UGA Football: Georgia Football Postgame Notes vs. Mississippi State

Daniels Makes Bulldog Debut: In his first action for Georgia, redshirt sophomore transfer JT Daniels (28-for-38, 401 yards, 4 TDs) set a career high for passing yards and TD passes. His previous best was 349 yards versus Notre Dame in 2018 and he had three TD passes twice before while at USC. Daniels became the first Bulldog QB to throw for more than 400 yards in a game since Aaron Murray in 2013 against Auburn when he went for 415. Daniels is the seventh Bulldog to throw for at least 400 yards in a game. He became the third different Bulldog to start at quarterback this year. The Bulldogs finished with 409 yards of total offense.

Down 3-0 in the first, he led an 11 play, 69-yard TD drive in 5:14. It was his 16th career TD pass and first as a Bulldog, connecting with George Pickens for four yards. Also, he had a 49-yarder to freshman Jermaine Burton. Down 17-10, he directed a 70-yard TD drive on seven plays, culminated when he connected with Burton on 3rd-and-7 for an 18-yard TD with 30 seconds left in the first half. To open the second half, Daniel and Burton connected on a 48-yard TD to finish a 75-yard drive on eight plays to go up 24-17. On a 3rd-and 20, he found Kearis Jackson for a 40-yard TD to put Georgia up 31-24. It completed a 9 play, 72-yard drive.

The 2006 season marked the last time Georgia started three different QBs in a season in Joe Tereshinski III, Matthew Stafford and Joe Cox. That year, the Bulldogs went 9-4 capped by a victory over Virginia Tech in the Chick-fil-A Bowl.

Big Night For Burton: Freshman Jermaine Burton led the receivers with eight catches for a career-high 197 yards and 2 TDs. His 197 yards ranks fourth best in Georgia history for a game and the most since Tavarres King set the record with 205 against Michigan State in 2012 Outback Bowl He had a career-long 49-yard reception plus one for 46 yards and an 18-yard TD, the second of his career. In the second half, he added a 48-yard TD. Sophomore George Pickens finished with eight receptions for 87 yards and one TD. Pickens had his team-leading third TD catch and 11th of his career as the Bulldogs converted on a 3rd-and goal from the four. Kearis Jackson had four for 55 yards including a 40-yard TD on a 3rd-and-20 for a 31-24 lead with 9:50 left.

Defense Faces Air Raid: Coming in tonight, Georgia was leading the SEC in Scoring Defense (20.8 points per game) and was 10th in Passing Defense (262.8 ypg). State and its “Air Raid” offense tallied 241 yards (210-passing, 31-rushing) in the first half as the game was tied at 17. In the second half, Georgia limited State to one TD and 117 yards of offense, forcing three punts and they turned it over on downs to close out the contest. State came in averaging 303.2 passing yards and finished with 336. Sophomore Nakobe Dean had his third straight game with double-digit tackles, finishing with a team-best 13.

Special Teams Summary: Redshirt sophomore PK Jack Podlesny went 4-for-4 in PATs and hit a 41-yard field goal. Georgia now has made an NCAA record 316 consecutive PATs as the streak includes six kickers dating back to 2014. Podlesny is 9-for-11 in field goals this year. Junior punter Jake Camarda finished with four punts for a 43.8 net average (no returns) including booming a 56-yarder. Kearis Jackson had one KOR for 30 yards.

Series History: With the 31-24 win, Georgia now leads the all-time series 19-6 including 12-2 in Athens. Georgia has won the last 11 contests over MSU in Athens. Also, today served as the Homecoming game, and it marked just the second time that State had ever been a Homecoming foe for the Bulldogs. Georgia improved to 79-18-2 on Homecoming and 2-0 versus State.

For Starters: Redshirt sophomore QB JT Daniels made his first career start for Georgia after making 12 at USC during the 2018-19 seasons. The longest active starting streak on offense belongs to center Trey Hill now with 25 while the longest streak on defense is junior DB Eric Stokes at 22. Sophomore WR George Pickens returned to a starting role after missing the last two games due to an injury.

Captains: Redshirt sophomores Kearis Jackson and Azeez Ojulari plus junior Jamaree Salyer served as the captains. State won the toss and elected to receive the football.

Black Jerseys Return: For the fifth time in a regulation game in the modern era, and the second time under Kirby Smart, Georgia wore black jerseys. The Bulldogs last wore them in a real game during a 2016 win over Louisiana-Lafayette. In the 2019 Red-Black Spring game, the black team wore black jerseys.

Homecoming Royalty: While there was no on-field recognition due to the ongoing pandemic, the Homecoming King and Queen were announced and celebrated virtually on the videoboard. The King was Caleb Kelly, a fourth-year student from Macon, majoring in Sport Management. The Queen was Jasmine Gresham, a third-year student from Stockbridge, majoring in Health and Physical Education.

Up Next: Georgia (5-2) will face South Carolina in Columbia, Sat., Nov. 28 at 7:30 pm ET on the SEC Network.