AUBURN, Ala. - The all-purpose yards were racking up Saturday afternoon for Georgia sophomore receiver Mecole Hardman.
Then one play soured his day.
Hardman had 169 all-purpose yards against Auburn during the first half alone, but his first opportunity of the second half resulted in a fumbled punt return that the Tigers recovered at Georgia's 23-yard line. Auburn scored four plays later on a 7-yard keeper by quarterback Jarrett Stidham, extending its advantage to 23-7 in the eventual 40-17 surprise cakewalk.
"I tried fair-catching it, but there was a crazy spin on the ball," Hardman said. "I thought I had it, but it went straight through my hands and they got it. It was a big momentum play for them, and that's my fault.
"I should have caught the ball. I should have looked it all the way in."
Hardman's fumble and Stidham's ensuing score was part of a 40-3 Auburn onslaught that occurred between Georgia tallying the first and final touchdowns of the game.
"That was tough on Mecole," Bulldogs coach Kirby Smart said. "He catches hundreds and hundreds of those punts. He wanted to run up and get under it, and he didn't get his arms tucked.
"Mecole is a really good player, and he's going to make a lot of really good plays around here."
Hardman finished with 203 all-purpose yards - 142 on kickoff returns, 43 on punt returns, 11 on one reception and seven on one rush.
"It's something that I can do," he said. "They gave me a couple of times to return the ball, and I just tried to make a play for my team and tried to get us good field position."
Shining in defeat
There wasn't much to celebrate Saturday for Georgia, especially for an offense that managed just 230 yards.
One bright aspect for the Bulldogs was the continued play of senior receiver Javon Wims, who had three catches for 96 yards and easily was Georgia's top offensive weapon. On the eight-play, 70-yard opening possession that culminated in a 1-yard touchdown run by Nick Chubb, Wims had a leaping 28-yard reception on a third-and-7 throw from Jake Fromm that moved the ball to Auburn's 39-yard line.
Late in the second quarter, Wims jumped up and hauled in a 30-yard pass from Fromm at Auburn's 41. Fromm was sacked on the next play, and the Bulldogs failed to score.
"Jake believes in me, and he trusts in me," Wims said. "I just tried to make plays tonight. I just didn't make enough."
Odds and ends
Georgia still leads the Deep South's oldest rivalry by a 57-56-8 margin, but Auburn improved to 4-0 against the Bulldogs when both teams are ranked in the top 10. Georgia freshman running back D'Andre Swift made his first career start, while Bulldogs sophomore tight end Charlie Woerner made his first start of the season and the third of his career. Bulldogs running back Sony Michel on his personal foul: "I pushed him one extra time. I didn't think it was anything, but at the end of the day, it's a flag, and it was undisciplined by me." Auburn kicker Daniel Carlson scored 16 points to extend his Southeastern Conference career-leading total to 456, and his fourth field goal Saturday was the 88th of his career, breaking the league mark held by former Georgia standout Billy Bennett.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.