Something’s not there this year. It was Beck’s third straight multi-interception game — and fourth in his last five games — after having none last year, when he threw 24 touchdowns to just six picks.
It can’t be blamed simply on not having Brock Powers and Ladd McConkey as security blankets this year, because Beck didn’t have them for parts of last year either. (Bowers missed four games, McConkey missed five.) And there were a lot of good things that happened this season: Georgia ranked 11th in the nation and third in the SEC on passes of 20 or more yards. Beck is also on pace to throw for more yards (2,302) than last year (3,941). That includes this game, when the go-ahead drive showed he and the receivers could connect on big plays: Arian Smith for 34 yards on third-and-7, then Lawson Luque for 21 yards, then Lovett converting another third down, this time for a 10-yard score. Yards.
The problem is that these are serious errors. The first two objections were inexplicable, right at the defenders. The third pick, while Beck was getting hit early in the third quarter, was not supposed to be thrown. There was another close interception and some misses on open receivers. Beck finished 25 of 40 for 309 yards with two touchdowns and three picks.
The only good news for Beck and Georgia: Despite their struggles, they still lead 7-1. They can only hope that this has been a very difficult period, that they have moved on, and that they have proof that he can still be a championship-caliber quarterback.
