Bulldogs’ tight end Brock Bowers reached a historic career milestone in Georgia’s win over UAB-Birmingham last Saturday.
Bowers hauled in nine receptions for 121 yards and two touchdowns against the Blazers. His performance made Bowers just the 10th player in program history to surpass 2,000 career receiving yards.
“It’s pretty crazy,” Bowers said after the game. “I would have never thought I would have the yards and stuff coming here. I didn’t know what to expect. It’s pretty amazing to look back on everything.”
Bowers hauled in touchdowns of 41 yards and 10 yards to help No. 1 Georgia coast to a 49-21 win. He now has eight career games with at least 100 yards receiving and has played in seven where he has caught at least two scores. With 22 receiving touchdowns, Bowers also holds the program’s third-best record in that prestigious category.
Georgia head coach Kirby Smart was asked in his postgame press conference if he thought Bowers would reach the 2,000-career-yard mark when he arrived on campus nearly three years ago.
“Not ‘til I saw him run and catch, then I could,” Smart replied. “That spring when he got here, we probably could acknowledge that might happen because he’s that kind of talent. I thought he had a good night and deservedly so. He got the crowd into the game and got a lot of juice. He’s hard to tackle.”
Bowers’ first touchdown against UAB-Birmingham came late in the second quarter when the Bulldogs held a 14-7 lead. He hauled in a pass from quarterback Carson Beck and dodged a few defenders as he raced to the end zone.
The Napa, Ca., native scored again in the middle of the third quarter on Beck’s third-and-final passing score. Beck found Bowers for a 10-yard touchdown, which extended Georgia’s lead to 42-14.
“He’s an animal,” Beck said of Bowers after the Bulldogs’ win. “We try to get the ball in his hands. We did a good job tonight at getting him open and getting the ball in his hands. He makes plays.”
Bowers currently leads the Bulldogs in receptions (11), receiving yards (256) and receiving touchdowns (2). The 6-foot-4, 240-pound tight end is also averaging 11.8 yards per catch this year.
Bowers accounted for a good percentage of Georgia’s offensive production on Saturday night. The Bulldogs (4-0, 1-0) racked up a season-high 581 yards of total offense against the Blazers (1-3).
“Today, I think we started off pretty fast and tried to be explosive,” Bowers said later. “I think that helps our confidence in the red area and on third downs, too. It felt pretty good.”
Georgia’s offense struggled last week to score inside the red zone against South Carolina, but it was perfect this past Saturday. The Bulldogs scored all six times their offense was inside UAB’s 20.
According to Beck, Bowers is a huge reason why Georgia’s offense succeeded in Saturday’s win.
“He’s like a safety net,” Beck said. “He’s such a good player. I’m glad he’s on our team and not on another.”
The top-ranked Bulldogs now travel to the plains of Auburn, where they will face the Tigers (3-1) in their first road game of the year. The next installment of the Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry is set for 3:30 p.m. Saturday, on CBS.