ATHENS, Ga. -- The running joke all week on both sides of the Savannah River was first team to 10 points would win this anticipated defensive border battle.
Neither Georgia's nor South Carolina's offenses, however, proved to be jokes. Nor was Georgia's special teams.
In a shootout more reminiscent of the days when Steve Spurrier once hung "half a hundred" on the Bulldogs while at Florida, the scoreboard lit up with 78 total points as the Bulldogs avoided falling to 0-2 against their longtime coaching nemesis.
It boiled down to a fourth down on the Bulldogs' 7 when Rennie Curran batted down a Stephen Garcia pass to preserve a 41-37 Bulldogs' victory.
This was not what anyone expected.
By halftime, Georgia led 31-23 and both teams were already establishing all kinds of records - not the least of which was for perhaps the longest duration. A 59-minute first quarter was not-so-quicky surpassed by a 60-minute second quarter on a marathon four-hour night comprised of cumulative sprints.
Not that any among the 93,000 people in Sanford Stadium was complaining. After watching their respective offenses put up a combined 17 points in their season openers, Saturday night was a refreshing change of pace.
If you were wondering whether South Carolina quarterback Stephen Garcia could move the Gamecocks, he answered it with the defining night of his career so far. And if you were wondering where all the superstar recruits have been hiding on the Georgia roster, you found out between the hedges.
"I had no doubt we had the people on the offense to make big plays," receiver A.J. Green said.
Green, who everyone already knew about, was making soaring catches over the Gamecocks defense look so routine that he might have needed FAA clearance.
Then there was the B&B show - Brandon and Branden.
Sophomore Brandon Boykin required 14 seconds to established a new Georgia record by taking a kickoff return 100 yards for a touchdown that quickly answered the Gamecocks' opening score. Boykin was also the guy that went vertical to pull down an interception that helped stake the Bulldogs to 24-17 lead.
That play came one play after true freshman Branden Smith had left a vapor trail between six South Carolina defenders when he took an end around and hit the Usain Bolt gear on a 63-yard touchdown burst to give Georgia its first lead of the night.
The crowd hardly had enough time to worry whether Smith might drop the ball en route, as he did on his first kickoff return of the night. That mistake, which set South Carolina up at the Georgia 8, had left Sanford Stadium stunned as the Gamecocks opened a 17-7 lead. By typical Border Bash standards, that almost felt insurmountable.
"That felt like 3.9 seconds right there," said Smith of his burst. "I felt like I had to redeem myself."
This night the athletes couldn't be kenneled. By halftime, Georgia had already established a new kickoff yardage record with a 204 total - Smith and Boykin each adding returns of 48 yards that both set up short Bulldog touchdown drives.
Green was looking so good that the eight NFL scouts in the building were probably measuring him for a new uniform next season. He hovered once over top of Gamecocks cornerback Akeem Auguste for one 23-yard catch. He showed both his athleticism and field spatial awareness when he levitated to make a catch and get his foot down in the back of the end zone for a touchdown just before halftime.
Then Green showed his strength on a 34-yard catch and run to the 8-yard line that set up Georgia's first touchdown to open the third quarter.
It should be noted that Joe Cox wasn't too shabby, either. The senior quarterback has had a rough start as a starter, getting little sympathy from Bulldog fans for his flu-hindered debut against Oklahoma State. On Thursday, it was erroneously reported on ESPN that Cox would already be replaced as starter by Logan Gray.
Cox silenced his critics with a solid night - at least until Eric Norwood sniffed out and picked off a fourth-quarter pass and returned it 35 yards for what should have been a tying touchdown after falling behind 15 points in the second half.
"It felt pretty good, especially after last week when we didn't do anything on offense," Cox said. "We weren't expecting a defensive struggle but we didn't know it was going to be both teams coming out and scoring back and forth."
Spurrier and his Gamecocks would not go gentle into the September night. Calling fake punts in his own half of the field, going for fourth downs and calling a steady stream of pass plays for Garcia, the Gamecocks exposed plenty of holes in the Bulldogs' defense. It was a coming out party for Garcia, who set personal bests in completions, attempts and yards before the first half was over. He finished 31 for 53 for 313 yards and two touchdowns.
Unfortunately for the Gamecocks, they tied a school record for field goals (five) yet missed one extra point that made all the difference.
It all made up for an entertaining evening between two teams that had created low expectations.
Reach Scott Michaux at (706) 823-3219 or scott.michaux@augustachronicle.com.
The Augusta Chronicle ©2010 Morris Communications, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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Scott, I'm drooling with anticipation waiting for your Halloween column. I can't wait to hear the excuses for this year. Go Gators!
AhsanMinnik - sore loser.
What have the Gators lost? Maybe I slept through it.....lol