1997 Georgia Bulldogs football team

1997 Georgia Bulldogs football
Outback Bowl champion
Outback Bowl, W 33–6 vs. Wisconsin
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Division	Eastern Division
Ranking
Coaches	No. 10
AP	No. 10
Record	10–2 (6–2 SEC)
Head coach	Jim Donnan (2nd season)
Offensive coordinator	Greg Briner (2nd season)
Offensive scheme	Pro-style
Defensive coordinator	Joe Kines (3rd season)
Base defense	4–3
Home stadium	Sanford Stadium
Seasons ←  1996 1998  →

1997 Southeastern Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
Eastern Division
No. 7 Tennessee x$		7	–	1					11	–	2
No. 10 Georgia		6	–	2					10	–	2
No. 4 Florida		6	–	2					10	–	2
South Carolina		3	–	5					5	–	6
Kentucky		2	–	6					5	–	6
Vanderbilt		0	–	8					3	–	8
Western Division
No. 11 Auburn xy		6	–	2					10	–	3
No. 13 LSU x		6	–	2					9	–	3
No. 22 Ole Miss		4	–	4					8	–	4
Mississippi State		4	–	4					7	–	4
Arkansas		2	–	6					4	–	7
Alabama		2	–	6					4	–	7
Championship: Tennessee 30, Auburn 29
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions Rankings from AP Poll

The 1997 Georgia Bulldogs football team was an American football team that represented the University of Georgia as a member of the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference during the 1997 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their second year under head coach Jim Donnan, the Bulldogs compiled an overall record of 10–2 record with a mark of 6–2 in conference play, and tying for second place in the SEC's Eastern Division. Georgia was invited to the Outback Bowl, where the Bulldogs defeated Wisconsin. The team played home games at Sanford Stadium in Athens, Georgia.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
August 30	1:00 p.m.	Arkansas State *		Sanford Stadium Athens, GA		W 38–7	79,145	[1]
September 13	3:30 p.m.	South Carolina		Sanford Stadium Athens, GA (rivalry)	CBS	W 31–15	86,117	[2]
September 20	1:00 p.m.	Northeast Louisiana *	No. 25	Sanford Stadium Athens, GA		W 42–3	74,113	[3]
October 4	1:00 p.m.	Mississippi State	No. 18	Sanford Stadium Athens, GA		W 47–0	83,211	[4]
October 11	3:30 p.m.	at No. 9 Tennessee	No. 13	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN (rivalry)	CBS	L 13–38	106,656	[5]
October 18	9:00 p.m.	at Vanderbilt	No. 19	Vanderbilt Stadium Nashville, TN (rivalry)	ESPN2	W 34–13	35,124	[6]
October 25	3:30 p.m.	Kentucky	No. 16	Sanford Stadium Athens, GA	CBS	W 23–13	85,672	[7]
November 1	3:30 p.m.	vs. No. 6 Florida	No. 14	Alltel Stadium Jacksonville, FL (rivalry)	CBS	W 37–17	84,297	[8]
November 15	5:30 p.m.	No. 16 Auburn	No. 7	Sanford Stadium Athens, GA (Deep South's Oldest Rivalry)	ESPN	L 34–45	86,117	[9]
November 22	2:00 p.m.	at Ole Miss	No. 14	Vaught–Hemingway Stadium Oxford, MS		W 21–14	35,473	[10]
November 29	1:00 p.m.	at Georgia Tech *	No. 14	Bobby Dodd Stadium Atlanta, GA (Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate)	ABC	W 27–24	46,015	[11]
January 1, 1998	11:00 a.m.	vs. Wisconsin *	No. 12	Houlihan's Stadium Tampa, FL (Outback Bowl)	ESPN	W 33–6	56,186	[12]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

^[13]

Rankings

See also: 1997 NCAA Division I-A football rankings

Ranking movements
Legend:██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	Final
AP	—	—	—	—	25	19	18	13	19	16	14	9	7	14	14	13	12	11
Coaches	—		—	—	25	20	19	15	21	18	15	9	7	14	14	13	11	10

