Georgia defensive back JaCorey Thomas was ejected over a controversial tackle he made just moments before halftime of the Sugar Bowl.
Thomas delivered a booming hit on Ole Miss wide receiver Cayden Lee after the latter caught a pass near midfield at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, La. Thomas was penalized for targeting, which resulted in a 15-yard penalty and an automatic ejection for the senior defensive back.
Georgia DB JaCorey Thomas was ejected for targeting for this hit. pic.twitter.com/fqdzHcOjcJ
— 🜲 🜲 🜲 (@fsh733) January 2, 2026
The penalty put Ole Miss into Georgia territory with about 20 seconds left.
Luckily for the Bulldogs, the Rebels completely botched their opportunity to score before the break. Quarterback Trinidad Chambliss connected with tight end Dae’Quan Wright to get Ole Miss into field goal range. But Wright inexplicably failed to run out of bounds as the clock ran out.
One silver lining for Georgia was that Thomas’ hit came before halftime, which means that JaCorey would not need to serve any suspension if the Bulldogs advanced to the College Football Playoff semifinals. Had Thomas been flagged for targeting in the second half, he would have had to sit out the first half of Georgia’s next game.
