Georgia Bulldogs Football: The Secondary Needs To Tighten Up Before Facing Florida

As Georgia fans bask in the glory that is a satisfying three-game winning streak, it seems only fitting to throw some water on those flames of confidence by mentioning one teeny, tiny, miniscule, little detail: the secondary did not play well last night.

For all the domination the front seven seemed to exact on the young, inexperienced, offensive line of the Kentucky Wildcats, the secondary still managed to give up way too many big plays on third-and-long, and there were far too many occasions of receivers getting behind Georgia's defensive backs for big gainers after the catch.

There was no excuse for the 353-yards that was given up to Mike Hartline—minus Derrick Locke and with little help from Randall Cobb.

Chris Matthews and La'Rod King absolutely killed Georgia. Combined, the two tallied 7 catches, 171-yards, and 3 touchdowns. That's too much freedom for comfort, and Georgia is going to have to address that problem—Vance Cuff, in particular, looks like he may need more coverage help.

Cuff was caught lunging on more than one occasion as a Kentucky receiver was able to get behind him for a catch and score. Cuff, obviously, was in need of more help from the safeties because, on an island, he was burned all day.

That said, it seems fair to mention that Kentucky has a plethora of talent at wide receiver, most of them big, most of them physical, but Georgia has to find a way to maximize the skills of their defensive backs when facing a more physical receiver. This is not a new issue, Georgia has had problems with big receivers all season.

Alshon Jeffery of South Carolina (7 receptions for 103-yards), Greg Childs of Arkansas (3 receptions for 82-yards), and Justin Hunter of Tennessee (4 receptions for 110-yards) all had some of their biggest games of the season against Georgia.

Florida may be reeling right now, but the Bulldogs don't need to give the Gators any glaring holes to trample through. Remember, the Bulldogs were on a four-game losing streak of their own before finally getting back on track—don't underestimate the motivation of Urban Meyer where his Florida Gators are concerned.

This is a match-up where the "better" team isn't necessarily the one that wins.

The secondary needs to find a better way of working together to contain both the receivers and the quarterback. Last night, Mike Hartline found too many easy passing lanes to throw the ball through and that's not what you'd like to see. Granted, Hartline is a much better quarterback this season than he has been in years past, but consistency must be found somehow if Georgia intends to finish strong.

Georgia Bulldogs Football: 10 Things You Need To Know About Kentucky

The Georgia Bulldogs have enjoyed their stay in Athens, GA these last two-weeks, as both the offense and the defense seemed to find their rhythm. Now, it's time to take their show back on the road again as the surging Bulldogs will take on the feisty Kentucky Wildcats in Lexington.

For many, this game will be the true barometer of whether or not Georgia's last two wins were a result of good play or bad opponents—some aren't so sure it's not more the latter than the former.

Either way, it's time to see how much improved this offense and defense is against a better, more challenging, opponent.

If you've been following this blog all season, you know how this works, 10 points of interest about the Wildcats will be offered up as FYI—take them for what they are worth.

Here's what you need to know about Kentucky:

1. Their pass offense is good. 

The Wildcats are currently ranked 25th in the nation—2nd in the conference—in passing offense. The maturation of Mike Hartline has been the difference.

The senior is comfortable in this offense, proficient in calling plays, and confident in his ability to lead this team back—no matter what the deficit. He is playing his best football of the year, so far, and was a major catalyst in the Wildcats big win over South Carolina last week—passing for 349-yards and four touchdowns.

2. The offensive line is better-than-advertised. 

The Wildcats had to replace four players from last season's unit, but that hasn't seemed to matter much. This group has developed a great chemistry together, and have done a tremendous job of keeping Mike Hartline upright this season—allowing only six sacks through seven games.

3. They are porous against the run. 

They managed to keep South Carolina (who lost their leading rusher in the second half) and Akron (who ranks 100th in rushing offense this season) under 100-yards rushing, but they have consistently given up 175-yards or better to every other opponent they have faced this year—including 211-yards to Mississippi and 311-yards to Auburn.

Note: The Wildcats have given up 45 rushing plays that have gone for 10 or more yards this season. 

4. That said...they have issues with mobile quarterbacks. 

Trey Burton, of Florida, had his biggest game of the season against the Wildcats (scoring five rushing touchdowns), Jeremiah Masoli, of Ole Miss, scored four times (scrambling for one touchdown and tossing three more), Cam Newton, of Auburn, tallied 198-yards and four scores. Quarterbacks who have the potential to run, and roll out of the pocket, give the Wildcats fits.

5. They're defensive line is capable of dominating—if they get on a roll. 

The defensive line is young, but hungry. They have had a few really good performances this season—three weeks ago against Ole Miss, they tallied eight tackles for loss (TFL)—and some not so good. However, they remain focused and ready to meet the challenge each week.

Mark Crawford, a JUCO transfer from Kansas, has been a great leader on the line and provides the emotional spark the team needs when things get tough. Keep an eye on him at defensive tackle. He's already got 3.5 TFL and 2.5 sacks on the year.

6. Randall Cobb is still the man. 

The junior wideout is responsible for 1,155 total yards for the Wildcats this season, and remains a weapon that has to be accounted for at all times. He, along with Derrick Locke, remain two of the most important pieces to the success of Kentucky's offense.

7. Chris Matthews may have had his coming out party last week. 

Senior wide receiver, Chris Matthews was an enigma for South Carolina last week. He finished the game with 12 catches, for 177-yards, and one touchdown. It was his second 100-yard receiving game of the year (the first came against Florida).

If Derrick Locke is forced to miss more time (leaving Cobb to perform more rushing duties), Hartline will be tossing plenty more passes Matthews' way—at 6'5", 219 pounds, he makes for an ample target.
  
8. Their third down defense hasn't been as impressive in conference play. 

Kentucky has held their non-conference opponents to less than 22-percent on third downs this season. However, in SEC play, they have been susceptible to allowing teams to extend their drives via conversions. SEC opponents convert at just over a 50 percent clip.

9. Their redzone defense is pretty bad. 

If an opponent can get inside the 20, they are likely going to get six. This season, the Wildcats have allowed the opposition into the redzone 25 times—19 of those resulted in a touchdown.

Note: They are dead last in the SEC in this category.

10. Their second-half defense is tough. 

The Wildcats, over the last two weeks, have done a phenomenal job of making halftime adjustments on defense—outscoring their opponent 38-6. On the flip side, they've been walloped in the first-half, of those same games, 59-27.

If a team can jump out early and contain the Cats' late, they stand a chance of escaping Lexington with a win.

*Most of the stats used in this article are available via courtesy of cfbstats.com.