Georgia's Brown shoulders big load

ATHENS, Ga. — After Georgia tailback Thomas Brown ran 50 yards for a touchdown, quarterback Matthew Stafford grabbed him in celebration and was about to lift him off the ground.

“Hold on,” Brown said. “Hold on.”

He wanted to protect a painful shoulder that he had injured at the end of the run.

So Stafford backed off. Unfortunately for Ole Miss, Brown didn’t.

After missing a couple of second-quarter series, Brown scored two more touchdowns in the third quarter as the 15th-ranked Bulldogs broke a 17-17 tie and pulled away for a 45-17 victory Saturday afternoon at Sanford Stadium.

Georgia, which will play Tennessee next Saturday at Neyland Stadium, improved to 4-1 overall and 2-1 in the SEC. Ole Miss, which was only 1 yard away from taking a 13-0 lead in the first quarter, dropped to 1-4 overall and 0-3 in the conference.

Brown, a 5-foot-8, 200-pound senior, had a career-high 180 yards rushing on only 16 carries. In addition to his 50-yard touchdown, he scored on a 41-yard run and had another 30-yard run.

“For a guy coming off an ACL (knee injury), he’s quicker than anybody I’ve seen,” Stafford said.

Georgia coach Mark Richt took Brown’s comeback a step further.

“I think he’s quicker than he was before the injury,” Richt said. “He’s quicker and a little faster.”

Brown wasn’t the only problem for the Ole Miss defense, which ranks last in the SEC. Georgia redshirt freshman Knowshon Moreno added 90 yards rushing and had an 8-yard touchdown run as the Bulldogs scored the game’s last 28 points.

Georgia’s 328 yards rushing was the most it has gained in a single game since 1991 when it also rushed for 328 yards against Ole Miss. The rushing total highlighted the progress of a revamped offensive line that began the season with three new starters, including two freshmen. But senior center Fernando Velasco gave much of the credit to Brown and Moreno.

“Those guys are awesome,” he said. “I’m glad we don’t have to play against them.”

Ole Miss running back BenJarvus Green-Ellis also had a big day, gaining 108 yards on 22 carries and complementing the passing of Seth Adams, who was 24-for-35 for 228 yards, including a 45-yard touchdown pass to Mike Wallace on the Rebels’ first possession.

Ole Miss drove to the Georgia 1 on its next possession, but Adams fumbled the snap on first down, and free safety C.J. Byrd recovered for Georgia.

“That was huge,” Georgia defensive coordinator Willie Martinez said. “It was a momentum changer.”

Once Georgia took the momentum, Brown took it from there.

Sports editor John Adams may be reached at 865-342-6284 or adamsj@knews.com.

© 2007, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.
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