Stopping the Sensei: Georgia relishes challenge of Auburn's Jeff Holland

Auburn outside linebacker Jeff Holland stood behind the line-of-scrimmage with the goal of not allowing Georgia to get a third-down pass off.

His eyes were directly set on Bulldogs’ quarterback Jake Fromm, and an inexperienced offensive tackle in Andrew Thomas was the only thing that stood in his way. As Holland began to work towards the edge, he shed his block almost immediately.

The pursuit was underway, and the result was inevitable.

Thomas fell to the ground and so did Fromm after Holland completed the blind-side sack. As his nickname "Sensei Mud" suggests, Holland celebrated with a bow and a raucous crowd at Jordan-Hare Stadium joined in collaboration.

“Jeff is a really great get-off guy. He's got great pass rush ability. He's got speed, plays really hard, talented, talented player,” Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said. “He’s really good, and he’s only gotten better.”

While it may have been the only time Holland was able to engage in celebratory antics, it wasn’t the last time the Tigers’ sack leader would wreak havoc on Fromm and Georgia’s offensive front in the Nov. 11 contest.

Holland collected four additional tackles along with three quarterback hurries. Consequently, Auburn was able to stymie Georgia’s flow and give the Bulldogs their first loss of the season — at a 23-point margin, no less.

Only three weeks after the dominating performance from the Tigers, the two SEC arch rivals meet again in Saturday’s SEC Championship game. Georgia looks to avenge its performance in a number of areas, and line play — on both ends — is near the top of the list.

Holland hasn’t slowed down during the two games between the contests with Georgia. In each game with Louisiana-Monroe and Alabama, Holland added three quarterback hurries to his record. While he is focused on Georgia, he seems to relish the second chance at one of the conference’s premier pass rushers.

Georgia has seen upper-echelon defensive fronts before as Kentucky and Missouri both feature players that have top-10 sack totals.

“I think it’s something that we see in the SEC each week,” tightend Jed said. “I think we get the best look that we can from our team (during the week on scout team). We’re excited for the match up, and we understand what we have to do to contain him.”

There is more to Auburn’s front-seven than Holland, however, and a number of different weapons can cause problems. Whether it be Isaiah Wynn defending the pass rush on the left side or the two guards trying to open holes in the run game, Auburn has Marlon Davidson, Derrick Brown and others to join in on making things difficult.

Smart sees the depth among the front as a “tough” challenge for his group, but Holland remains the target. Holland’s celebrations stem from “The Karate Kid” and started to become a trend during Auburn’s week-four victory over Missouri, and Georgia hopes it doesn’t continue.

From the perspective of someone who has studied Auburn first-hand on three occasions this season, the performance by the 6-foot-2 junior could be the difference in Georgia bringing back a championship.

“Jalen Hurts could never get comfortable. Jake Fromm could never get comfortable, because No. 4 was on their rear end the whole game,” CBS Sports’ play-by-play announcer Brad Nessler said. “He’s a disrupter. If he has four quarterback pressures and three sacks, something like that, Georgia’s offense is going to be in trouble. The less I say ‘Jeff Holland’ the better for Georgia.”

This story was originally published November 30, 2017 at 8:30 PM with the headline "Stopping the Sensei: Georgia relishes challenge of Auburn's Jeff Holland."