Kirk Herbstreit explains why “College GameDay” will not be at the Georgia-Kentucky game
The matchup between the No. 1 Georgia Bulldogs and Kentucky Wildcats was one of the most-hyped games of the week, so much so that ESPN was projected to head to Kroger Field for its “College GameDay” show.
That isn’t happening, and Kirk Herbstreit addressed why in response to someone on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“Because Kentucky spit the bit last week,” Herbstreit said. “CGD (College GameDay) was a lock for UK if Cats had won last week, and we would have called the game as well. But South Carolina dominating that game, we always adjust to the results from the previous week.”
Now, Herbstreit and the rest of “College GameDay” crew will head to Columbia, South Carolina, for the Gamecocks’ game against the LSU Tigers.
“College GameDay” was last in Lexington in 2007. The show was there when Wildcats played the Bulldogs in Athens in 2021. The Bulldogs won 30-13.
Kentucky’s sputtering offense will take on a Bulldogs team that has allowed six total points in their season.
Because Kentucky spit the bit last week. CGD was a lock for UK if Cats won last week and we would have called the game as well. But South Carolina dominating that game we always adjust to the results from the previous week. https://t.co/tFwmXtGS9g
Five Georgia football players are injured entering the Bulldogs’ Week 3 game at Kentucky
The No. 1 Georgia Bulldogs are dealing with several injuries ahead of their Week 3 game against the Kentucky Wildcats. Four of Georgia’s five injuries are along the defensive line.
Georgia will be without running back Roderick Robinson. Robinson, who missed Georgia’s first two games, underwent toe surgery and is out for a while.
Georgia’s All-American defensive end, Mykel Williams, is doubtful with an ankle injury he suffered against the Clemson Tigers in Week 1.
Georgia is more likely to be able to play an injured trio of defensive linemen. Jordan Hall (stress fracture), Xzavier McLeod (abdominal) and Warren Brinson (ankle) are listed as questionable.
“Jordan (Hall) and Xzavier (McLeod) have got pads on and got running and moving around doing some functional movement stuff,” said Georgia head coach Kirby Smart. “Got to do “indy” and doing some stuff. We’ll see how it goes. I’m proud of both of them because they’re pushing hard.”
Georgia needs to have as many defensive linemen as possible against Kentucky. The Wildcats look to impose their will in the trenches. Kentucky ran the ball 46 times and attempted just 17 passes in their ugly 31-6 home loss to the South Carolina Gamecocks.
“On Warren (Brinson), he looks good. … He did some stuff (during the week) in the weight room,” Smart said. Brinson missed the Tennessee Tech game after suffering an ankle contusion against Clemson.
Georgia football injury report
Georgia Bulldogs defensive lineman Mykel Williams is unlikely to play against Kentucky. Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports
Running back Roderick Robinson: Out
Defensive end Mykel Williams: Doubtful
Defensive lineman Jordan Hall: Out
Defensive lineman Warren Brinson: Doubtful
Defensive lineman Xzavier McLeod: Questionable
Georgia (2-0) has won 14 straight games against Kentucky (1-1) and is favored by 24 1/2 points at Kentucky. Kentucky has nine players out, one player questionable and four players, including former Georgia quarterback Brock Vandagriff, listed as probable ahead of the Georgia game.
The Georgia-Kentucky game will be Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET in Kroger Field in Lexington, Kentucky. The Georgia-Kentucky game will be televised on ABC.
Robert Griffin III ranks four SEC teams among his top five college football teams
Former Heisman winner and Baylor football legend Robert Griffin III has ranked his top five college football teams ahead of Week 3. Griffin III is a former ESPN football analyst and NFL quarterback.
Week 3 features an interesting slate including LSU at South Carolina, Boston College at Missouri, Alabama at Wisconsin, Georgia at Kentucky, Arizona at Kansas State, and more. Several top teams still play cupcakes in Week 3, but only one of Robert Griffin III’s top five teams has an easy game on Sept. 14.
