Godwin comfortable in Wild Dog formation
ATHENS — Sony Michel looked around and saw Terry Godwin running toward the end zone.
He hadn’t seen the fumble or the fortuitous bounce that put Godwin in position to score Georgia’s first touchdown in about nine quarters.
“I didn’t know the ball had been dropped because I was carrying out the fake,” Michel said. “I just looked and saw (Godwin) was gone. I didn’t know the ball was dropped until someone on the sideline told me.”
The fumble worked out perfectly for Godwin, a freshman receiver who played quarterback in the Wild Dog formation that Georgia showcased in its 27-3 win over Kentucky on Saturday.
He scored his first career touchdown on the 28-yard run — Georgia’s first touchdown since early in the fourth quarter of the loss to Tennessee on Oct. 10 — but not before initially dropping the ball.
Godwin calmly reached down, picked it up and saw nothing but green between him and the end zone.
“I was reading the defense, and as I tried to snatch it from Sony, it kind of slipped out of my hands,” Godwin said. “It actually timed up perfectly with the defense. It made everyone flow over and the hole just opened up.”
Godwin and Michel combined to take three snaps on that first-quarter drive.
Godwin ended the first half with his first four career carries and with 26 yards rushing after losing 10 yards on one of his attempts. He entered the game as the Bulldogs’ second-leading receiver with 21 catches for 245 yards, but didn’t add to those totals on Saturday.
Godwin said Georgia’s offensive staff added him to the Wild Dog package on Monday. As a former quarterback at Callaway High School in Hogansville, Godwin said he was comfortable in the formation.
“We had the defense off balance. We put different guys back there and it threw them off,” he said. “It felt good. It took me back to high school, actually. I felt good back there.”
The Wild Dog was moderately successful. The Bulldogs ended the first half with 112 yards rushing, but with only a 10-3 lead.
Godwin didn’t have any second-half carries as Michel set a career high with 165 yards and the Bulldogs finished with 300 on the ground.
“(Offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer) always has a great game plan,” Michel said. “He called the best game plan for Kentucky’s defense. Zone read was the play that helped beat Kentucky’s defense.”
