Georgia defense forces four turnovers in lopsided win against Oklahoma

ATHENS, GA (WJBF)- The Georgia Bulldogs and Oklahoma Sooners squared off for the first time since the 2018 Rose Bowl.

In the first quarter, Gunner Stockton connected with Talyn Taylor, which set them up in the redzone. Chauncey Bowens found the endzone to put the Bulldogs up 7-0.

In the second quarter, Stockton found Taylor once again, but this time in the endzone. Just as Oklahoma was driving down the field and gaining momentum, quarterback John Mateer lost the football, and ended up in the hands of Chris Cole, who took it 85 yards downfield for a touchdown.

He also had seven tackles on the night. The Bulldogs had a commanding 28-0 halftime lead and would get the 41-13 win.

The Georgia defense proved to be the difference maker, forcing four turnovers, with one of those turning into a touchdown.

“Just to not get caught, score a touchdown, yeah basically don’t get caught. it’s kind of rare to score on defense, so I was super excited about that. I loved it, it was such a blessing,” Cole said.

“We harp on just playing hard and physical here. It doesn’t matter who we’re playing, we’re trying to out physical everybody, like coach said, blow by blow it’s going to be a fourth quarter game until it’s a fourth game.”

“Our motto is every time we step out onto the field, were trying to make someone quit. I feel like the defense did a great job out there today,” said Georgia defensive back KJ Bolden.

As for the offense, they faced an Oklahoma defense that allowed an average 7.7 points per game, but they took advantage of their opportunities when it mattered most.

“This week was a hard week to get prepared for them, but I think we did a good job executing. We definitely can get a lot better, but I thought we did some good stuff,” Stockton said.

“Preparation, consistency, and performance is what keeps you in the win column. We prepare well, we play with consistency, we don’t take our preparation lightly. Our staff puts in a tremendous amount of work in every one of these games. They’re really hard to prepare for,” said head coach Kirby Smart.

The Bulldogs will get right back to work this week, as they’ll host the Vanderbilt Commodores next Saturday at either 12 p.m. or 12:45 p.m.

Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WJBF.