Round 128 of the Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry will kick off this Saturday at 6:30 pm in Athens as seventh-ranked Auburn takes on No. 4 Georgia. Georgia is currently favored by six and a half points, but not all experts are sold on the Bulldogs. Here’s what they have to say:
247Sports:
Brad Crawford: UGA 27 Auburn 19
- Why: Crawford is extremely high on Georgia’s defense in this one. He says the keys to the Bulldogs’ success on Saturday are to feed Zamir White and negate Seth Williams (good luck with that).
Chris Hummer: UGA 21 Auburn 17
- Why: Hummer says that he has a lot of questions about both teams, especially Georgia’s quarterback situation. Ultimately he gives the nod to Georgia due to them being, “the more talented team at home.”
Athlon:
Steven Lassan: UGA
Mark Ross: UGA
Ben Weinrib: UGA
Sporting News:
Bill Bender: UGA 27 Auburn 23
- Why: Bender says, “Georgia has quarterback questions, and it will be interesting if USC transfer JT Daniels sees his first action in a tough assignment against Auburn, which looked more consistent with Bo Nix in his sophomore season.”
NCAA Sports:
Barrett Sallee: Auburn
- Why: Sallee isn’t buying that JT Daniels is 100% healthy and says that Auburn’s defense isn’t going to be threatened by either of Georgia’s quarterbacks. Sallee also thinks that Malzahn and Morris are going to open up that playbook a lot more on Saturday. “Take those points, but you won’t need them. Auburn will win this game outright.”
Bleacher Report:
Joe Tansey: Auburn (+6.5)
- Why: Tansey did not like what he saw from Georgia against the Razorbacks, he cites the two costly turnovers by the Bulldogs and says, “Gus Malzahn’s team did not turn over the ball in its win over Kentucky and picked up 233 of its 324 total yards through the air.” He also adds that Bo Nix’s chemistry with his wide receivers is superior. Tansey also adds that history is on the Tigers’ side of covering the spread, “In their six meetings since 2015, Georgia is 5-1 outright, but Auburn has kept three games within one score, which makes the possibility of the Tigers covering the 6.5-point spread larger.”
USA Today:
Of the 17 sportswriters polled, only two picked the Tigers (I love being the underdog) and they are Ben Niewoehner of College Football News and Scott Steehn of WinnersandWhiners.
Overall many experts are skeptical of JT Daniels, as they should be, but they’re also not sold on how well Auburn’s O-line will hold up against Georgia’s solid defense. Personally, I like our chances at keeping this game dangerously close on Saturday. This game is one that everyone will be watching.