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For my money, Part I was the single most impressive performance by any unit in the 2024 season.
What the Georgia defense did to Quinn Ewers (and briefly Arch Manning) in Austin was the stuff of legend. Jalon Walker and Daylen Everette led a defensive effort that’ll be discussed for years, regardless of how this season plays out. It was the type of effort that put everything into question.
Was UGA about to go on a rampage after a shaky start? And was Texas exposed?
Since that night, UGA and Texas took different paths to Atlanta. The Dawgs got whacked by Ole Miss and had to fight to keep their Playoff hopes alive, while Texas won 5 in a row with 4 wins by double digits.
So what does that mean for Part II in the SEC Championship on Saturday at 4 p.m. ET? Will it feel like a repeat of Part I?
Let’s dig into it with some early thoughts:
1. Yes, this game has significant stakes
I, along with Joe Tessitore, believe that Georgia clinched a Playoff spot by beating Georgia Tech. The notion that the Dawgs will drop 5-6 spots in favor of an idle team doesn’t make sense. Granted, I wouldn’t have been so definitive about that like Tessitore was. But the point remains.
So if you’re thinking, well, both teams are already in the Playoff … why do we care besides the obvious reason of winning the 16-team superconference? Well, assuming that Texas is No. 2 in the Playoff Poll, my guess is that at worst, the Longhorns will at least be hosting a first-round Playoff game. That’s still significant.
More significant is the variance of outcomes for Georgia. The difference between winning and losing on Saturday is a first-round bye at best or a road first-round Playoff game at worst. Yes, I do think a 3-loss UGA team could be in jeopardy of slipping to the 9-spot if it’s lopsided (spots 5-8 get first-round Playoff games). That’s dependent on what else happens during conference championship weekend. UGA playing on the road is vastly different than hosting a game at Sanford Stadium, where Kirby Smart has 1 loss since the start of the 2017 season (UGA also hasn’t lost a home game at night since 2009).
Saturday will be impactful, no matter what the result is.
2. Kirby Smart in in-season rematches is ___________.
“Unstoppable.”
I know what you’re thinking. “Connor, can you provide all the examples of Kirby in an in-season rematch scenario?.”
Yes. Yes, I can.
- 2017 vs. Auburn in SEC Championship: W, 28-7
- 2021 vs. Alabama in National Championship: W, 33-18
OK, so it’s only 2 games we’re talking about here. But that 2-0 sample size is telling when you remember that Georgia got blown out in the first matchups both times. Shoot, it’s telling when you remember that the rematch against Alabama was Smart’s only victory against the Tide in 7 chances.
This time, of course, it’s a role reversal. Texas is the team that has to make adjustments after Georgia blew its doors off in Austin. At the same time, that was by no means a banner performance for the UGA offense. Carson Beck was in the midst of the worst stretch of his career. Knowing Smart, he’ll probably have the entire UGA offense convinced that they lost the game in Austin and that they’re actually the ones seeking revenge on Saturday.
Consider that a reminder of why Smart is on a different level. Do you know who else is on a different level? The Texas defense.
Speaking of that unit …
3. The most consistent unit in this game has been the Longhorns’ defense and it’s not close
My favorite stat about the Texas defense this season is that its 2 worst games defending the pass were against Michigan (204 yards) and Kentucky (211) … and both were games in which the starting quarterback got benched.
Yeah, that’s rock solid.
If you take away the defensive scores, Texas allowed 11 offensive touchdowns in 8 SEC games. Just for a little perspective, the historically dominant 2021 UGA defense allowed 7 offensive touchdowns in 8 SEC games. Again, rock solid. In their last 3 SEC games, Texas’ defense only allowed 2 touchdowns. Don’t count the pick-sixes against Texas’ defense. Instead, pay more attention to another excellent stat.
Texas’ worst 2 games in yards/play allowed came against Michigan (5.1) and Florida (5.0). Also of note, the Longhorns led 24-3 and 35-0 at halftime in those games. Yeah, telling. Pete Kiatkowski’s group is elite, especially with a healthy Andrew Mukuba. It’s got All-SEC guys at every level. That’s why it’s the best defense in America in yards/play allowed (3.99).
OK, last great Texas defense stat.
Georgia gets credit for having the best offensive showing against Texas this year (30 points) even though Beck averaged 4.3 yards/attempt and he threw 3 interceptions for a UGA offense that only had 1 scoring drive that was longer than 34 yards.
That’s as solid as it gets.
4. The stat that shows why Carson Beck has been better since the Ole Miss game
That’s not saying much because he was a mess that night after a month of looking lost. But even though he’s throwing passes to the receiving room with the most drops of anybody in FBS, Beck has been more like the 2023 version of himself. Yes, he had slow starts both against Tennessee and against Georgia Tech. Beck still isn’t even among the top 100 in FBS in first-half QB rating.
Where we’ve seen him grow is the interceptions. Unlike his midseason stretch of 11 interceptions in 5 games, Beck will enter Saturday with a streak of 118 passes without an interception dating back to when he was picked off in the 4th quarter at Ole Miss. That’s the longest stretch without an interception of his career.
Against a Texas defense that had Beck’s number for the majority of that night in Austin, that’ll be tested. The Longhorns surrendered a 4-18 TD-INT ratio during the regular season and they only allowed 6 pass plays of 30 yards all season. Beck can’t afford to revert to his October ways, and that goes double for the Achilles’ heel of UGA’s roster: those pass-catchers.
5. Don’t assume that this will be the last time these teams face off
In other words, the losing team fanbase can spin it as “we didn’t want to show all the good plays.”
Just kidding. Those aforementioned stakes matter to these programs.
Dare I say, it might not even be the last time these teams face off in Atlanta. Remember, Merecedes-Benz Stadium will host both a quarterfinal game and the national championship, which means that if you include the opener against Clemson, Georgia could potentially play 4 games there. Crazier things have happened. Facing off 3 times in one season would be one of many signs that this is a different era of college football.
For now, though, let’s focus on Part II of this new SEC rivalry. Saturday should look and feel like another epic clash.
Connor O'Gara is the senior national columnist for Saturday Down South. He's a member of the Football Writers Association of America. After spending his entire life living in B1G country, he moved to the South in 2015.
