Georgia set to watch QB like a Mauk

ATHENS -- Maty Mauk didn’t account for a touchdown last year against Georgia, and his stats weren’t gaudy. It’s what the Missouri quarterback didn’t do that sticks with the Bulldogs.

He didn’t wilt under pressure. In fact, he excelled.

Then just a redshirt freshman thrust into duty because of injury, he ran for a crucial first down on his first play, a key play in an eventual Missouri win.

“It shocked me then,” Georgia outside linebacker Jordan Jenkins said. “I haven’t forgotten about that since.”

Now Mauk is Missouri’s veteran starter -- if you can call nine starts enough for veteran status -- and while his passing is a concern, it’s his feet that are getting plenty of attention in Georgia’s defensive meetings.

Mauk ranks third among SEC quarterbacks with 124 rushing yards. But he doesn’t use his feet to rush the ball so much as to create passing opportunities, getting the ball off on the run.

“You’ve gotta worry about the run, you’ve gotta worry about the pass,” Georgia inside linebacker Amarlo Herrera said. “You’ve gotta worry about him breaking tackles and getting out of the pocket and then coming back around to the pocket and completing the pass.”

Mauk’s ability to extend plays is of particular concern to Georgia because he’s the best dual threat it has faced this season. Other quarterbacks have had the ability to run, but none have relied on it as much as Mauk.

“Just watching film of Maty Mauk and the previous teams he’s played, once he gets out of the pocket, he has his eyes down the field, looking to make a play,” Georgia safety Corey Moore said.

Mauk entered in the third quarter of last year’s game at Sanford Stadium, after starter James Franklin suffered a shoulder injury. Georgia had scored 16 straight points to climb within 28-26, and when Mauk entered it was third-and-6 near midfield.

He rushed for the first down, barely hitting the marker near the sideline. Three plays later, Missouri scored on a trick play, a 40-yard receiver pass.

Georgia’s task will be to force Mauk into as many traditional pocket passes as possible. That’s when the Bulldogs, whose defensive specialty is their pass rush, have the best chance of overwhelming him.

“You’ve gotta focus on the details, and make them do the things that they don’t want to do,” Herrera said. “Stand in your rush lanes and don’t get out of them.”

South Carolina was able to mitigate Georgia’s pass rush with quick releases and skilled playcalling. That was with Dylan Thompson, a pocket quarterback. Missouri’s strategy will thus be interesting to watch, as Mauk has quicker feet than Thompson, but not as much accuracy.

Mauk has the third-worst completion percentage (56 percent) among SEC starting quarterbacks. (Florida’s Jeff Driskel and LSU’s Anthony Jennings are worse.) And for all the angst regarding Georgia’s downfield passing game, Hutson Mason’s yards-per-attempt (6.8) is basically the same as Mauk’s (7.0).

But Mauk is tied for second in the SEC with 14 passing touchdowns. He also has avoided the sack well, only going down five times.

Last year, in four starts and 13 games overall, Mauk had 11 touchdown passes and just two interceptions, and he ran for 229 yards.

“He’s a very fast quarterback,” Georgia senior inside linebacker Ramik Wilson said. “He’s smart too, very smart. He understands defenses.”

And yet Wilson expressed some confidence in stopping Mauk, playing coy as to why.

“But based off on film and what we install, I think we’re gonna be just fine,” Wilson said. “I doubt he runs against us. I really do.”

Why?

“We’ve got a great gameplan,” Wilson said. “And I like the position I’m at right now, and the scheme.”

This story was originally published October 9, 2014 at 7:47 PM with the headline "Georgia set to watch QB like a Mauk ."