Georgia Bulldogs rebound, pounce on Wildcats

photo Georgia wide receiver Isaiah McKenzie scores a touchdown on 59-yard punt return during the second half against Kentucky on Saturday.

LEXINGTON, Ky. - The Georgia Bulldogs insisted all week that they had moved on from last week's disappointing loss to Florida.

They went out and proved it Saturday.

Georgia took a 7-0 lead within the first 11 seconds on Isaiah McKenzie's 90-yard kickoff return and kept pouring it on in a 63-31 rout of Kentucky at Commonwealth Stadium. The Bulldogs racked up 559 yards and registered their highest point total against a Southeastern Conference foe since a 75-0 blanking of Florida in 1942.

"I felt like everything was clicking, and it felt good to just play really well," Bulldogs quarterback Hutson Mason said. "It's always cool when you put up 63, no matter how it's done. I'm just proud of this team and how we performed after a rough week last week."

So dominant were the Bulldogs offensively that they had two more touchdown passes than incompletions. Mason was 13-of-16 for 174 yards and four touchdowns, while backup Brice Ramsey was 5-for-5 for 80 yards and a score.

Georgia was 8-for-8 on third-down conversions, which leads to the question of what's more impressive -- converting every third down into a first or having only eight all afternoon?

"I'm proud of our players, and I thought they did a very good job of starting this game with a lot of energy," Bulldogs coach Mark Richt said of his team, which led 21-0 after 10 minutes.

Georgia improved to 7-2 overall and 5-2 within the league, while Kentucky dropped to 5-5 and 2-5. The Wildcats have lost four straight entering this week's trip to Tennessee.

The Bulldogs rolled in their fourth and final game without junior tailback Todd Gurley, who was the leading candidate for the Heisman Trophy when he was suspended by the university on Oct. 9 for receiving payment for signed memorabilia. Gurley will be back this week when the Bulldogs host Auburn in the Deep South's oldest rivalry.

Filling in again for Gurley was freshman Nick Chubb, who had 170 yards on just 13 carries and amassed a staggering 671 yards the past four games.

"I didn't take his spot," Chubb said. "He just got into some trouble, and I've missed him. I'm looking forward to playing with him. I can't wait."

Chubb had 38 carries in the Oct. 11 win at Missouri, 30 in the Oct. 18 win at Arkansas and 14 in the first quarter of last week's 38-20 loss to Florida. Saturday marked the return of Chubb's fellow freshman, Sony Michel, who had 16 carries for 84 yards and a score.

"I felt fresh the whole entire game," Chubb said, "whereas last week I felt like I played an entire game in the first quarter."

The Wildcats rallied from their early 21-point deficit with an effective second quarter that produced 24 points. Kentucky trailed just 35-24 at halftime and got the ball to open the third quarter, but Bulldogs safety Corey Moore intercepted Patrick Towles on the first play, and Georgia quickly blew the game open.

A 10-yard pass from Mason to tight end Jeb Blazevich capped a 36-yard drive to put the Bulldogs up 42-24, and then McKenzie sent many Kentucky fans headed for the exits moments later with a 59-yard punt return for a score.

"They ran the ball, got some open passes, and their quarterback made some plays with his feet in that second quarter, but I thought we responded," Georgia inside linebacker Amarlo Herrera said. "They only scored once in the second half."

Richt admitted Saturday that last week's loss to the rival Gators was disappointing but that his program had to move on with a focus.

"I got some interesting text messages from people," he said. "Kind of like when you go to church and people tell you that they're praying for you. You realize that it's kind of bad out there, but it's part of the job and part of the position."

As his news conference wound down, Richt was asked if would have taken a 3-1 record during Gurley's absence and with all four games away from Athens.

"No," he said. "We had our chance to control our destiny in the East, and we lost control during that time frame."

Georgia will play its first home game since Oct. 4 this Saturday. It will be televised by CBS at 3:30 or by ESPN at 7:15, with that announcement coming today.

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

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