After facing each other in mid-October, Texas and Georgia will run it back on Saturday afternoon in the SEC Championship Game from Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The Longhorns are slight favorites for this rematch of top-five teams.
No. 5 Georgia vs. No. 2 Texas
No. 5 Georgia (10-2, 6-2 SEC) is making its fourth straight SEC Championship Game appearance and seventh overall in coach Kirby Smart’s nine-year tenure. Smart’s Bulldogs are just 2-4 in these games but have more familiarity with this setting than No. 2 Texas (11-1, 7-1). Georgia is also the only team to beat the Longhorns this season.
Georgia upset then-No. 1 Texas in Austin back on Oct. 19, winning 30-15. It was a sloppy game with the teams combining for seven turnovers and 15 penalties. The Bulldogs put together one of their vintage defensive efforts – 29 rushing yards allowed, seven sacks, and 2-for-15 on third down.
Defense has been Georgia’s calling card under Smart, but the Longhorns are ranked higher this season, including No. 1 in FBS in passing defense. They have allowed just four touchdown passes compared to 18 interceptions.
In the first meeting, Texas picked off Carson Beck three times. The Bulldogs need Beck to make plays because they have struggled to consistently run the ball.
Georgia is 101st nationally in rushing offense at 128.3 yards per game. The Longhorns have not been particularly prolific on the ground (175.5 yards per game, 52nd), but running back Quintrevion Wisner is coming off a 186-yard performance in last week’s win against Texas A&M. Texas’ balance could stretch the Bulldogs’ defense, which also will have to gameplan for quarterback Quinn Ewers (and possibly Arch Manning, too).
Regardless of how this game turns out, both teams should be in the College Football Playoff. That doesn’t change the stakes involved in Atlanta, however. The Bulldogs want to reclaim the SEC crown, while the Longhorns want payback and the title that would come with it.
Georgia vs. Texas odds
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(Photo of Ryan Wingo: Tim Warner / Getty Images)
