GEORGIA
It’s hard not to want to just bag these next two weeks and get right to the epic SEC Championship Game showdown between No. 1 Alabama and No. 5 Georgia. It’s a rematch of the National Championship Game from a year ago and it is, by far, the most anticipated matchup of SEC teams all season.
When we last left these behemoths, they were basically separated by one play in the national title game, with Alabama coming out on top. Eleven months later, a few things have changed. Alabama has been untouchable all season and is unbeaten at 10-0.
Georgia has lost once — at LSU, 36-16 — but won the SEC East convincingly to get a spot in the SEC title game in Atlanta on Dec. 1.
We’re going to start looking ahead to that title game with a look at what each team is doing better than the other. My colleague in Tuscaloosa, Marq Burnett, is doing the same from the Alabama side.
Frankly, he has a much easier job that I do.
That’s no slight on Georgia, its players or coaches. It’s just people are talking about Alabama like they are a generational team, one of the greatest ever. So finding 5 things that Georgia is doing better, well, that took some digging.
But here’s my shot:
1. Georgia runs the ball better than Alabama
So far this season, Alabama has rushed for 2,148 yards on 414 carries, a 5.2-yard average. That’s good. But you know what’s great? Running it for 2,407 yards on 407 carries. That’s what Georgia has done, gashing defenses for a 5.9-yard average. That’s a sizable difference.
That Georgia has an edge here this season is something of a surprise because they were replacing all-time greats Nick Chubb and Sony Michel. But this stable of Georgia running backs actually have been even better this year than the 2017 group. Last year’s group averaged 5.8 yards per carry.
2. Georgia’s running backs break big runs far more often
Georgia sophomore D’Andre Swift has an 83-yard touchdown run this season. Fellow running back Elijah Holyfield has as 66-yard run. Two others, Demetris Robertson and Tyler Simmons, have 72-yard and 56-yard touchdown runs on jet sweeps. Those big plays can swing a game. Alabama has had only two runs longer than 30 yards all season, and one came from quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.
Now that Swift is healthy, he has been on a roll in the past three games. And when the Dec. 1 title game rolls around, he will be the best running back on the field.
3. Jake Fromm has two good knees and Tua has one
I never have — and never will — root for injuries against anybody, and I certainly won’t start here. But it’s obvious that Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa has a bum knee and every time he hits the ground, you wonder if he’s going to get back up. Georgia quarterback Jake Fromm is as healthy as a horse.
They say the best ability is availability. Georgia has two quarterbacks who are 100 precent healthy. Alabama’s two quarterbacks, Tua and Jalen Hurts, have only two good legs between them. If Tagovailoa can’t play 60 minutes on Dec. 1, then the edge swings back to Georgia.
4. Georgia can play with no fear as huge underdogs
The guess is that Alabama will be a double-digit favorite on Dec. 1 and there’s an enormous amount of pressure on them to run the table and get Saban that national championship that will break the record with Bear Bryant. This Alabama kids are going to feel that pressure, especially if it’s a close game, because, quite frankly, they haven’t had one all year.
Georgia can free-wheel it and take some shots. They have nothing to lose because they aren’t supposed to win. So when they do pull off the upset, everyone’s going to saw “wow.” Heavy lies the head that wears the crown.
5. Georgia is confident in its kicking game; Alabama cringes
Rodrigo Blankenship isn’t automatic, but the veteran Georgia kicker is pretty darn close. He’s made 17-of-19 field goal attempts this season and all 43 extra points. His only two misses were in a September road game at Missouri, when he misfired from 49 yards and had a 36-yard attempt blocked. Kirby Smart never hesitates to send him in.
Nick Saban, on the other hand, would rather have three root canals during a media meet-and-greet than trot a kicker out there. Alabama kickers Joseph Bulovas and Austin Jones have combined to make just 11-of-15 field goals and, even worse, they combined to miss a whopping 6 extra points already. Especially in a close game late, Georgia has a huge advantage here.
Love having the low expectations/nothing to lose mentality but the fact is that UMass has a better chance beating us Sat than we have beating Bama :(
Jesus, get over yourself you pathetic scum
Tom Brew buried UGA after the LSU loss. He predicted they would lose to Florida and Kentucky. Now he’s writing an article about things UGA does better than Bama? Lol what a joke.
Because his editors asked him to, buddy.
I didn’t ask why he wrote it. I really don’t care. I think what he writes is lazy hot take garbage and not credible. That’s it. Thanks buddy.
GA runs more because they don’t have a prolific passing game. Stupid to use season long stats to say a team is good at something. Let’s look at Georgia’s running game against a good defense – LSU. 30 carries for 113 yards. Take away the QBs runs, and it’s still 24 carries for 132 yards. Does the author of this article think that Bams’s run defense is worse than LSUs?
Are you suggesting 5.5 ypc average is a poor running performance?
Now pull up Bama’s run stats against LSU and then take away the QB yards. It’s not comparing UGA’s run game against Bama’s D but UGA’s run game against Bama’s run game.
Bama rushed for 232 yards on 34 carries against LSU. That’s 6.8 yards a carry
Yep, when Bama actually goes to a rush first offense, they can pound it with the best of ’em and have a better O-line than UGA.
