elite Alabama offense.

Read Connor’s full story of winners and losers here.

Georgia defensive lineman Jordan Hall blocks a kick by Vanderbilt's Brock Taylor during the first half of Saturday's game in Athens. (Hyosub Shin/AJC)

Georgia defensive lineman Jordan Hall celebrates after blocking a kick by Vanderbilt's Brock Taylor during the first half of Saturday's game. (Hyosub Shin/AJC)

Trivia time

Hall’s blocked field goal against Vanderbilt was the first since when for the Bulldogs?

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Georgia stock falls in Vegas, line flips early to new favorite Alabama

That didn’t take long.

Georgia opened as a 1.5-point favorite over Alabama on Sunday morning, but by the time Smart and his players turned in for bed they were in the role of underdog.

It’s just the way Smart likes it, and it’s also hardly surprising when one considers Alabama delivered a reality check on Saturday while Georgia received one.

The Crimson Tide will welcome the Bulldogs to Bryant-Denny Stadium for a 7:30 p.m. game Saturday in a battle of unbeaten teams that promises to produce an electric environment.

Alabama is arguably the hottest team in college football, as it’s the only one to have scored at least 45 points in all its games this season, while Georgia remains the gold standard with its methodical consistency.

It’s to the point between the hedges that when the Bulldogs win by “only” 24 points against a decent SEC opponent — as they did in topping Vanderbilt 38-14 on Saturday — UGA goes under the microscope for closer examination, as much by Smart as anyone else.

“We didn’t play the run well, and I can’t say that it was all on the kids every play,” Smart said after Vanderbilt out-rushed UGA for most of the game before the Bulldogs piled up 122 of their 176 yards in the final quarter, 58 of it coming on one run from reserve back Bo Walker.

Read Mike’s full story here.

We had a few more awesome photos from Saturday that I can’t resist squeaking in today’s newsletter:

Georgia defensive back Ellis Robinson IV makes an interception on a pass intended for Vanderbilt wide receiver Junior Sherrill. (Jason Getz/AJC)

Vanderbilt quarterback Whit Muschamp is pressured on a pass attempt by Georgia linebackers Gabe Harris Jr. and Zayden Walker. (Jason Getz/AJC)

Georgia running back Bo Walker racks up 58 yards before being taken down by Vanderbilt safety CJ Heard. (Jason Getz/AJC)

Hairy Dawg pets Uga XI, known as Boom, as Charles Seiler escorts the bulldog around the field during the first half of Saturday's game. (Hyosub Shin/AJC)

Georgia quarterback Gunner Stockton (14) dives near the endzone for extra yardage. (Hyosub Shin/AJC)

Trivia answer

It was the first for the Bulldogs since Dan Jackson against Auburn in 2024.