No. 2 Georgia gets its first real SEC measuring stick of the season Saturday, and it comes against an Oklahoma team trying to steady itself after a rough stretch.
The Bulldogs will host the Sooners in Athens, Ga., in the teams’ first regular-season meeting. Georgia enters at 3-0 and 1-0 in the SEC after rolling past Arkansas 45-17 last week, while Oklahoma arrives at 2-1 and no longer ranked after an uneven two-game run knocked the preseason No. 10 team out of the AP Top 25.
Georgia has not had to sweat much yet. Two nonconference blowouts set the tone, and the SEC opener against Arkansas never really threatened to turn into a test. Kirby Smart, though, said the Sooners present a different kind of problem, especially on defense.
"They're very fundamentally sound, aggressive, attacking," Smart said of Oklahoma's defense, which has allowed just 7.7 points per game this year. "They're tops in the country every year in tackles for loss and sacks.
I don't think people give their coaches enough credit for how they play. They get off blocks and they strike you."
This matchup also brings back one of the defining games of Smart’s Georgia tenure. The only previous meeting between the programs came in the 2018 Rose Bowl, when Georgia beat Oklahoma 54-48 in double overtime in a College Football Playoff semifinal that sent the Bulldogs to the national championship game for the first time since 1982.
"Man, that was a long time ago," Smart said of the Bulldogs' 54-48 double-overtime win. "But it was an iconic game because of what it meant and what it led to and where it was played."
Georgia’s offense is being driven by senior quarterback Gunner Stockton, who has completed 38 of 45 passes for nine touchdowns through three games. His 84.4% completion percentage ranks second nationally.
Oklahoma coach Brent Venables knows that creates a tough assignment.
"They've got great players everywhere and they've gotten them to play at a really high level," Venables said. "Gunner Stockton, I love how he plays.
The guy's been a winner his whole life. He plays the game the right way. ...
Our players are excited about the opportunity. We've known about this challenge since the schedule came out."
The Sooners’ offense has been searching for answers. They have scored only 24 points over their last two games and committed three turnovers in last week’s 14-6 win over New Mexico.
Quarterback John Mateer has been at the center of those issues. The fifth-year senior was intercepted twice by the Lobos and said his play has to sharpen quickly with Georgia next on the schedule.
"I'm not going to tap out," Mateer said. "I'm not going to give up on my guys.
They're not going to give up on me. My teammates have done a great job.
I appreciate them more than they know. I'm getting tired of them saying that they have my back because they're only saying it because I keep making mistakes."
Oklahoma may also be waiting on one of its top defensive pieces. Standout defensive tackle David Stone’s availability is uncertain after he suffered a knee injury Monday in practice.
"His knee kind of popped out," Venables said. "We'll see where he's at.
The X-rays were positive. He said his pain was about a 2 out of 10 right now."
Stone had a career-high eight tackles and two tackles for loss against New Mexico.
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Schell said the fit mattered in several ways, from the culture around the program to the way he believes he would be used in the scheme, along with his faith. For a Sooners staff that is always working ahead on the recruiting calendar, landing a player with that kind of early buzz gives fans a name to keep tracking long before that class arrives on campus. [Read more 🡒]