ATHENS, Georgia (AP) – Stetson Bennett set a school record with five touchdown passes replacing injured starter JT Daniels, leading number 2 Georgia to a 56-7 UAB win on Saturday.
Bennett made his first six passes – four of which went all the way to the end zone for the Bulldogs (2-0), who showed no signs of disappointment despite their absence after a 10-3 win over Clemson, despite their absence, number 1 quarterback.
Jermaine Burton set the tone by slipping behind the secondary to pick up a 73-yard TD from Bennett in Georgia’s second offensive game and wow the noisy crowd of nearly 93,000 at Sanford Stadium.
It was the first full house between the hedges since the 2019 season. Because of the pandemic, audience numbers were limited to around 20,000 last season.
By the opening minute of the second quarter, Bennett had been tacking scoring passes of 12 yards to Kenny McIntosh, 89 yards to Brock Bowers, and 61 yards to Arian Smith.
At this point, Bennett’s registration score was an astounding 775.6. The Blazers’ secondary school didn’t put up much resistance, leaving Burton, Bowers, and Smith wide open with puffed-up coverage.
After Bennett finally threw an incompleteness, he pinned his fifth TD of the game to the lead with another at Bowers.
Bennett completed 9 of 11 for 279 yards, becoming the sixth Georgia quarterback to score five touchdowns in a game. The youngest was Aaron Murray against New Mexico State in 2011.
Daniels was sidelined due to an oblique injury that is believed not to be a long-term problem. He wore uniform on the sidelines, but the Bulldogs had no reason to risk a more serious problem by playing him against a team that was a 25 1/2 point underdog.
After Daniels was disfellowshipped, Georgia’s trainer Kirby Smart made a surprise call to the starter. Redshirt freshman Carson Beck was listed as # 2 on the depth map, but the Bulldogs left with the more experienced caller.
Great call. While some fans groaned when Bennett, a former walk-on who started five games in 2020, was introduced as a starter, after the blazers were lit (1-1), there was nothing but cheers.
Georgia scored six of seven ball possession touchdowns with Bennett in the game.
The Bulldogs’ defense wasn’t too shabby either. The unit has yet to allow one touchdown this season and has scored two goals of its own, following a pick-six against Clemson with another at Jamon Dumas-Johnson’s 21-yard interception return for a score.
UAB was held at 174 yards on a miserable day for quarterback Tyler Johnston III, who completed only 6 of 14 for 39 yards with three interceptions.
The Blazers avoided a shutout when Keondre Swoopes picked up a pass from Beck and returned it 61 yards for a score.
Beck threw Justin Robinson the first TD pass of his college career, a 12-yarder.
TAKE AWAY
UAB: The Blazers have won two of the last three Conference USA titles, but they’re not ready to compete with a Georgian-level team.
Georgia: If nothing else, the Bulldogs should be feeling fine with their quarterback depth, especially if Daniels’ injury goes on for longer than expected.
SURVEY IMPACT
None at all. Georgia is sure to stay a solid number 2 on The Associated Press poll, behind top spot Alabama.
NEXT
UAB: Travel to North Texas next Saturday for the first C-USA game of the season. The Blazers play their first four games away from home before their new stadium debuts against Liberty on October 2nd in downtown Birmingham.
Georgia: Start a stretch of eight consecutive Southeastern Conference games when they host South Carolina next Saturday.
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Follow Paul Newberry on Twitter at https://twitter.com/pnewberry1963 and see his work at https://apnews.com/search/paulnewberry
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