The expanded College Football Playoff means that more teams will stay in contention for a playoff berth, but the national championship winner will probably not be a fringe playoff team.
Who are Robert Griffin III’s top five college football teams? Where does he rank the Georgia Bulldogs?
No. 5 Ole Miss Rebels
Brett Patzke-USA TODAY Sports
Ole Miss Rebels quarterback Jaxson Dart and the Rebels were in cruise control in their 52-3 home win over Middle Tennessee in Week 2. The Rebels play Wake Forest in Week 3, which is Ole Miss’ first decent challenge of the season.
No. 4 Alabama Crimson Tide
Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Jalen Milroe has what it takes to lead Alabama to another playoff appearance. Will McLelland-USA TODAY Sports
Last week, Alabama needed three touchdowns late in the fourth quarter to pull away for a 42-16 win over South Florida. Alabama is No. 4 in our SEC power rankings. The Crimson Tide play a difficult road game in Week 3 at Wisconsin in what should be Alabama’s biggest test to date.
No. 3 Ohio State Buckeyes
(Photo by Jason Mowry/Getty Images)
Ohio State will not play its first Power Four team until the Buckeyes face Michigan State on Sept. 28. Ohio State beat Western Michigan 56-0 in Week 2 and has a bye win Week 3.
No. 2 Texas Longhorns
Mikala Compton/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK
The Texas Longhorns are Robert Griffin III’s No. 2 team in the country. The Longhorns and star quarterback Quinn Ewers are coming off a dominant 31-12 win at Michigan. Texas should win with ease against UTSA in Week 3.
No.1 Georgia Bulldogs
Dale Zanine-Imagn Images
Georgia thumped Tennessee Tech 48-3 last week to move to 2-0. The Bulldogs play at the Kentucky Wildcats in Week 3 as Georgia looks to expand its record-breaking SEC regular season winning streak.
Very few folks think Georgia fotoball will have trouble at Kentucky, but can the Bulldogs cover as three touchdown favorites?
The No. 1 Georgia Bulldogs (2-0) face their first road test of the season at the Kentucky Wildcats (1-1). The Georgia-Kentucky game will be played at 7:30 p.m. ET on Saturday and will be televised on ABC.
Georgia has won 14 straight games in the series dating to before the Kirby Smart era. Kentucky coach Mark Stoops remains winless against Georgia, but Stoops has gotten the Wildcats to play some tight, physical games against the Bulldogs over the years.
“Mark (Stoops) has a workman-like, blue-collar toughness, physicalness, win at the line of scrimmage mentality, and that carries over into his offense,” said Georgia head coach Kirby Smart.
“We’ve always said this has been the most physical game we’ve played in most years, especially when we’ve played up there.”
Georgia faces a strong challenge from Kentucky, which ran the ball 46 times against South Carolina last week. The Wildcats completed only six passes in their 31-6 loss at home to South Carolina.
How does the national media think the Georgia-Kentucky game will unfold? Who thinks Georgia will cover the massive 24 1/2 point spread?
Georgia Bulldogs quarterback Carson Beck had a huge game against Kentucky last year. Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
“Kentucky only mustered 183 yards and six points in a loss to South Carolina. I shudder to think at what Georgia’s defense could do against the ‘Cats if their passing game doesn’t show up again this weekend,” said Kenyon. On the flip side, if Kentucky can establish the run, then the Wildcats could chew up the clock pretty quickly.
Prediction: Georgia 48, Kentucky 10
James Morgan, UGA Wire
Georgia is heavily favored, but it is hard to envision the Kentucky offense playing well against Georgia. The Wildcats really struggled in pass blocking situations against South Carolina. If Kentucky can’t run consistently, Georgia will cover the huge point spread.
“I expect Mark Stoops to have his guys ready to compete at home. The Wildcats are not knocking off the Bulldogs, but they keep it within the number,” said Colin Lynch.
Coming off the loss to South Carolina, Kentucky will come out angry and motivated to make a statement. Expect Brock Vandagriff to get out of the pocket early and often and look for intermediate to deep throws to put the Georgia defense on their toes.
