Georgia vs. Mississippi State: All the Details You Need

What could go wrong with a stadium full of cowbells and an 11 am kick? Well, if you’re the Georgia Bulldogs, this could scream trap game. We have your full Georgia vs. Mississippi State preview with our key questions and sound bites from Kirby Smart. However, first, we need to see how Georgia ranks in this week’s initial College Football Playoff Rankings.

Georgia came in ranked just outside the coveted top four in the initial College Football Playoff rankings, settling in at No. 5. This ranking makes them the highest-ranked one-loss team and gives them a clear path to climb if they can handle their challenging late-season schedule. To make a push to a third national championship under Smart, the Dawgs must navigate their remaining three regular-season games without another loss. This weekend’s trip to Mississippi State can be tricky and will require the Dawgs’ full attention. The real tests come immediately after, however, as they return home to host the No. 11 Texas Longhorns on November 15th, followed by a tune-up game against Charlotte on November 22nd. Their regular season concludes with the traditional rivalry game at the end of the month against No. 17 Georgia Tech in Atlanta. Georgia probably could afford to drop one of their final four games, but it is not advised. That could be the difference between hosting a home game in Athens and having to go on the road.

Opponent: Mississippi State
History: Georgia has won four straight and leads the series 32-6.
Last meeting: Georgia defeated Mississippi State 41-31 in Athens last year.
Date and Time: Saturday, Nov. 8th | 12:00 PM EST
Location: Davis Wade Stadium in Starkville, Mississippi
Television: ESPN
Spread: #GoDawgs – 9.5

We all know about the Cowbell. Starkville has a fever. But Jeff Lebby has done a nice job in year two on The Farm. Sure, they just grabbed their first SEC win in two years last week in Fayetteville, but Hail State will prove to be a tough out. They have already knocked off Arizona State and damn near took down Texas. Smart spoke about the challenges Mississippi State will pose. “They’ve got no quit in them. These guys have competed. They have been in every game they’ve played. They have upgraded the talent level since he’s been there.” Smart said. “It’s a tough place to play. They have a great fan base, and Jeff [Lebby] and his staff have done an incredible job.”

Colbie Young is out at wide receiver for Georgia. One name to consider as a replacement for some of Young’s production is Texas A&M transfer Noah Thomas. Thomas is a big-bodied receiver who has yet to make a full impact on Georgia’s offense in 2025. Smart shared some of the good things that Thomas has done. “I think [James] Coley’s done a really good job using his skill set and making sure that he understands his development at the next level becomes more than just being a receiver with a ball in your hands,” Smart said. “Whether that’s what you do without it in terms of blocking, what you do in special teams, how you’re an asset to your teammates. He’s been incredible at all those things.”

Thomas has 5 receptions for 76 receiving yards with an average of 15.2 yards per reception. Look for his role to increase as the regular season winds down and the playoffs get on everyone’s mind.

What is wrong with the defense? “We aren’t getting home and sacking opposing quarterbacks.” “We aren’t creating turnovers.” These comments have been a recurring theme on social media and message boards throughout the season. While that may be a point of contention for Georgia fans, Smart is far from worried.

“We have never been a sack machine, if you look at it statistically,” Smart said. “We’ve never been a turnover machine. We have been better defensively than we are right now, but a lot of that has to do with the culture of the league, what we’re playing in, the parity. I’ll take the strengths we have, work with them, try to work on the weaknesses, and worry about the process and not the results.” This week may offer Georgia a chance to bring about change. Mississippi State’s offense has given up a significant number of sacks this season. Quarterback Blake Shapen has been sacked 29 times. Let’s hope the Dawgs’ defense can get after Shapen early and often.

Expect this one to be a four-quarter game. Mississippi State has played tough, especially at home. Don’t think, though, that Kirby Smart is going to be expecting a blowout or an “easy” day in StarkVegas. “I don’t ever feel uncomfortable in a game based on the score. I’m uncomfortable with how we play sometimes. It’s not about the fourth quarter, the first quarter, or the halftime. It’s not about the score because we just really don’t make it about that.” Smart said. “If you want to dominate someone, you don’t look and check and see what the score is halfway through. The objective is to dominate them, and there’s no scoreboard when you start talking about dominating somebody. You look at it at the end of the day and see if you did. We haven’t done that very often in terms of dominating the way we want to, but we’ll continue to try to.” Georgia will not dominate Mississippi State but will likely pull away late.

Georgia: 41
Mississippi State: 24