UK Football: Cats claw Dawgs but fall 42-38

Stafford, however, hit Massaquoi for 78 yards to put the ball inside the Kentucky 10. On 3rd-and-goal from the 11, Stafford avoided the rush and rolled to his right, flipping the ball to Green in the back of the end zone for his third touchdown pass of the day.

Kentucky, as it had all day, came right back. Cobb drove the Wildcats to the Georgia 26 before stalling and the Bulldogs seemed to have victory in hand when Cobb threw incomplete on fourth down.

Georgia's Nick Williams, however, was called for a facemask penalty while trying to sack Cobb. The penalty gave Kentucky a first down at the Georgia 13, and Cobb tried to throw a screen pass.

Dobbs didn't let it happen, stretching his 6-foot-2, 282-pound frame and snatching the ball with his right hand as he fell back to the ground.

It was one of the few defensive plays the Bulldogs made all day as Georgia struggled to contain Kentucky's newly installed spread offense. Cobb, who has spent much of the season battling sophomore Mike Hartline for the starting job, didn't do much throwing - going 12-of-20 for 105 yards - but the way the Wildcats were running, he didn't have to.

Kentucky rolled up 226 yards on the ground against the SEC's second-ranked run defense, keeping Georgia's high-powered offense off the field. Tony Dixon had 61 yards and two scores for the Wildcats and little-used fullback John Conner had 26 yards and a touchdown and Kentucky had a nearly 10-minute advantage in time of possession.

Stafford, however, made sure the Bulldogs made the best use of the few opportunities provided. Kentucky lost top cornerback Trevard Lindley with an injury in the second half, and the Bulldogs took off.

Massaquoi, who fumbled twice early in the fourth quarter to halt Georgia drives, made up for it after Kentucky punted to the Georgia 15 with 3:55 to go. Stafford hit him going over the middle on first down and Massaquoi stepped out of a tackle and raced down the right sideline to the Kentucky 7. Two plays later, Stafford connected with Green, who held on despite getting hit as he fell to the ground.

The last-minute heroics hardly seemed necessary after the Bulldogs raced to a quick 14-0 lead as Stafford hit Massaquoi for an easy 29-yard touchdown pass and Moreno went in from 6 yards.

The Wildcats, who have struggled on offense all season, fought back to tie it behind Cobb.

The freshman led a pair of time-consuming touchdown drives, ending the second with a nifty 2-yard run. Cobb's decision to prance across the goalline, however, drew a flag for unsportsmanlike conduct. The Bulldogs used the ensuing good field position to reclaim the lead at 21-14 on an 11-yard scoring pass from Stafford to Shaun Chapas.

The fun was just beginning.

Kentucky used a blocked punt and a 96-yard kickoff return to get back in it, and came within moments of upsetting the Bulldogs for the second time in three years.

STATISTICS

First Quarter

Geo-Massaquoi 29 pass from Stafford (Walsh kick), 13:11.

Geo-Moreno 6 run (Walsh kick), 7:38.

Ky-Dixon 3 run (Seiber kick), 1:14.

Second Quarter

Ky-R.Cobb 2 run (Seiber kick), 7:15.

Geo-Chapas 11 pass from Stafford (Walsh kick), 4:48.

Third Quarter

Ky-FG Seiber 40, 9:19.

Ky-R.Cobb 9 run (Seiber kick), 7:31.

Geo-Moreno 20 run (Walsh kick), 3:21.

Fourth Quarter

Ky-Dixon 14 run (Seiber kick), 14:26.

Geo-Moreno 18 run (Walsh kick), 13:49.

Ky-R.Cobb 1 run (Seiber kick), 12:15.

Geo-Green 11 pass from Stafford (Walsh kick), 1:54.

A-70,626.

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING - Georgia, Moreno 22-123, Green 1-28, Samuel 1-2, Team 2-(minus 2), Stafford 4-(minus 7). Kentucky, R.Cobb 18-82, Dixon 18-61, A.Smith 11-60, Conner 7-26, Allen 1-0, Adeyemi 1-(minus 3).

PASSING - Georgia, Stafford 17-27-0-376. Kentucky, R.Cobb 12-20-1-105.

RECEIVING - Georgia, Massaquoi 8-191, Moreno 3-40, Moore 2-68, Green 2-53, Durham 1-13, Chapas 1-11. Kentucky, Lanxter 4-25, Dixon 2-24, Adeyemi 2-11, Adams 2-9, Grinter 1-29, A.Smith 1-7.