It wasn’t the most exciting game of the season, but Georgia wrapped up its home and SEC slate with a 19-13 win over Texas A&M at Sanford Stadium on Saturday.

To be honest, it’s going to be interesting to see how the College Football Playoff committee ranks the Bulldogs on Tuesday. The Aggies, looking to spring the road upset, were stifled in the 1st half before successfully going through the air in the 2nd half, but Georgia’s vaunted defense held on for the win despite struggling to handle Kellen Mond and the A&M receiving corps in the latter stages. Next up: Georgia Tech in Atlanta to wrap up the regular season.

Here’s what I liked and didn’t like from the Dawgs’ 19-13 win over the Aggies on Saturday:

What I liked

Just another day at the office for rushing defense

Any time you hold a team to a rushing number with a minus symbol in front of it, you know you’ve done well.

Texas A&M ran for an eye-popping 319 yards against South Carolina on Nov. 16. On Saturday against Georgia, it managed minus 1 yard on 20 carries. A microcosm of how things were going for the Aggies on the ground came in the 3rd quarter on a 3rd-and-inches from the Georgia 26. Kellen Mond’s quarterback sneak? No gain. Isaiah Spiller’s attempt on 4th-and-inches? Not even close. The Aggies ended the day with the lowest rushing output against a Georgia team since Florida and Tennessee managed a respective -19 and -21 yards on 22 and 23 carries in 2011.

Just when we’ve seen the best from this Bulldogs defensive front against the run, they top themselves.

A nearly penalty-free performance

George Pickens’ illegal block penalty in the 2nd half was a big one as it might have cost the Dawgs a shot at 6 points instead of 3. But outside of a pass interference call in the 3rd quarter on Grant Walter, they played a nice, disciplined game.

After being whistled for 7 penalties for 56 yards against Auburn, the Dawgs finished with their fewest in a game this season. They entered the day averaging 6.5 for 55.8 yards per outing. On the other side, the Aggies were hit with 7 penalties for 45 yards.

Hot Rod’s Sanford Stadium farewell

It was a little touch and go with the weather for Rodrigo Blankenship in the first half, but he was good on all 4 of his attempts, including a 49-yarder early in the 2nd quarter.

He missed 2 field goal attempts in the loss to South Carolina, but since then, he has made 11-of-12, including makes from 47, 48 and 49. Oh, by the way, he’s now 190-for-190 on extra points in his college career.

Hot Rod will leave Georgia as a fan favorite, but he’ll be getting paid to kick footballs on Sundays around this time in 2020.

The Senior Day crowd

This was a loud and vocal group of fans in attendance at Sanford Stadium on Saturday. And it clearly affected how Mond was able to call the game and relay instructions to his offense, as several false starts were whistled against the Aggies’ offensive line. As a result, there were more than a few shots of a frustrated Jimbo Fisher on the sidelines throughout the game.

The Bulldogs have always mentioned the importance of the home crowd’s support throughout the course of the season. And that same home crowd delivered for one final time in 2019.

What I didn’t like

The offense as a whole

Georgia is usually able to pull away from teams in the 2nd half. On Saturday, that didn’t happen as it found itself in a tight game for the 2nd week in a row.

Credit is due to the defense for forcing a 3rd-quarter fumble to put the Dawgs at the Texas A&M 21, but it had to settle for a Blankenship field goal after managing just a single yard. After allowing a sack on its next drive, the offense looked to be in position for the kill shot starting with Jake Fromm’s 41-yard pass to George Pickens. Pickens would feature again in the drive, but this time for the wrong reasons: a 15-yard illegal block penalty pushed the Dawgs out of the red zone as they ultimately would need to call on Blankenship again for another field goal.

Fromm was 7-of-9 for 91 yards in the 2nd half, but he and the offense as a whole just seemed a bit off. His timing was a bit shaky earlier in the game, and despite a touchdown pass to Pickens in the 1st half, Georgia wasted opportunities to put more points on the board.

D’Andre Swift finished with 19 carries for 103 yards and helped run the clock down on the Bulldogs’ final drive, but struggled at other times to get through A&M’s defense.

Kellen Mond getting hot in the 2nd half

Perhaps the Georgia defense was getting tired late in the game, but Mond began to find his touch as the game progressed. After a 1st half stat line of 9-of-13 for 73 yards, he was 16-of-24 for 185 yards and a touchdown in the 2nd half, with a 10-of-13 mark in the 4th quarter for 127 yards.

The Bulldogs’ secondary couldn’t find its legs, and it became especially critical with the offense’s inability to put points on the board and put distance between itself and the Aggies. Tyler Clark’s sack of Mond with A&M driving into Georgia territory ended up being an important one as the Aggies ended up punting a few plays later and never got the ball back again.