ATHENS, Ga. (AP) – David Bennett said Coastal Carolina left Sanford Stadium with more than a big check.
The $475,000 payout for agreeing to play at Georgia is important, but Bennett said his players also will benefit from Coastal Carolina’s first game against a Southeastern Conference opponent.
The coach said mistakes by his Chanticleers, including three turnovers, gave Georgia too much help as the Bulldogs rolled to a 59-0 win on Saturday.
Coastal Carolina’s enrollment is 8,700 and the capacity of its home stadium is 9,102. The attendance at Sanford Stadium was 91,946, a little shy of Georgia’s normal sellout, but still a dramatic experience for the FCS team from the Big South Conference.
“It is important for each of our players to experience this type of game,” Bennett said. “It is the type of the game that we can put some players in and see what they can do and how they respond. I think overall our team handled the atmosphere very well. They didn’t let it get to them and I think they will really learn for this and be ready for the rest of the season.”
Coastal Carolina’s Niccolo Mastromatteo lost two fumbles on kickoffs to set up third-quarter touchdowns for Georgia.
The Chanticleers were held to seven first downs and 112 total yards.
“Today was not the way we wanted it to go,” said quarterback Aramis Hillary. “Georgia is a great team. We made a few mistakes, and we have to work hard to keep getting better. The whole team made a lot of mistakes, so just kept each other up and stayed positive.”
Hillary was 10-of-15 passing for 27 yards with an interception for Coastal Carolina (2-1). Jeremy Height had five carries for 19 yards and three catches for 13 yards.
“We just kept making mistakes and couldn’t get off the field,” Height said. “Georgia is a great team, and we need to keep working hard and get better.”
Georgia had nine tackles for losses.
“Georgia is the team we thought they were,” said Bennett, who this week predicted the Bulldogs will recover from their 0-2 start to be a top 10 team.
“After watching the film and studying, we had the ultimate respect for them. We had a lot of mistakes against a really good team.”
Aaron Murray passed for three touchdowns and also ran for a touchdown for Georgia, which took its most lopsided win since beating Northeast Louisiana 70-6 in 1994.
Georgia’s only turnover came when safety Bacarri Rambo intercepted a pass from Hillary in the second quarter but fumbled at the end of his 38-yard return.
Georgia (1-2) regrouped after losses to two ranked teams, Boise State and South Carolina.
Georgia needed the boost before starting a stretch of five straight SEC games, beginning with next week’s visit to Mississippi.
“I think we’ve got something to show in the SEC,” said cornerback Brandon Boykin.
Murray, who played only one series in the second half, completed 18 of 26 passes for 188 yards with no interceptions. Backup Hutson Mason added a touchdown pass.
“Today was a great game and really got some guys fired up,” Murray said. “I think we’re ready to get back into SEC play and get going again. We have a lot of guys playing great football right now, and we think we can play with anyone.”
Freshman Isaiah Crowell had 16 carries for 86 yards and a touchdown in his first start. Tavarres King had six catches for 65 yards, including two for touchdowns. Malcolm Mitchell had six catches for 43 yards and a touchdown.
Backup tailback Carlton Thomas had 15 carries for 71 yards and a touchdown.
Georgia had four new defensive starters. Shawn Williams moved from safety to start at inside linebacker, following injuries to starters Alec Ogletree and Christian Robinson the last two weeks. Sanders Cummings moved from cornerback to take Williams’ spot at safety, and Branden Smith moved up to start at cornerback.
Also, John Jenkins moved from nose tackle, where he had been playing behind Kwame Geathers, to start at defensive end as DeAngelo Tyson was held out with a back injury.
Murray played only one series in the second half, setting up Blair Walsh’s career-long 56-yard field goal.
Add A Comment