November 30, College Station, Texas: On November 30, 2024, in College Station, Texas, Quinn Ewers #3 of the Texas Longhorns celebrates with teammates following the Texas A&M Aggies game at Kyle Field. Tim Warner/Getty Images photo)
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Texas will play for an SEC Championship in its first year in the conference.
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The Georgia Bulldogs gave Texas their only loss in the regular season.
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Georgia is playing in the SEC Championship game for the seventh time in nine seasons.
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Texas will play for an SEC Championship in its first year in the conference.
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The Georgia Bulldogs gave Texas their only loss in the regular season.
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Georgia is playing in the SEC Championship game for the seventh time in nine seasons.
It didn’t take long for Texas to establish itself in the powerful Southeastern Conference.
The No. 2 Longhorns secured a spot in the SEC championship game on Saturday after posting the best regular-season record in their first season as a member of the powerhouse league.
According to Texas running back Jaydon Blue, “not many teams can enter a league their first year, especially the SEC, and get a chance to play for the championship.”
At Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Texas (11-1, 7-1 SEC, No. 2 College Football Playoff) will play No. 5 Georgia (10-2, 6-2, No. 5 CFP) in an exciting showdown between the brazen rookie and a standout member of the old guard.
Under coach Kirby Smart, who has won two national titles and made Georgia the dynasty that everyone else is pursuing, the Bulldogs are participating in the championship game for the eighth time in nine seasons.
To make matters worse, the Dawgs gave Texas their lone regular-season defeat in mid-October, a 30–15 thrashing in Austin.
“Georgia and Kirby have been the standard in college football,” stated Steve Sarkisian, coach of the Longhorns. “Georgia has got the heart of a champion and you see it time and time again.”
Both teams will advance to the College Football Playoff regardless of the A-T-L outcome.
However, the winner will receive a ticket directly to the Sugar Bowl for the national quarterfinals on New Year’s Day, in addition to the coveted SEC championship.
The loser will have to play an additional playoff game, most likely on December 20 or 21 in the first round.
“It s an opportunity to rest and recover while others are playing formidable opponents,” Smart stated. “It removes you from that.”
Longhorns vs. Dawgs, Part II
Texas wants to make amends for its lone defeat of the season, which came against Georgia when the Longhorns were ranked first.
“We re going to have to play a better version of football than the first time around,” Sarkisian stated. “We were out of character, out of sorts.”
It was a No. 1 team’s most lopsided home defeat in forty-two years.
“They deserve to get our best shot,” Sarkisian stated. “I know we re going to get their best shot.”
Quarterback duel
Both starting quarterbacks will be hoping to outperform their first-game efforts.
Quinn Ewers of Texas had two fumbles and a pick, while Carson Beck of Georgia had three interceptions and won.
Watch Texas backup Arch Manning as well; he ran for a touchdown on fourth down after entering the game during last week’s victory over Texas A&M. Given that Ewers is still recovering from a sprained ankle, Manning’s arm and legs could offer an interesting change of pace.
“He s a really good athlete that can take off and run at any time, which is the toughest guy to defend,” Smart stated. “I d much rather have a guy that only runs than a guy that does both.”
Injury report
Although Trevor Etienne ran for three touchdowns in the first meeting with Texas, he was labeled as questionable for Saturday’s game and has missed three games in a row due to a rib ailment.
Christen Miller, a defensive lineman for Georgia, has also been sidelined due to a shoulder injury. The Bulldogs defeated Georgia Tech in eight overtime despite giving up a season-high 260 running yards without Miller.
Kelvin Banks Jr., a contender for the Outland Trophy, may be out for Texas after suffering a leg injury last week after just seven plays.
If Banks is unable to go and be on the firing line against a Georgia defense that dominated the Longhorns for seven sacks in October, two of which led to fumbles, then rookie Trevor Goosby will start at the critical left tackle position.
Run, Texas, run
The Longhorns’ run attack has been outstanding lately, but Texas only managed 29 yards rushing against Georgia in their most recent outing.
With 344 yards over the last two games and an average of 5.8 yards per carry, Quintrevion Wisner has become the go-to back.
“When you have 30-40 carries in multiple games, there is a great commitment to the run,” Smart stated. “They re extremely physical, they ve got really good backs, their offensive line is massive and the quarterback does a great job putting them in the right runs.”
Georgia in the A-T-L
Although Mercedes-Benz Stadium is just roughly 75 miles away from the Georgia campus, making it the Bulldogs’ de facto home game, that hasn’t been a significant advantage when they’re vying for the SEC championship.
In addition to losing to Alabama in overtime in the national championship game at the end of the 2017 season, the Bulldogs are just 2-4 in conference championship games played at the Benz.
The Bulldogs are only 4-7 in Atlanta with the conference title at stake, reminiscent of the years when the Georgia Dome hosted the SEC championship.
“We’re essentially playing a road game,” Sarkisian stated. “But I do expect a good amount of burnt orange to be there.”
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The Associated Press provided the information used in this story.
The Associated Press provided the information used in this story.
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