UGA's Tavarres King rates Auburn catch his No. 2

Friday, January 1, 1904

photo Georgia flanker Tavarres King tries to reach the end zone.

ATHENS, Ga. -- Georgia senior receiver Tavarres King had no problem Tuesday recounting his acrobatic 17-yard touchdown catch last weekend at Auburn.

"I knew the left foot got in, but I was trying to make a statement with the right one," King said, smiling. "I was trying to make a statement to the NFL by getting two down, but I didn't get it in. Only the left one got in."

King's touchdown occurred early in the second quarter and gave the Bulldogs a 21-0 lead on their way to a 38-0 romp, and he considers that score his favorite catch of the season. It was No. 3 on ESPN's top plays Sunday morning.

The favorite catch of his career occurred in last season's 24-20 win over Florida, when he jumped over Gators cornerback Jaylen Watkins for a 14-yard score on a fourth-and-6 fade from Aaron Murray midway through the third quarter. Murray agreed.

"That might have been the better one because that tied the game up," Murray said. "That was a pretty big touchdown, and he jumped over a guy. Both were pretty sweet catches."

Moving on up

Murray ranks fifth in SEC history with 83 career touchdown passes, and seven more would make the junior second all-time and drop former Tennessee standout Peyton Manning to third. Former Florida quarterback Danny Wuerffel holds the league mark with 114.

"I told him yesterday that if you stay here, you're going to shatter every record possible," King said. "He's done it silently, too. It's weird."

Not much fun

Georgia Southern, which visits Sanford Stadium this week, averages 401.2 rushing yards a game with its triple-option offense. The offense employs blocking below the waist, or cut-blocking, which is legal but highly annoying to defenders.

"I'm just expecting to get my knees cut out all game long," nose tackle John Jenkins said. "I really don't like that type of offense where they're just chopping at your knees, or they grab your leg and roll up on you or hold your leg. That's no fun. I think it's cheating."

Said cornerback Sanders Commings: "We pretty much get cut on every running play they run, whether it's by a receiver or one of their wingbacks looping around to cut us."

Centers of production

This has been a great week for Georgia centers past and present.

Last season's starter, Ben Jones, made his third start for Houston on Sunday night as the Texans improved to 8-1 with a win over Chicago. This year's starter, sophomore David Andrews, was named Monday as the SEC offensive lineman of the week.

"We talk every week, and it's not a bad time for either of us right now," Andrews said. "We talked about playing the Bears and playing [Brian] Urlacher and guys we grew up watching and how crazy that is. It is just a whole different routine for him, and now he's doing this for a living."

Odds and ends

Georgia Southern is 0-19 all-time against Bowl Subdivision opponents, which includes four losses by 20 or more points against Georgia. ... To prepare for the triple-option this week and next week, when Georgia Tech visits, the Bulldogs put on pads Monday and Tuesday and could do so again today. ... Georgia could clinch its 20th 10-win season this week and its eighth under coach Mark Richt. ... Junior outside linebacker Chase Vasser has not played the past three weeks due to a shoulder sprain, which Richt said "is not coming around." ... Georgia landed a commitment Tuesday from A.J. Turman, a 6-foot, 205-pound running back from Orlando, but junior college cornerback Steven Nelson decommitted from the Bulldogs.

Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.