Saturday’s game between No. 4 Georgia and No. 12 Auburn will be like most of the previous 123 meetings between the Southeastern Conference rivals. There’s a ton on the line.
For Georgia (8-1, 5-1 SEC), a win sends the Bulldogs back to Atlanta as the SEC East champion for the third year in a row, while the Tigers (7-2, 4-2) would love to keep that from happening and remain in line for a possible major bowl.
People wanting to see an offensive shootout better check their expectations at the door.
Although both programs rank in the top five when it comes to total offense in the SEC (Georgia third, Auburn fifth), it’s defense that has both programs where they are.
The Tigers rank third in the SEC in scoring defense (17.4 points per game), while the Bulldogs are second nationally in scoring defense (10.1) and fifth nationally in total defense (260.3 yards per game). Georgia, which also leads the league in rushing defense at 74.6 yards per game, has yet to allow a rushing touchdown.
Auburn coach Gus Malzahn — whose Tigers are second in the SEC in rushing (219.3 yards per game) — is impressed with Georgia.
“They’ve got a lot of defensive linemen they play, and when they put other guys in there, there really isn’t a drop off,” Malzahn said. “Real impressed, obviously, with the run defense. I don’t think they’ve given up a rushing touchdown all season — which, that hadn’t happened in, what, the last 20 years in college football. So that tells you a lot.
“I think they’re solid on the back end, too. They’ve got some guys that can really run. And like I said, we’re playing one of the more talented teams in the entire country — maybe the most talented. But they’re impressive to watch on film.”
Georgia’s offense will have a challenge of its own.
The Tigers boast what is arguably the nation’s top defensive front, led by seniors Derrick Brown and Marlon Davidson, two very big reasons Auburn is allowing just 112.7 rushing yards per game.
“Their defense speaks for itself. They’ve got a ton of guys that are going to be drafted on it,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said.
“They got guys that seem like they have played in our conference for 10 years, and it seems like we’ve played against that defensive group a lot, because all those guys, seemed like they started as freshmen from the secondary to the front.
“So, they’ve done a great job. Coach (Kevin) Steele does a great job with their defense. They play really hard, and they’ve got a really good football team. So, we’ve got a huge challenge this week, especially coming off the physical game we just had.”
Quarterbacks will play a huge role. For Georgia, that’s junior Jake Fromm, who comes in with excellent experience in big-time games, against Auburn talented freshman Bo Nix, who has played better at home than he has on the road.
Nix was 30 of 44 for a career-high 340 yards last week in a 20-14 home win over Ole Miss.
“I know he’s excited,” Malzahn said. “It’s his first game against Georgia. So, we’ll see what happens.”
