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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Sunday, December 30, 2007

Men in black dump Auburn, 45-20

Hawaii news photo - The Honolulu Advertiser

Tight end Tripp Chandler and the Bulldogs wore black tops for the first time in history and beat Auburn, 45-20.

KELLY LAMBERT | Athens Banner-Herald

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AUBURN | NOV. 10

ATHENS, Ga. — The blackout worked.

With Georgia's players wearing black jerseys and most of the Sanford Stadium crowd donning black, the 10th-ranked Bulldogs dispatched No. 18 Auburn 45-20 on Saturday.

The blackout was the idea of the Georgia seniors, who approached Coach Mark Richt about it on Monday. Rumors were rampant all week that the team would wear black jerseys, and that was confirmed when the Bulldogs ran onto the field. Predictably, the team's entrance brought the crowd to a fever pitch.

"I want to say thanks to Bulldog Nation," Richt said. "It was unbelievable to look into the stands and see what I saw. I came out for warmups and the student section was jam packed. By the time we kicked off the whole stands were blacked out. It was truly a tribute to Bulldog Nation. It was a great sign of unity and I want to thank everyone for that."

The Bulldogs ended the game with some gusto as well, scoring 28 unanswered points to rally from a 20-17 deficit.

Tailback Knowshon Moreno scored twice, while fullback Brannan Southerland and tailback Thomas Brown each had a touchdown in the final 20 minutes.

Moreno finished with 101 yards on 22 carries, and he now has 11 touchdowns — the most for a Bulldog since Robert Edwards scored 12 in 1997. Moreno is also the first Bulldog since Verron Haynes in 2001 to have four straight 100-yard games.

Brown, returning from a shoulder injury, had 81 yards, including a 53-yarder to set up Southerland's score. Overall, the Bulldogs had 180 yards rushing on 43 carries.

Georgia has now scored 40-plus points in three straight games. The last time that happened was in the national championship season of 1942.

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