ATHENS, Ga. – As Georgia fans sang “Glory, glory” in the rain before the start of the fourth quarter, Mississippi must have been thinking, "Mercy, mercy, make it stop."
It wouldn’t stop.
Minutes later, the Redcoat Band struck up that old hymn again, after yet another touchdown.
No mercy from Kirby Smart’s Bulldogs on this night. An onslaught, instead.
No. 1 Georgia stripped the wheels off the Lane Train and ran over No. 10 Mississippi 52-17 on Saturday inside a sold-out Sanford Stadium, that roaring venue where the Bulldogs haven’t lost in any of the past four seasons.
The Bulldogs are heading back to the SEC championship game in Atlanta. They won’t need directions.
Georgia had clinched the SEC East before kickoff, courtesy of Missouri's beatdown of Tennessee, but this season was never about a division crown. Rather, Georgia is trying to become the only team in the modern era to win three straight national championships.
I’m unsure whether Georgia will do it. I am sure it should be considered the favorite. You’d need to squint to find the chinks in Georgia’s armor.
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Georgia's Carson Beck plays at a Heisman Trophy level
During the earlier years of Smart’s tenure, I wondered what Georgia would look like if Smart developed an elite quarterback. I don’t have to wonder anymore. We’re seeing it.
Stetson Bennett IV delivered special moments the past two seasons, especially in the big games. What Bennett lacked in an NFL physique or skillset, he offset with a mile of moxie. Carson Beck is different. He’s better, really. Beck plays like a quarterback lab created him. His right arm is a rocket. Never was that more evident than when he fired a 29-yard missile between two defenders to Ladd McConkey for Georgia’s second touchdown.
Georgia’s offensive line protects Beck like he holds the Crown’s jewels. The Bulldogs’ big fellas flat-out whipped the Rebels and made life easy on Beck and his running backs.
Beck’s complement of weapons would make any quarterback salivate. Should he throw it to the nation’s best tight end, Brock Bowers, or McConkey, his star wide receiver? When that gets old, he can hand it to Kendall Milton or Daijun Edwards and watch them churn out a handful of yards each carry.
Ole Miss (8-2, 5-2) couldn’t handle all that smoke. I don’t know what team can.
Maybe, Michigan or Alabama or Ohio State. Maybe. The list doesn’t extend much further than that.
Ole Miss battles early, then fades
The Rebels traded touchdowns with Georgia for a quarter and a half, but the Bulldogs are unrelenting. When they’re locked in – and they always are for the biggest games – they just keep coming and coming with an overwhelming assault.
On a cold, wet night, Beck completed 18 of 25 passes for 306 yards. Yeah, he’s good. He’s Heisman Trophy finalist good. Beck isn’t receiving as much attention in the race for college football’s top award as he should be. I expect that to change these next few weeks.
Georgia played complementary football. The offense took care of the first half. The defense arrived late, then suffocated the Rebels.
Georgia’s front isn’t as fearsome as it was the past two seasons, but that’s like saying wrestling a gorilla is more inviting than wrestling a bear. Georgia remains plenty fierce. The Bulldogs kept Rebels quarterback Jaxson Dart under frequent pressure. Ole Miss star running back Quinshon Judkins had success early, but not late.
Lane Kiffin promised his Rebels would have a “house money” mentality in this game, and they indeed played with the aggression of gambler who stumbled upon a stack of cash on his way into the riverboat. Ole Miss converted a fourth down inside its own territory during its opening scoring drive. It converted a fake punt inside its territory while trying to keep up after halftime.
There was no keeping up, though. The Rebels remain an entertaining sideshow who are better than most SEC teams in this down year for the conference, but they're not in Georgia's realm.
The only SEC foe that might be is that old power in the SEC West. Like Georgia, Alabama keeps getting stronger as the season progresses.
Nick Saban’s squad will be tough, but Georgia is on a march for glory.
Blake Toppmeyeris theUSA TODAY Network's SEC Columnist. Email him atBToppmeyer@gannett.comand follow him on Twitter@btoppmeyer.
