Georgia picked a bad time to play its worst game of the season on Saturday afternoon against Auburn.
The Bulldogs allowed a blocked field goal, turned it over three times and committed a couple of critical penalties contributing directly to the Tigers' stunning 27-24 victory. The Auburn win snaps Georgia's 54-game winning streak against unranked competition.
Georgia committed three personal fouls against Auburn quarterback Byrum Brown, including one in the final seconds that put the Tigers in position for Alex McPherson's game-winning field goal as time expired.
Smart said before the game he was worried about Auburn's physicality and his team being banged up coming off last week's win at Alabama, and it showed as the Tigers borrowed from the Bulldogs' playbook by winning at the line of scrimmage.
Georgia led 14-0 before Auburn scored the game's next 24 points to take a 24-14 lead into the fourth quarter. The Tigers' victory was their first over a ranked opponent since 2021 and marked their first win over a top-ranked foe since doing it twice during the 2017 campaign.
On a critical 3rd-and-11 with 1:16 to play at its own 29-yard line, Auburn had a bad snap, resulting in an immediate punt and giving Georgia a potential game-winning possession. However, Stockton lost a fumble near midfield with 58 seconds left to put the Tigers in business with all three timeouts.
Georgia had won nine straight against Auburn dating back to 2017 and it was only Smart's second rivalry loss against the Tigers in 12 tries.
Auburn's a team of believers
Georgia was previously 41-4 when ranked No. 1 under Smart, including an 18-0 at home.
A teary-eyed Auburn coach Alex Golesh tried to put words with his emotions after his first signature win for the Tigers in his first season as the leader of the program.
"(Golesh's son) Bear said Thursday, 'Dad, can I get on the field after we win' … you're on the field bro,," Golesh said. "I'm just grateful for our guys. You can have so many narratives and stories … I'm just grateful for our guys, our coaches, our fan base … it's been through a lot. We're going to build Auburn back to where everybody wants it. One game at a time. Just hang with us."
Golesh said he received texts before the game from Auburn legends Takeo Spikes and Jason Campbell, among others, reminding him that he is the right man for the job.
No Xavier Atkins, no problem for Tigers
Auburn suspended their top defensive player, Xavier Atkins, for Saturday's game, but managed to put together one of its most complete performances of the season on that side of the football.
Stockton had a couple chunk completion midway through the fourth quarter on Georgia's second-to-last possession, but that was the only time since the first quarter the Tigers failed to dictate the game's tempo.
After trailing by two touchdowns early, Auburn's defense came up with stop after stop to help build a 10-point lead in the second half. The Tigers held Georgia to 113 yards rushing on 28 total carries, including a 2.1 average from Nate Frazier, who was making his return to the lineup.
"Coach (DJ) Durkin, their defensive coordinator, has been one of the best in the conference over all the years he's been in the conference," Smart said before the game. "He's a great defensive football coach. We've got a lot of links, a lot of respect for him. Our guys have to get ready to go play."
Brown finished with 115 yards on the ground for Auburn, along with a 61-yard effort on 13 carries from Jeremiah Cobb. It was the ground and pound approach that worked for Golesh's team against an opponent usually dominant in the trenches.
