ATLANTA, Ga. — Third-ranked Georgia turned four Florida turnovers into a lopsided afternoon Saturday, beating the No. 17 Gators 27-8 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in the first meeting of the rivalry ever played in Atlanta.
The Bulldogs built a 24-0 lead by halftime. Bo Walker and Nate Frazier each ran in from a yard out, and Chris Cole scooped up a fumble and went 66 yards for a touchdown with 29 seconds left in the half after Quintavius Johnson sacked backup quarterback Tramell Jones Jr. It was the second long fumble return for a score this season for Cole, who also had an 85-yarder against Oklahoma.
Florida starter Aaron Philo, back from a right shoulder injury, threw interceptions to Ellis Robinson IV and Demello Jones before he was pulled. A third-quarter drive by Jones ended with an end zone interception by cornerback Braylon Conley. The Gators avoided a shutout in the fourth quarter on a 2-yard Jones run and a two-point pass.
Georgia ran for 217 yards to 48 for Florida and held Gators tailback Jadan Baugh, who grew up in Atlanta and came in leading the conference with 13 rushing touchdowns, to 38 yards on 17 carries. The win was the sixth in a row in the series for Georgia, which moved to 7-1 and 5-1 in league play two weeks after a last-second loss to Auburn. Florida fell to 5-3.
The game moved to Atlanta, with the roof closed, because renovations at EverBank Stadium took away its usual neutral site in Jacksonville, and tickets were split evenly between the two schools. The 2027 game is set for Tampa before the series returns to Jacksonville. The game was placed through a bidding process, and the last time it left Jacksonville, for the 1994 and 1995 seasons, it was played on the two campuses instead.
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