UGA Football looks even more deserving of their top-2 ranking after shutting out a ranked Arkansas, 37-0 this past weekend. Now, they look ahead to face another formidable SEC opponent, this time meeting the 18th-ranked Auburn Tigers.
If the Bulldogs were to win (which they should), they would hold an impressive 6-0 record halfway through their regular-season stretch, with three of their wins being over adversaries who were ranked at the time of their matchup. They could also keep alive their streak of holding opponents to 13 points or less (assuming that the defense comes out to play once more).
Again, Georgia should be able to handle the Tigers for a multitude of reasons. Said reasons range from stats, talent, coaching, to even what has actually been seen on the field.
Statistical Advantages for UGA Football
Statistically, Auburn doesn’t stand a chance against the Dawgs.
The Tigers are scoring an average of 40 points per game while allowing an average of 17 points per game. Not bad stats by any means, as it shows that they typically slaughter their competition.
But UGA Football, on the other hand, takes slaughtering to a whole new level. So far, they are tallying 41 points per game, while not even allowing five (4.6, to be exact). And here’s the kicker they have played twice the Power 5 foes that Auburn has. Also, the Bulldogs are yet to face an FCS-level program; the same cannot be said for the Tigers.
So to summarize: If Auburn is going to find a way to topple Georgia, it will not be by means of statistical superiority.
Talent and Coaching
There really isn’t much to say here. Comparing Auburn’s recruiting to Georgia’s illustrates the lack of competition that we all feared. As for coaching, the Tigers have a solid sideline staff. However, the Dawgs easily have a top-5 staff in the country this season. So, as with the recruiting comparison, one power looks good, while the other looks great.
On-field Visuals
Speaking of good versus great, how strong each team has merely appeared to be on the field is important as well.
As previously established, UGA has been statistically more convincing (especially on defense), despite playing bigger names. That is vastly telling in Georgia’s favor, as Auburn beating Alabama State at home 62-0 means much less than the Bulldogs beating Vanderbilt on the road with the same score.
However, college football is an “any given weekend” kind of sport, and 2021 has certainly proven such a notion. With that in mind, the safest bet is to look at how each team performed in their latest matchups.
The last time we saw Auburn, they took home a close one after beating an…okay LSU squad in “Death Valley.” Doing so is worth appreciating, as LSU has both the talent and atmosphere to give virtually anyone a hard time. Not only that but beating LSU on the road helps make up for Auburn’s struggle at home against Georgia State the week prior. This was easily Auburn’s biggest victory of their first five games.
Now looking at how well the Bulldogs held their own last Saturday, they, too, perhaps pulled off the best win of their season thus far. Upon hosting the then-top-10 Arkansas Razorbacks, Georgia saw their second SEC shutout win in a row. So in their last two games, UGA has outmatched conference opponents by a combined score of 99-0. Wow.
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The Takeaway for UGA Football
As mentioned throughout the entire breakdown of both Auburn and Georgia, one is good while the other is great. Based on all that is analyzable, slapping these two on the same gridiron can only see one realistic outcome the Bulldogs prevailing, and most likely by a big margin. Doing so will further inflame the speculation that the Dawgs are better than Alabama while making the Tigers fall to 0-2 on the season when facing ranked opponents.
