Just curious how everyone’s favorite Aaron Murray meme fits in with this.
In time, a relatively unimpressive stat line against Florida might go down as the turning point in Aaron Murray‘s career.
By that midseason game last fall, Georgia’s quarterback had already authored a series of subpar performances against ranked teams in his two-plus seasons as the Bulldogs’ starter. He was in the middle of another against the Gators, tossing interceptions on three straight first-half possessions as Georgia took a 7-6 lead into halftime.
Yet Murray was able to regroup, going 8-for-16 in the second half for 116 yards and hitting Malcolm Mitchell for a win-clinching 45-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter that proved Murray is a tougher competitor than it might once have appeared…
In Georgia’s next game against ranked opposition, Murray was hit in the mouth again — literally, by Alabama defensive end Quinton Dial in the SEC championship game — but went on to prove that he’s anything but soft. In Georgia’s games against ranked opponents following the Florida win — against Alabama and against Nebraska and its top-ranked pass defense in the Capital One Bowl — Murray flashed resiliency that he might have lacked earlier in his career.
He was a combined 36-for-66 for 692 yards, six touchdowns and three interceptions against the Crimson Tide and Cornhuskers. And in the second halves of those two games, he was even more efficient, hitting 15 of 25 passes for 401 yards, three scores and no interceptions.
I don’t think Murray’s problem has ever been about toughness – ask Nick Fairley about that – but rather more about focus and keeping himself in control in a game. No question he can do better, but it’s worth noting that he hasn’t been nearly as consistently bad as some of his detractors claim.