Carson Beck threw for a touchdown and ran for another in his debut as starting quarterback as No. 1 Georgia overcame a sluggish start to roll past Tennessee-Martin, 48-7, in Athens, Ga., on Saturday in the season opener for both teams.
Beck completed 21 of 31 passes for 294 yards, without an interception. Mekhi Mews sprinted to the end zone for a 54-yard touchdown off a Beck swing pass in the third quarter.
All-American Brock Bowers caught five passes for 77 yards, all in the first half, and put the Bulldogs on the scoreboard with a 3-yard touchdown run late in the first quarter.
Roderick Robinson II finished with 50 yards and a touchdown on eight carries. Kendall Milton added 53 yards on nine touches as the Bulldogs won their 18th straight game.
Georgia limited FCS UT-Martin to 260 yards of total offense and 15 first downs.
Kinkead Dent completed 18 of 32 passes for 128 yards. His 9-yard touchdown pass to Trevonte Rucker came in the fourth quarter.
The Skyhawks, coming off two straight Ohio Valley Conference titles and a 7-4 record last year, punted on nine of their first 10 possessions.
Trying to become the first school in the 87-year history of the AP Poll era to win three straight national championships, Georgia punted on three of its first four possessions and scored just seven points in the first 25 minutes.
But the Bulldogs surged late in the first half to take control of the game. Beck scrambled for a 4-yard touchdown run and a 14-0 lead with 4:29 remaining before the break.
Then in the final 2:17 of the half, Beck completed five straight passes, including a 25-yard strike to Dominic Lovett to set up a 23-yard field goal by Peyton Woodring, his first of two field goals in his collegiate debut.
Also in his first college game, Georgia’s Kyron Jones picked off a pass and ran 26 yards for a touchdown with 1:59 left in the fourth quarter.
In the fourth quarter, Georgia’s Brock Vandagriff made the first completion of his college career, a 56-yard strike to Rara Thomas. Vandagriff followed with a 21-yard touchdown pass to Oscar Delp.
–Field Level Media
