AUBURN, Ala. — Tailback Knowshon Moreno has been productive in many ways during his two seasons at Georgia, but catching a touchdown pass wasn’t among them.

Until Saturday.

Moreno’s 35-yard scoring reception from quarterback Matthew Stafford at the 3:08 mark of the second quarter was the first of his career. That touchdown gave the Bulldogs a 7-6 lead in their eventual 17-13 win over Auburn.

“Really?” Moreno said when told the fact. “That’s kind of cool.”

The 5-foot-11, 208-pounder from Belford, N.J., caught 20 passes last season for 253 yards. He had four catches for 58 yards against the Tigers, bringing his season tally to 23 for 255.

Moreno’s first receiving score occurred on a play where Stafford and most of the offense headed right, but Moreno, left guard Cordy Glenn and left tackle Clint Bolling made their way to the left sideline. When Stafford threw back to Moreno, the tailback had a friendly escort.

“Those linemen up in front of me were making big blocks, and I just followed them to the end zone,” Moreno said. “I saw Cordy and Clint running up in front of me and just tried to catch them.”

A big embrace

Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville and Georgia defensive coordinator Willie Martinez were graduate assistants at the University of Miami in 1986 and embraced after the game. Martinez said he just wished Tuberville well in Auburn’s game at Alabama on Nov. 29.

Tuberville is in his 10th season at Auburn and is 5-5 against Georgia after starting out 3-0.

“The guy has done a great job,” Martinez said. “I know a lot of guys on that staff, and they do a great job. It’s a tough league. You look at their losses in the league, and they’re all close.

“Plus, they went through a tough transition in the middle of the year. To keep it going is a testament to him and his staff.”

More kicking woes

The Bulldogs were a little better in special teams compared to last week’s game at Kentucky, but the improvement was not significant.

After Georgia moved 79 yards in nine plays on its opening possession, freshman kicker Blair Walsh had a 21-yard field-goal attempt blocked by Tigers defensive tackle Tez Doolittle. The miss was Walsh’s sixth in his last nine attempts.

“I hit it too much in the middle of the ball,” Walsh said, “and it got blocked.”

Said Doolittle: “I got a good push and used my three-inch vertical.”

Georgia made two special-teams disasters in one play in the final minute of the first quarter. John Knox was flagged for roughing Tigers punter Clinton Durst in the end zone, but the Tigers declined that penalty because Prince Miller fumbled the return near midfield.

The Tigers took a 6-0 lead on the play after Miller’s fumble when Kodi Burns threw to Mario Fannin for a 52-yard touchdown, which was Auburn’s longest scoring pass of the season.

Odds and ends

Georgia has won three straight in the Deep South’s oldest rivalry but still trails the series 53-51-8. ... Auburn’s defense continued its streak this season of not giving up a touchdown in the first quarter. .. Georgia’s Josh Davis started at right tackle for the first time since the Georgia Southern opener and played all but one series. ... The Bulldogs might be leading the NCAA in penalties again after committing nine for 95 yards . ... Georgia weakside linebacker Rennie Curran entered Saturday leading the SEC with 89 tackles and added nine. ... Georgia’s home game Nov. 29 is expected to be televised by CBS with a noon kickoff.

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