Game summaries

Vs. Florida

#6 Florida Gators (6–1) vs. #17 Georgia Bulldogs (6–1)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Georgia	7	7	7	16	37
Florida	0	3	14	0	17

at Alltel Stadium, Jacksonville, Florida

• Date: November 1
• Game attendance: 84,297
• TV: CBS
• Box Score/Recap

Game information

First quarter UGA – Robert Edwards 27-yard run (Hap Hines kick), 10:16. Georgia 7–0. Second quarter UF – Collins Cooper 36-yard field goal, 6:03. Georgia 7–3. UGA – Robert Edwards 1-yard run (Hap Hines kick), 3:23. Georgia 14–3. Third quarter UF – Noah Brindise 1-yard run (Collins Cooper kick), 11:23. Georgia 14–10. UF – Rod Frazier 3-yard run (Collins Cooper kick), 6:32. Florida 17–14. UGA – Robert Edwards 1-yard run (Hap Hines kick), 1:30. Georgia 21–17. Fourth quarter UGA – Dax Langley 27-yard field goal, 9:02. Georgia 24–17. UGA – Robert Edwards 37-yard run (kick failed), 5:58. Georgia 30–17. UGA – Olandis Gary 7-yard run (Hap Hines kick), 2:44. Georgia 37–17. Top passers UGA – Mike Bobo – 16/27, 260 yards, 3 INT UF – Doug Johnson – 12/25, 115 yards, 2 INT Top rushers UGA – Robert Edwards – 26 rushes, 124 yards, 4 TD UF – Fred Taylor – 18 rushes, 85 yards Top receivers UGA – Corey Allen – 5 receptions, 116 yards UF – Jamie Richardson – 6 receptions, 97 yards

Personnel

1997 Georgia Bulldogs football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class WR Corey Allen RB Robert Arnaud QB Mike Bobo Sr RB Ronnie Bradley TE Larry Brown RB Selma Calloway WR Andrew Cronic RB Robert Edwards QB Jon England OL Antonio Fleming RB Olandis Gary WR Michael Greer OL Steve Herndon OL Kenley Ingram OL 75 Jonas Jennings Fr OL Miles Luckie RB Brett Millican WR Thad Parker RB Patrick Pass WR Tony Small OL Brad Stafford OL Matt Stinchcomb OL Chris Terry QB Mike Usry WR Hines Ward Sr TE Jermaine Wiggins OL Kelvin Williams	Defense Pos. # Name Class CB, WR 4 Champ Bailey CB 5 Ronald Bailey LB Greg Bright DB Derrick Byrd DB Earl Chambers DL Antonio Cochran DB Glenn Ford DB Drantes Grant DB Dustin Luckie LB Mike Luckie DB Larry Mann DL Brandon Miller DL Richard Seymour DB Trey Sipe DB Kirby Smart DL Paul Snellings DL Travis Stroud LB Brandon Tolbert	Special teams Pos. # Name Class K Hap Hines So P, K Dax Langley	Head coach Jim Donnan Coordinators/assistant coaches Phil Jones (graduate assistant) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

References

1. "Bulldogs build momentum with 38–7 win". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. August 31, 1997. Retrieved July 27, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
2. "USC whipped between the hedges". The Herald. September 14, 1997. Retrieved July 27, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
3. "Bulldogs take care of business, rout Indians". Ledger-Enquirer. September 21, 1997. Retrieved July 27, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
4. "Georgia rolls over Mississippi State". The Montgomery Advertiser. October 5, 1997. Retrieved July 27, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
5. "No. 9 Volunteers romp past soaked Bulldogs". Anderson Independent-Mail. October 12, 1997. Retrieved July 27, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
6. "Even without Ward, Bulldogs sink Commodores". The Macon Telegraph. October 19, 1997. Retrieved July 27, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
7. "UK gambles, but Georgia hits jackpot". Lexington Herald-Leader. October 26, 1997. Retrieved July 27, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
8. "The party's over as Dawgs chomp on Gators". Tallahassee Democrat. November 2, 1997. Retrieved July 27, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
9. "Tigers top Dawgs, stay in title hunt". The Sun Herald. November 16, 1997. Retrieved July 26, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
10. "'Lackadaisical' Rebels unable to hang with Georgia". The Greenwood Commonwealth. November 23, 1997. Retrieved July 27, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
11. "Georgia shocks state rival with last-second TD pass". The Tennessean. November 30, 1997. Retrieved July 27, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
12. "Dawgs make quick work of Wisconsin". St. Petersburg Times. January 2, 1998. Retrieved July 27, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
13. "1997 Georgia Bulldogs Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 27, 2024.