Unfortunately, it will not really matter. Georgia will dominate along both lines of scrimmage, and the pass rush will open up more and more as the game goes on, anchored by linebacker Jalon Walker.
The Georgia secondary will contain Kentucky’s passing game and force Kentucky to readjust. Offensively, Carson Beck will be tested by an experienced Wildcat secondary, but Trevor Etienne and the run game will eventually open up the passing game and allow playmakers like Dillon Bell and Dominic Lovett to shine.
A longtime SEC rival head coach Mark Stoops wass interviewed before his matchup against the No. 1 Georgia Bulldogs
The Kentucky Wildcats’ longtime head coach Mark Stoops was interviewed leading up to their game against the Georgia Bulldogs.
The Georgia Bulldogs play their SEC opener and first road game of the season at the Kentucky Wildcats on Saturday (Sept. 14) at 7:30 p.m. ET. The Georgia-Kentucky game is televised on ABC.
Here’s what he said about facing Georgia according to an article from Matt DeBary of DawgPost.
Stoops had high praise for Carson Beck:
“Carson Beck is a remarkable player. Just hitting on all cylinders right now. Just a very good, tough player,” said Stoops. “He throws it in rhythm, he’s precise, and he’s awfully tough as well. He’ll pull it down and scramble. He’ll buy time and run with his feet. He’ll lower the shoulder. You name it, he does it. He’s a clear leader on a veteran team.” Beck has clearly improved his ability to extend plays this season.
Stoops praised Georgia’s wideouts and running back Trevor Etienne:
“They’re wideouts can really go. They have some wideouts who have great top-end speed,” said Stoops.
Georgia’s fastest receiver, Arian Smith, is the Bulldogs’ leading receiver with nine receptions for 129 yards and a touchdown.
“They always have great backs. This year with Etienne and the freshman, they’re very impressive. With Etienne, you see a very good football player. He and Frazier, they’re dynamic. That’s Georgia. They always have guys. But Etienne is another added weapon for a very good football team that has an offensive line that is very cohesive. They play very well together and they’re well-coached with Stacy Searels. It’s an explosive group.”
Here’s what Stoops had to say about Georgia’s defense:
“Defensively you always know what you’re getting there. You’re always going to get a great defense. They’ve got a lot of guys with a lot of length and a lot of strength. They’re coached well. They play well.”
The matchup between Kentucky and Georgia’s defense will be something to monitor. According to statistics, they’re both top ten in yards allowed per game, although the Bulldogs played a ranked team and are superior in terms of points allowed per game.
Speaking of defense, Stoops had this to say about Georgia transfer Brock Vandagriff playing his former team.
“I expect Brock to play fine. We have to play good around him. He has to have some time. We have to have a good plan around him. He’s playing against a great defense. Brock is a tough, resilient guy. We have to play well around him and put him in spots to be successful. I have confidence he’ll come back and play well. We didn’t even give him a chance half the time.”
Kentucky is coming off the heels of a rough 31-6 loss to South Carolina, while No. 1 Georgia blew out Tennessee Tech 48-3. Brock Vandagriff and the Kentucky offense really struggled against South Carolina, but the Wildcats look to get the results turned around in Week 3.
ESPN’s “College GameDay” selects a SEC conference game for where it will be in Week 3
ESPN’s “College GameDay” has determined where it will be for Week 3 of the 2024 college football season. The GameDay crew plans to attend the LSU Tigers at South Carolina Gamecocks game on Saturday (Sept. 14).
Last week, GameDay went to Ann Arbor, Michigan, for the Michigan–Texas game. In Week 3, GameDay picked the LSU-South Carolina game over Boston College at Missouri, Alabama at Wisconsin, Georgia at Kentucky and several other intriguing games.
The Kentucky Wildcats had a chance at hosting GameDay with No. 1 Georgia coming into town, but GameDay opted to go elsewhere after the Wildcats’ rough 31-6 loss to South Carolina. GameDay will likely attend the Georgia-Alabama game on Sept. 28, so it makes sense GameDay did not want to attend two Georgia games in three weeks.