Ah, more sage observations from RT819. Here’s the basis of all your comments: “Bama’s the best at everything. Bama is the best that ever has been or ever will be. No one should even try. Whatever [insert your team here] does well, Bama automatically does better, and I have anecdotal evidence and cherry-picked data to “prove” it.”
You’re a triggered dense UGA fan aren’t you? I never said Bama was better than everyone, have I? I simply stated they can pound the rock with the best of ’em and they have a better offensive line than Georgia, which is true. Do you disagree with those statements?
Bama can pound the rock with the best of them, yes, but at full health I think UGA has a slightly better offensive line. Unfortunately, UGA does not presently have a healthy offensive line and probably wont during the SECC either.
My comment was in jest, but does reflect the overall essence of your comments in total, hence why I said “basis of all your comments”.
And that is what every UGA fan was screaming about after the LSU game. Georgia went away from running the ball even though they were only down a couple of scores and had a whole half to play. As @berdaw108 shows UGA was running the ball effectively and UGA is much better offensively when they can play-action pass off a good ground game.
If you session long stats are stupid then you could use the last 2 games where Swift had a 77 and 83 yard run if that makes you feel better.
If you think season long stats*
There’s more to understanding a team’s running attack than exclusively focusing on their performance against a single team, even if that team is the best they’ve faced. And the statistics from that game require the full context of the game to be understood. Cherry-picking data from a single game, and ignoring the context of that game and the rest of the games played, renders any conclusion you draw meaningless.
Stupid to use your argument as well. Look at what Georgia did to UF’s defense that held LSU in check.
#6- losing to LSU.
Gallows humor, I know. Hope we can beat Bama in Atlanta.
Georgia’s Special Teams are better! We got you now you Bammer F*ckers!
Classy
Just stop, please. You’ve got enough to worry about at home.
What is going on at Auburn has nothing to do with my reply.. you can defend him but that proves my point. No reason to say what he said. Have a good night.
“No reason to say what he said” I think it was just a joke. Maybe even a reference to a line in a movie.
Jokes are supposed to funny.
I suppose, but humor is so subjective not everyone can find every joke funny. Regardless, his intention more than likely wasn’t to be serious.
wde0012 is the most fun at parties.
If we can block them, there’s plays to be made against Bama’s secondary. They are talented but inexperienced and our receivers are under rated. For some reason, we don’t have a screen game which can be devastating to a dominant pass rush especially in man coverage. Come on, Chaney. I doubt we’ll beat them by running the ball as their front 7 is too good. Blitz Tua from his left side and make him escape running to his right and throw across his body. We can’t just rush 3 or 4 and rely on coverage. Our secondary is very good but no DB can cover for 4 or 5 seconds.
good good and put justin in at qb on the goal line
Running at Quinnen Williams is like soliciting a 3 year old to ram through the Hoover Dam.
change that red and black G to a Crimson A…
Oh, and why would I do that?
It seems odd that as demanding as Saban is that he would let his kicking game slide so far down.
He can’t waste a scholarship on a kicker… that would be one less 5 star d lineman he could nab.
Besides kicking, I think the only real advantage UGA has over Bama is the overall health of their QBs. Bama hasn’t had to run because their passing game (except for the last two weeks) is ridiculously explosive. And their defense is peaking at the right time. But the game still has to be played, and anything can happen between two great teams.
You mean one great team and one good team.
Yeah, haven’t seen anyone say UGA is ‘great’ except UGA fans. They are good, but their team last year was far better.
RT819, last year’s team was elite but that has no bearing on this year’s team, which is great. Good teams would not have won as many games, and all with as big of margins, as UGA did this season. That’s what great teams do. And I’ve seen plenty of non-UGA fans consider UGA great.
Great teams show up in the big games when they have to, LSU is a prime example why you guys are good, but not great.
RT819, I completely agree. But UGA showed up in a big way against Florida when their back was against the wall. And again against UK to clinch the east. Obviously those teams aren’t as good as LSU, but they satisfy the criteria you just laid out: “Great teams show up in the big games when they have to”
If we’re being pedantic, one great team and one elite team. Beating #9 UF at a neutral site, beating #9 UK on the road, and # 24 Auburn at home, all by more than three scores, is what great teams do.
1. Special teams
2. QB health
Yeah, that’s pretty much it.
3. Our Georgia Redcoat band is better than Alabama’s band.
Oh, we’re going off field.
In that case…
4. Mascot
5. State GDP
6. College town
7. Insert more with due discretion
Georgia will only score in garbage time. Better luck next year puppies
Mother of God, I didn’t realize you had a gump account too
idk who this is.
nah we gonna beat yall easy!!
Gonna beat the pups like a drum, it’ll look like an uncontrollable nosebleed once the first TD is scored…
Either you’re having a conversation with yourself, or this is overly derivative levels of trolling.
This is either an amusing, if slightly sadistic, joke, or our collective personal hell.
hes been here for 2 years (if you look at his comment history more of the oldest ones all the way at the bottom) sooooo no f*ckery here….
You’ve got to be kidding, right?