OXFORD, Miss. -- After watching Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss take over two games against Georgia last season, Bulldogs coach Kirby Smart knew his defense had to try something new to slow him down on Saturday night.
Smart said the No. 2 Bulldogs practiced differently this week -- he wouldn't divulge exactly how -- and their preparation paid off in a dominant 42-7 victory against the No. 10 Rebels at Vaught-Heminway Stadium.
After No. 1 Miami lost 31-24 at No. 11 Notre Dame, the Bulldogs might have a claim for No. 1 when the College Football Playoff selection committee releases its new rankings on Tuesday.
"It was a great effort tonight," Smart said. "Our guys really came in focused. We talked about being on the hunt [and] being the aggressor. I thought the game started that way."
Before the Rebels could blink, Georgia led 21-0 after scoring touchdowns on each of its first three possessions. The Bulldogs added another touchdown on quarterback Gunner Stockton's 15-yard scoring run late in the second quarter to make it 28-0.
Meanwhile, Georgia's defense contained Chambliss, who accounted for five scores against the Bulldogs last season. In a 39-34 win in a CFP quarterfinal at the Allstate Sugar Bowl, Chambliss threw for 362 yards with two touchdowns.
On Saturday night, however, Chambliss was 18-of-34 for 170 yards. He was held without a passing touchdown for the first time in 22 games.
Defensive coordinator Glenn Schumann was more aggressive in calling blitzes and pressuring Chambliss than in the two games last season.
"I was proud of the whole defensive staff," Smart said. "Glenn does a great job. We played them twice last year. It felt like we left a lot of plays out there. There's really only one way to play this guy. You either give him a lot of time and he gets you, or you give him less time, and you try to get him and he still may get you. He did a good job calling the game. Our kids stuck to the plan."
Chambliss was sacked four times, threw an interception while under pressure and lost a fumble when safety Raesean Dinkins hit him from behind. He was replaced by backup Deuce Knight with about nine minutes left.
"It was just rush as one, rush as a unit," Georgia safety KJ Bolden said of defending Chambliss. "You can't be selfish, can't try to beat your guy and run all the way around when he steps up and scrambles. You can't do that. You've got to rush as a unit and keep him in the pocket. I thought we did a great job of doing that, and we kind of limited him for sure today."
It also helped that Georgia's offensive line controlled the line of scrimmage. Tailback Nate Frazier ran for 46 yards on the first play from scrimmage, and the Rebels struggled to slow down Georgia's running attack the rest of the game. The Bulldogs ran for 295 yards and went 7 for 12 on third down. They held the ball for nearly 35 minutes.
Stockton threw for four touchdowns, including three to sophomore Talyn Taylor, and also ran for a score.
"That makes the game what it is, right?" Smart said. "If you can run the ball, it makes a lot of the play-action easier. It's our brand of football and it allows Gunner to take shots and do the things he does best. That combination really helps. We couldn't do it without a really good offensive line and some good backs."
Things got so bad for the Rebels that officials briefly stopped the game in the second quarter because fans threw bottles and other items on the field. Fans were upset after a roughing-the-passer penalty against the Rebels wiped out an interception. Then defensive back Jaylon Braxton was called for pass interference on a deep pass to Craig Dandridge Jr., which kept another Georgia scoring drive alive.
Ole Miss coach Pete Golding said he believed that defensive end Jordan Renaud's hit on Stockton that was penalized was legal.
"Those definitely don't help, obviously, when you get a turnover and then you get a flag," Golding said. "The hit was clean, the timing of it and all that. I will be interested to hear the response [from the SEC]. I think it was more of a shoulder drive into the ground, I would assume will be the response."
The Rebels' third loss of the season will make returning to the CFP difficult after they reached the semifinals last season. They have quality wins over Louisville, Missouri and LSU but won't have many more chances to impress the selection committee with games remaining against Oklahoma, FCS program Wofford and struggling Mississippi State.
"Our focus will go back to what we can control," Golding said. "That's where we get lost around here, in my opinion. At times, we worry about things we can't control. All we can control is coming back in here tomorrow, evaluating this tape and getting it fixed, and that starts with me. We can't control right now what the playoff committee thinks. We have to get ready for Oklahoma."
Georgia still faces two SEC opponents that were ranked by the selection committee last week, No. 18 Missouri at home and No. 21 South Carolina on the road, before closing the regular season against rival Georgia Tech.
"On to the next one now because things get bigger from here," Smart said. "I'm not saying that wasn't a big win. It's a tough place to play, and it's a quarterback I have tremendous respect for."