“The ballgame just made a little change right there…”
Indeed, likely the greatest defensive fumble return in Bulldog history remains one of the biggest momentum-changing plays for Georgia in recent memory. Instead of trailing at halftime, 14-13, the Bulldogs held a comfortable 20-7 advantage following Sean Jones’ touchdown. In the third quarter, Georgia scored three rushing touchdowns in a game-clock span of only 2:35 and eventually won, 41-14.
The irony in the fact that quarterback Casey Clausen and running back Jabari Davis were involved in the game-changing fumble…
Of course, it was Clausen who said Tennessee would have defeated Georgia the year before in 2002 (an 18-13 Georgia win Clausen missed with a fractured collarbone) by a “couple of touchdowns” if he had played—and he could have beaten the Bulldogs with one arm tied behind his back. Davis, a native of Stone Mountain, Ga., had said he decided to attend Tennessee because “Georgia was always talking about getting to the Peach Bowl,” whereas the Volunteers, according to Davis, had loftier goals like the Rose Bowl.
In the end, Clausen (who always played with both arms against the Bulldogs) was 0-3 against Georgia (0-2 as a starter) when seeing significant action under center. Davis, who never defeated Georgia in two tries, participated in two bowl games at Tennessee—both losses in the Peach Bowl.
=====
From a couple of years ago, check out when Russ Tanner joined @Dave McMahon and me to discuss Georgia's big win on Rocky Top in 2003:
