Georgia gets Auburn on Saturday with the Bulldogs riding the momentum of a huge win at Alabama and now sitting at No. 1 in the AP Poll. Kirby Smart’s team backed up the ranking with one of its biggest regular season victories in his era, and the next test arrives in a rivalry game in Athens.
Auburn comes in at 3-2 and still hasn’t shown much growth under new head coach Alex Golesh. Even so, the Tigers have a shot to make a loud statement with a win at Sanford Stadium.
The betting market has already moved hard in Georgia’s direction. The Bulldogs are now 19.5-point favorites at DraftKings Sportsbook, with the over-under set at 49.5 points.
ESPN gives Georgia a 90.5 percent chance to win. The spread opened at 16.5 on Sunday before climbing quickly as bettors pushed it higher.
Kickoff is set for 3:30 pm EST on Saturday, Oct. 17, from Sanford Stadium in Athens, GA. It will be Georgia’s fifth home game of the season, and the Bulldogs still haven’t had a home night game. That could still change when Missouri comes to town in a few weeks, but the chances are running thin.
Fans can watch the game on ESPN, with streaming available through the ESPN app and Fubo TV.
Georgia’s injury list is starting to grow as the season reaches its midpoint. Running back Chauncey Bowens is out against Auburn and could miss a significant stretch of time, with there even being a chance he’s out for the season.
Fellow running back Nate Frazier was not on the injury report this week, though he also wasn’t listed all last week before ultimately not playing against Alabama, so his status remains uncertain until he takes the field. Wide receivers Thomas Blackshear and Isiah Canion are both out again after missing the Alabama game.
The latest setback is in the secondary, where star defensive back KJ Bolden went from questionable on Wednesday to doubtful on Thursday before being officially ruled out on Friday.
Georgia should still have enough to handle the task, even if there’s a little emotional drag after the Alabama win. The Bulldogs are coming off their first victory in Tuscaloosa since 2007, and it was also their second straight win over the Tide - the first time that’s happened in Smart’s tenure. Auburn had the bye week last week and should be as fresh as possible, but Georgia is still the more complete team.
The prediction here is that the Bulldogs shake off any post-Alabama lull, come out fast on both sides of the ball and take control early. Auburn is too overmatched, and Georgia should move to 7-0 heading into its bye week.
In Other News...
Georgia Loses A Key Secondary Piece Ahead Of Auburn
Georgias secondary will have to adjust on the fly Saturday, because junior safety KJ Bolden is out for the Auburn game because of injury. It is the first time Bolden has missed a game since arriving in Athens, ending a run of 34 straight appearances and removing one of Georgias more dependable pieces on the back end at a point in the schedule where every defensive detail matters.
He is not the only Bulldog sidelined, either. Chauncey Bowens, Isiah Canion, Thomas Blackshear, Amaris Williams and Tyriq Green are also listed out, giving Georgia a longer absentee list than it would prefer heading into a rivalry matchup. Auburns report did not bring any fresh movement, with Xavier Atkins, Tai Buster and Hunter Herring still unavailable as both teams work through a stretch where depth is being tested on both sides. [Read more 🡒]
Georgia Is Already Showing Something Fans Will Want To See
Georgia got the kind of tune-up it wanted at Stegeman Coliseum, rolling past Charlotte 87-67 in a preseason basketball game that offered a clear early snapshot of what this roster might be capable of. Blue Cain led the way with 14 points, and the Bulldogs perimeter touch was a big part of the night, as they knocked down 17 of 33 shots from beyond the arc.
For a team still sorting itself out before the games start counting, that kind of shooting is the sort of thing fans can latch onto quickly. Georgia gets one more preseason test against Clemson before opening the regular season on November 2, and the bigger question now is whether the Bulldogs can carry that same shot-making into a tougher setting. [Read more 🡒]
Georgia Fans Need To Brace For A Massive Playoff Shift
A major shift in the College Football Playoff appears to be closing in, and Georgia fans may be looking at a postseason landscape that feels very different from the one they know now. An agreement to expand the field to 24 teams is reportedly close to being finalized, with only paperwork and board approval still left before it becomes real, and Kirby Smart has already come out in favor of the move because of the added fan interest and financial upside for schools.
For Georgia, the bigger ripple may come from what disappears along with the new format. The expanded playoff would wipe out conference championship games, including the SEC title game, while creating automatic bids for Power 4 champions and filling the rest of the bracket with at-large teams. ESPN is also set to pay more for the broadcast rights, which shows how much momentum the plan has, even if the last formal steps still have to be completed. [Read more 🡒]