College Game of the Week: Bulldogs @ Gamecocks

REFO-WK03-Georgia-South-Carolina The fans who voted on twitter (#PFFGoesToCollege) picked a good one as this week’s college ‘Game of the Week’ was a high-scoring shootout that went down to the wire, with South Carolina just edging out Georgia for the win.

Let’s break down a few of the notable performances.

Georgia Bulldogs — Performances of Note

Todd Gurley, RB: +2.6 (Rushing)

Breakdown: Even though Georgia lost, their star running back did little to hurt his Heisman hopes, surpassing 130 yards on 20 carries with a TD. And those numbers would’ve been even more impressive had a long run not been called back by a questionable holding penalty. As usual, Gurley was a load to bring down forcing 10 missed tackles and gaining 95 yards after contact.

Signature Play: With 38 seconds remaining in the third quarter and Georgia facing third-and-16, Gurley reversed field and outran the South Carolina defense to pick up the first down.

Leonard Floyd, OLB: -1.7 and Jordan Jenkins, OLB: -3.0

Breakdown: Floyd made a few plays against the run, picking up a tackle-for-short-gain on one play, and forcing a cut on another. Jenkins added two run stops of his own, though he was sealed on several other plays, losing contain on one to allow a long run to the outside. Both players ended up in the red, however, for their lack of impact rushing the passer.

Signature Stat: The duo combined for no pressures in 56 snaps rushing the passer.

Ramik Wilson, ILB: +3.5

Breakdown: One of the lone bright spots on a defense that struggled overall, Wilson led the way with 11 tackles, five of which went for stops. His work was equally impressive in all three facets of defense, as he picked up three TFLs against the run and a QB hurry rushing the passer (along with several other plays in which he beat a blocker), while he helped force an incompletion with close coverage when he dropped back to cover a tight end.

Signature Play: At 2:38 in the second, he beat center Alan Knott to get into the backfield, though a quick throw prevented him from notching a QB hurry.

South Carolina Gamecocks — Performances of Note

Al Harris Jr., CB: +1.4

Breakdown: Harris Jr. made the most of his 30 snaps, 11 of which came in coverage, picking up a TFL and a pass defense in the red zone.

Signature Play: The tackle-for-loss came at 2:28 of the second quarter, as Harris made an impressive play to bring down Todd Gurley in the backfield.

T.J. Gurley, S: -3.1

Breakdown: South Carolina’s Gurley didn’t have quite the performance of his Georgia counterpart. In fact, he was part of the reason the Georgia back put up the numbers he did, as he missed four tackles on the day. He also picked up a holding penalty on special teams.

Signature Play: Trying to wrap-up instead of lowering his shoulder and going for the knockout hit might’ve helped Gurley, such as on the play at 10:02 in the fourth.

Brandon Wilds, RB: -0.1

Breakdown: Mike Davis gets most of the hype, but Wilds showed once again that he’s quite the back himself. While his early fumble set up a Georgia field goal, he made up for it as he led the way for South Carolina with 92 yards on 11 carries in the second half, including 43 yards after contact.

Signature Play: Wilds’s 24-yard touchdown run at 13:01 of the fourth proved to be the winning score.

PFF Game Ball

This one goes to the dominant left side of the South Carolina OL; A.J. Cann and Corey Robinson combined to grade +7.4, paving the way for Wilds and Davis on the ground, while allowing just three combined QB hurries on 34 snaps each in pass protection.

Follow John on Twitter: @John_Maney