Three of Georgia’s top games (at Ole Miss, at Alabama and at Texas) this season are on the road.
Georgia does host Tennessee on Nov. 16 in the Bulldogs’ most important home game of the season, which could draw interest from college football’s most popular pregame show. Tennessee is 2-0 and is coming off a 51-10 win over NC State and has a chance to be highly ranked for the Georgia game.
Looking at statistical similarities and differences between the Georgia Bulldogs and Kentucky Wildcats entering their Week 3 game
The No. 1 Georgia Bulldogs (2-0), coming off of a 48-3 win over the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles, will head to Kroger Field to play the Kentucky Wildcats (1-1), their first SEC opponent. Kentucky is coming off the heels of a 31-6 loss to South Carolina, which saw Georgia transfer Brock Vandagriff get benched for Gavin Wimsatt.
Georgia has lived up to the preseason No. 1 hype so far, with dominating wins against No. 14 Clemson and Tennessee Tech. They’ll be looking to keep their undefeated regular season record alive.
Meanwhile, Kentucky has disappointed. What was supposed to be a solid, mid-tier SEC team has been a dud on both sides of the ball. While it is just Week 3 of the college season, losing in a blowout to South Carolina doesn’t inspire confidence.
Here’s a statistical look at each team, provided by CFB Stats.
Scoring Offense:
Georgia: 41 points per game (tied-31st)
Kentucky: 18.5 points per game (tied-110th)
Rushing Offense:
Georgia: 167.5 rushing yards per game (59th)
Kentucky: 143.5 rushing yards per game (82nd)
Passing Offense:
Georgia: 305 passing yards per game (24th)
Kentucky: 106.5 passing yards per game (130th)
Total Offense:
Georgia: 472.5 total yards per game (33rd)
Kentucky: 250 total yards per game (125th)
Scoring Defense:
Georgia: 3.0 points allowed per game (tied-4th)
Kentucky: 15.5 points allowed per game (t-49th)
Run Defense:
Georgia: 81 yards allowed per game (29th)
Kentucky: 45.5 yards allowed per game (8th)
Pass Defense:
Georgia: 80 yards allowed per game (5th)
Kentucky: 146 yards allowed per game (39th)
Total Defense:
Georgia: 161 total yards allowed per game (5th)
Kentucky: 191.5 total yards allowed per game (8th)
Kentucky still has one of the top defenses in the country. The Wildcats will need to stop the run against Georgia to have a chance. Georgia’s offense has looked much better than Kentucky’s to start the season. One thing to note is that Kentucky’s 31-0 win over Southern Mississippi in Week 1 was cut short due to a lightning delay.
“They’re physical. So you play defense, you have physical lines of scrimmage, you have huge people on the offensive and defensive line, and you’re hard to move the ball on,” said Georgia coach Kirby Smart on facing Kentucky. Battles with the Wildcats usually come down to winning the line of scrimmage.
How five former Georgia Bulldogs performed in Week 1 of the NFL season
Week 1 of the NFL season is in the books and there were several former Georgia Bulldogs that shined as NFL action returned. Georgia has 45 players on active rosters in the NFL, nine players on practice squads and three players (including Nick Chubb) on reserve.
NFL teams love former Georgia Bulldogs. A total of 33 former Dawgs have been selected over the past three NFL drafts.
“You know, it’s unfortunate because the feedback we get from the NFL is there’s nowhere they’d rather have players than here developing,” said Georgia head coach Kirby Smart at his weekly press conference.
We look to examine how five former Georgia football standouts performed to begin the 2024 NFL season.
Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams
Result: Overtime loss at Detroit Lions 26-20
In his third time playing the team that took him first overall, Stafford balled out again, with 317 yards, a touchdown, and an interception for an 85.2 passer rating. He earned a spot on this list for his second half. Stafford’s first half was dreadful, leading the Rams to only three points and throwing an interception when they were driving. In his second half, he threw 201 yards and led the Rams to a massive comeback, tying it with a touchdown to Cooper Kupp early in the fourth quarter. However, he couldn’t execute the drive to win, and in overtime, the Lions ran all over the Rams defense to lose the game.
