Georgia Football Winners and Losers from Big Win Over Oklahoma Sooners

The Georgia Bulldogs just put together a dominant defensive performance at home in Sanford Stadium against the Oklahoma Sooners, winning the game 41-13.

Kirby Smart’s group is now 4-0 on the season and 2-0 in Southeastern Conference (SEC) games. A lot of players made a huge impact on Saturday’s game, with a couple of them finally producing a signature or breakthrough moment.

Let’s look at the biggest winners and losers for the Dawgs in the win over Oklahoma:

Winners

Chris Cole’s Draft Stock

Georgia’s star linebacker may have entered superstar status after this one. Cole recovered two fumbles, taking one back for an 85-yard scoop and score. This was in addition to having the second most tackles on the day for the Dawgs and sacking John Mateer one.

If you watch the game closely, Cole gets off the snap so quickly that sometimes he just blows right by the offensive tackle untouched. He was in the backfield disrupting Mateer several times.

Smart wasn’t impressed with Cole’s touchdown. He thought it was easy for him.

“I don’t think Chris gets the credit for that… the credit goes to the pressure,” Smart said.

After complimenting other players, he did give Cole some credit for his speed.

“Opportunistic and a little luck, but proud of Chris for running it back,” Smart said.

Cole was already considered a potential first round NFL Draft pick, but a game like this will put him in the spotlight. Scouts and general managers already know about him, and will draft based on the person and the tape, but spotlight can always help.

Rasean Dinkins

Dinkins was a prime candidate to start at safety for Georgia this season after replacing Joenel Aguero in the postseason at nickelback last year. Senior Kyron Jones stormed back from multiple injuries that kept him out for half of 2025 and this spring as well as keeping him limited in fall practice. Both of these players have been rotating, both of them playing primarily with the starters.

Against Oklahoma, Dinkins punched the football out of a Sooner receiver and then recovered the fumble he forced.

“The big time play of the game was Dink’s punch out. There’s forced turnovers and there are gifts,” Smart said.

Jones has played well, so the two continuing to rotate seems likely, but this play by Dinkins has him in good standing, and provides momentum going forward for him and the rest of the secondary unit.

Peyton Woodring

Georgia’s senior kicker knocked in his 201st consecutive extra point today to put Georgia up 38-6 in the fourth quarter. That broke both a Georgia school record and an SEC record previously held by former Bulldog Rodrigo Blankenship.

He made all seven of his kicks today - five extra points and two field goals. Woodring will look to extend his streak against Vanderbilt next week.

Dwight Phillips Jr.

Dwight Phillips Jr., known by the team as “Peanut,” scored on a 54-yard run in the second half. It acted as both a gut punch for the Sooners and his first big play in a big game.

Phillips Jr. finished the game as Georgia’s leading rusher. He ran for 84 yards and a touchdown. That is the first time in his career that he led the team in rushing.

“Explosiveness. We have to get “Peanut” more touches,” Smart said.

Smart said after Georgia’s spring game that he was the most explosive player for the Dawgs’ offense during spring practice.

Senior linebacker Raylen Wilson laughed when talking about Phillips’ performance.

“In fall camp, he was trying to rip off a run every day. We had to come together and talk about it,” Wilson said.

His opportunity today came partially due to starting running back Nate Frazier missing the game with an injury. Still, with the way Phillips Jr. ran against a strong defense, Smart may decide to make sure the ball is in his hands more moving forward.

“I was really proud of him today - his stick-to-itiveness, his ball security, his hitting the hole, but also his special teams,” Smart said.

Talyn Taylor

Talyn Taylor just had the first 100-yard receiving game for a Georgia player since Zachariah Branch did it against Florida last November. He hauled in four passes for 110 yards and a touchdown.

He connected with Gunner Stockton on a 35-yard touchdown in the second quarter. It was a very similar play design to the play that was run late in the third quarter against Alabama last year - Taylor dropped a wide-open touchdown.

Smart said that it was “good retribution” for him.

That was not Taylor’s most impressive moment of the day. He secured a one-handed catch in tight coverage in the second half. The ball was beautifully thrown by Stockton, and Taylor did the rest on a go route.

One of the questions we had for this team was which wide receiver would be the target in a big game. Taylor was the answer on Saturday.

Losers

Gunner Stockton’s Heisman Stock

Stockton finished the game 14/25 for 171 yards and a touchdown. It was by far his least efficient game this season, and he also threw his first interception of the year. This is coupled with him only having one rushing yard in the game.

Georgia still got a huge win, but there was a lot left to be desired for Stockton. He missed some throws and his touchdown pass to Taylor was noticeably behind him.

Stockton being a Heisman finalist is a realistic outcome, but games like this where the numbers are not there will hold him back. He was throwing at an 84.4% clip heading into this game. That will drop into the 70s after this week.

Tight Ends

Georgia’s tight ends are very important, and they made some great blocks today, but they did not get the football. They combined for three catches for nine yards on the day. Jaden Reddell also carried the ball one time for eight yards.

Smart has said a couple of times this year that Georgia’s offense is going to spread the football around. That was not as much the case today. The tight ends fell victim to game script and inefficiency in the passing game.

The talent and importance of the room is undeniable, so their time will likely come again soon to have an impactful game in the box score.

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