Desmond Howard makes pick between Georgia, Texas for No. 1 team in college football this year
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Desmond Howard is giving the edge to Texas the No. 1 team in the country after 3 weeks.
The ESPN analyst was asked for his opinion on the ongoing debate between Texas and Georgia on Tuesday’s episode of College Football Live. Howard made the case for Texas being the better team at this point in the season.
“When you look at Texas, they look like a well-oiled machine,” Howard said. “Obviously, you look at the quarterback position for both teams. Carson Beck is good for Georgia, but Quinn Ewers has played at a very high level and he has this team looking sharp. I believe that because of Quinn Ewers … I would give them the edge.
“And don’t forget, Georgia, they started out the blocks slow against Clemson. That score was 6-0 at halftime. And now another lethargic performance against Kentucky. The Texas Longhorns are the team that’s going to play to their standard week-in and week-out. So at this point, because of the quarterback position, I think that Texas is the No. 1 team in the country.”
Howard did not mention Arch Manning, who also looked good over the weekend after Ewers was forced out of the game with an abdominal injury. But both Ewers and Manning have been excellent to start the 2024 season.
As Howard mentioned, Georgia’s offense struggled mightily in its win over Kentucky in Week 3. The Bulldogs averaged just 4.9 yards per play. That’s the lowest total for Georgia in more than 3 years — since Sept. 4, 2021 when the Bulldogs beat Clemson 10-3 despite averaging just 4.2 yards per play.
Of course, the debate between Georgia and Texas will only continue in theory for (at most) the next few weeks. These programs will be able to settle things on the field in Austin, Texas, on Oct. 19.
Spenser is a news editor for Saturday Down South and covers college football across all Saturday Football brands.
