Jayden Daniels lined up on the Georgia 5-yard line with just over four minutes remaining in the first quarter.

He’d just led LSU into the red zone, passing for 64 yards on the drive as he put LSU into position to score the opening points of the 2022 SEC championship. On third and goal, Daniels dropped back to pass, hoping to get LSU on the board for the first time tonight.

He never got the chance, as Chaz Chambliss brought the QB down for a sack – bringing Chambliss to 2.5 on the season – forcing LSU to settle for a field goal. Georgia’s depth in the trenches made an impact, as defensive lineman Nazir Stackhouse surged through LSU’s protection and blocked the field goal.

Christopher Smith capitalized on the play, snatching the football off the ground and returning it 95 yards for a touchdown, giving Georgia a 7-0 lead.

“That’s a scenario we go over a lot,” Smith said as he recalled the play. “We know the ball passed the line of scrimmage, we had an opportunity to be able to pick it up. I was waiting for the ‘go’ to get it from the sideline.”

It wasn’t just the special teams unit shifting momentum in the game; at the start of the second quarter, Smael Mondon Jr. brought in the first interception of his career, grabbing a ball out of the air after it ricocheted off an LSU receiver’s helmet. Georgia’s offense scored on the next play, and suddenly Georgia held a two-score advantage, never relinquishing control of the game.

Georgia’s defense wasn’t flawless against LSU. The Tigers’ passing attack moved the ball consistently throughout the game, ending the matchup with a whopping 502 yards through the air. Kayshon Boutte and Malik Nabers combined for three catches of over 30 yards, and each receiver recorded over 100 receiving yards on the day. After the game, head coach Kirby Smart acknowledged that his team’s performance was a divergence from past outings.

“Our guys understand as the year goes on, teams tackle poorly, teams cover poorly,” Smart said. “Defense usually deteriorates. That’s not the culture here. It won’t be accepted or tolerated, so we’ve got to fix it.”

This was the first time all season that Georgia allowed over 300 passing yards in a game, and despite that, the Bulldogs won by multiple touchdowns. The team’s success in the red zone is one reason for that margin; when LSU threatened to punch the ball into the end zone, Georgia’s defense held firm.

The Bulldogs forced a pair of turnovers within 20 yards of their own end zone, and their efficiency on the other side was even more impressive. Georgia had five red zone possessions against LSU, scoring touchdowns on each and every attempt. When the Bulldog offense has struggled this season, red zone scoring has been a major factor; against LSU, the team was decisive in that stretch of the field, and posted the team’s second-highest scoring total of the season as a result.

Quarterback Stetson Bennett posted a season-high four passing touchdowns – three of which occurred in the red zone – and he credited practice as a major reason for the team’s efficiency.

“I was familiar with the plays,” Bennett said. “We repped them a lot during the week, during the season. We had executed them during the week. When it’s the SEC Championship, you kind of got to play confident. If you don’t, then they’re going to beat you.”

Bennett’s confidence propelled Georgia to its first SEC championship since 2017, but Georgia’s season isn’t over yet. Georgia has likely secured the top seed in the 2022 College Football Playoff. Today’s performance was far from perfect, and against postseason opponents such as Michigan, TCU and other playoff hopefuls, it might not be enough to advance.

Smith opened the scoring of the 2022 SEC championship game, and he’s been an integral part of Georgia’s defense this season. He knows that he and his teammates have to play better if they want to continue their postseason success.

“We got a lot of work to do,” Smith said. “Definitely don’t flush it, but we were able to come out on top with a great team win. We got to get back to the drawing board and continue to work.”