Auburn, AL (Sports Network) - The last time Georgia and Auburn met at Jordan-
Hare Stadium, it was the Tigers who were targeting a championship.
Two years later, the Bulldogs are the only team thinking about any kind of
title.
Aaron Murray threw three first-half touchdown passes and No. 5 Georgia
clinched the SEC East and a spot in the conference championship game for a
second straight year with a 38-0 rout of Auburn.
Murray completed 18-of-24 passes for 208 yards for Georgia (9-1, 7-1 SEC),
which jumped out to a 28-0 halftime lead before cruising in the second half.
The Bulldogs are tied atop the SEC East standings with Florida, but hold the
tiebreaker over the Gators following their 17-9 win on Oct. 27.
Todd Gurley carried the ball 11 times for 116 yards and a score, Keith
Marshall added 105 yards and a touchdown on eight rushes, while Tavarres King,
Malcolm Mitchell and Chris Conley each had a touchdown reception in the win.
What a difference two years has made for Auburn.
At this time two seasons ago, the Cam Newton-led Tigers were bearing down on
their first national championship since 1957 when they downed the Bulldogs
49-31.
Now, Auburn is just searching for an SEC win.
It will have one final chance to avoid its first winless record in SEC play
since 1980 when it travels to Tuscaloosa on Nov. 24 to take on Alabama in the
Iron Bowl.
Freshman Jonathan Wallace made his second career start and finished 15-of-22
for 181 yards with an interception for the Tigers (2-8, 0-7), who snapped a
five-game skid last Saturday with a victory over New Mexico State.
Georgia tallied touchdowns on each of its first four possessions of the
contest.
Gurley broke off a 49-yard run on Georgia's opening trek before Murray flipped
a 6-yard score to Conley four plays later to conclude the 6-play, 76-yard
drive.
Murray, who was 9-of-9 for 70 yards over the Bulldogs' first two offensive
treks, moved the chains on a 3rd-and-2 with a 15-yard scramble before finding
Mitchell for a 5-yard touchdown on the very next play.
On a 3rd-and-7 on Georgia's third offensive series, Murray rolled right before
firing into the right part of the end zone for King, who tapped his right toe
inbounds for a 17-yard score.
After Murray floated a 55-yard pass to King on a stop-and-go seam pattern,
Gurley ran in untouched a play later from six yards out, which made it 28-0
with 5:09 left in the half.
Marshall Morgan nailed a 20-yard field goal on Georgia's initial drive of the
second half and Marshall scampered in from 62 yards out on the visitors' next
touch, which extended the margin to 38-0 with 4:35 left in the third.
GAME NOTES:
Georgia is heading to its fifth SEC title game overall -- all under the Mark
Richt era ... Georgia tied the series between the teams, 54-54-8 ... The
Bulldogs outgained the Tigers, 493-236 ... Murray started the game 10-for-10.
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