Many Buffalo fans will thank Josh Allen for his heroics in this nailbiter against the Cardinals, but Cook deserves his props. Cook had 71 yards rushing on 19 carries, which is below average at 3.7 yards per attempt, but he salvaged his day with 32 receiving yards on three receptions.
Pickens has been a candidate to break out for a while. With better QB play, he was expected to potentially be a Pro Bowl receiver. In Week 1, he lived up to the hype, totaling 85 yards on six receptions. It would’ve been even more had the Steelers not committed a penalty on a 46-yard bomb from Justin Fields.
The Chargers stuck with a run-heavy game plan under Jim Harbaugh, so the Chargers only had 144 passing yards. However, former Bulldog Ladd McConey still shined, leading with 39 receiving yards and a touchdown in his debut. He looks like one of the top two receivers on the Charger’s depth chart and could potentially lead the team in receiving yards
Jim Rassol-Imagn Images
Travon Walker, Jacksonville Jaguars
Result: Loss vs. Miami Dolphins 20-17
Walker has had high expectations since being picked 1st overall in 2022. In this week, he’s lived up to the billing, racking up six tackles, one tackle for loss, and sacking former Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa twice. He could be in the running for DPOW with this performance. Unfortunately, it couldn’t prevent the Jaguars from blowing a 17-point-lead to the Dolphins.
Georgia football is the only program in the country with a pair of players ranked among ESPN’s 10 best true freshmen
The Georgia Bulldogs signed the country’s top freshmen class, so it should come as no surprise that the Bulldogs are getting production out of a few of their young stars.
In fact, ESPN ranks (subscription required) two Georgia freshmen in running back Nate Frazier and safety KJ Bolden among the best true freshmen in the country. No other college football team has multiple players on the list.
Frazier has 17 carries for 111 rushing yards and one touchdown this season. He is Georgia’s leading rusher through two weeks and has shown excellent explosiveness.
ESPN ranks Frazier as the No. 8 best true freshman through Week 2. Frazier left Georgia’s 48-3 win over Tennessee Tech, but could have returned according to Georgia head coach Kirby Smart.
“Yeah, he could have come back. and we ended up holding him out. I’m not even sure it’s a shoulder, but I don’t know what significance. They came over to me and said he’s ready to go back in, but at that point we were moved on,” said Smart.
KJ Bolden made an impact right out of the gate against the Clemson Tigers in Week 1. Bolden, who was one of 13 Georgia true freshmen to make their debut in Week 1, is ESPN’s No. 10 (tied) best freshman. Bolden has six tackles and a sack through two games.
One of the best Georgia Bulldogs in the NFL continued to dominate.
Former Georgia Bulldog George Pickens had a really strong start to his season. The third-year veteran totaled 85 yards on six receptions against the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday, Sept. 8. He would’ve had 29 more yards if not for another catch being waived off due to a penalty.
Pickens has some huge hopes for him coming into the season. Drafted by the Steelers in the second round of the 2022 NFL draft, he’s been the top receiver for Pittsburgh since his rookie year, totaling 1,991 yards and nine touchdowns in his first two years in the league. However, he was constantly held back by conservative play calling and lack of stable quarterback play, catching passes from three different quarterbacks.
Here’s a highlight catch he made against the Atlanta Falcons:
George Pickens is good for at least one jaw-dropping catch downfield per game pic.twitter.com/BHZ2jOAVTC
Now with a potential combination of Russell Wilson and Justin Fields, who started for the Steelers this past week, Pickens could have his best quarterback play in his career. The potentially improved quarterback play led some people to believe he could be a Pro Bowler. Regardless of whether he makes the Pro Bowl, Bulldogs fans are excited to see one of their best NFL products shine, especially for a team that has several other Georgia Bulldogs players.
