Tag: uga vs alabama

Georgia TE Tre’ McKitty could be a matchup nightmare for the SEC

Georgia football TE Tre’ McKitty is coming off his first game back from injury and could be a serious matchup nightmare for SEC defenses.

Georgia tight end Tre’ McKitty, who transferred from Florida State this offseason, left the field during preseason with a minor knee injury that required him to undergo arthroscopic surgery.  The injury was very minor and now McKitty is cleared and back for good.

McKitty played his first game in a Bulldog uniform this past Saturday against Tennessee.  The 6-foot-5, 245 pound Wesley Chapel, Florida native made some big plays in that game against the Volunteers.  In the Dawgs’ 44-21 win, McKitty caught two balls for 47 yards.

Georgia is now starting to put together a seriously dangerous receiving corps.  With George Pickens, Kearis Jackson, Demetris Robertson, freshman Jermaine Burton and now McKittty, the Dawgs could be a problem for opposing secondaries this season.

McKitty averaged 23.5 yards per catch last week and is about to make a big splash in SEC football play.  At Florida State, McKitty didn’t get many reps his freshman year but during his sophomore and junior seasons he caught 49 passes for 497 yards and two touchdowns.  He averaged 10.4 yards per catch in his time at FSU before making the transfer to Georgia.

Look for McKitty to play a pivotal role in the Dawgs’ offensive scheme this year and become Stetson Bennett’s new favorite target.

Twitter reacts to Nick Saban contracting COVID-19

The Twitter world reacts to Alabama football head coach contracting COVID-19 just days before game against Georgia football.

On Wednesday afternoon, Alabama football head coach Nick Saban, as well as Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne tested positive for COVID-19, reported by ESPN’s Tom Rinaldi.

No statements have been released on the status of Saturday night’s game between No. 3 Georgia and No. 2 Alabama.  Kickoff is still scheduled for 8:00 P.M. ET and is expected to go on as long as more positive tests don’t come back these next couple of days.

Her is how the college football Twitter world reacted to the breaking news:

 

UGA Football Live with J.C. Shelton – S1, Ep. 4 – Keith Marshall and Alabama preview

I got a chance to talk with former Georgia running back Keith Marshall about Georgia’s matchup with Alabama. Listen here!

Your friends at “UGA Football Live” and UGA Wire present your one-stop shop for all things Georgia football!

We are releasing episodes and interviews each week during the 2020 college football season, with a little bit of everything sprinkled in between.

In this week’s episode, I got a chance to talk with former Georgia running back Keith Marshall about who was the fastest Dawg on the 2012 Georgia football squad. And I ask Marshall what he’s seen from Georgia’s running backs this season – he says one young back earned some future carries, due to his performance versus Tennessee.

Plus, I talk:

CFB roundup

  • The biggest games of the college football Saturday.

Tennessee review 

  • What happened, who played well and what can be improved before the Bulldogs take on Bama.

Alabama preview

  • What does Alabama look like this year and how does Georgia stop them?

Bonus

  • Buffoonery in the Swamp.

Listen here through Spotify:

Or here, in Apple Podcasts:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/uga-football-live-with-j-c-shelton/id1533295384#episodeGuid=Buzzsprout-5903014

 

Make sure to rate, subscribe and review and check out our other episodes, featuring guys like Aaron Murray (Episode 2) and Tavarres King (Episode 3)

Alabama HC Nick Saban tests positive for COVID-19

BREAKING: Alabama head coach Nick Saban tests positive for COVID-19, what that means for Georgia football.

Breaking news has come out of Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

Alabama football head coach Nick Saban, as well as Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne have tested positive for COVID-19, per ESPN’s Tom Rinaldi.

This is a major shakeup for the college football world as Georgia was scheduled to play the Crimson Tide this Saturday in a heavyweight showdown.

Reports say that both Saban and Byrne left the facility immediately and are now quarantining in their homes.  Saban announced that offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian will act as head coach while Saban works from home.

“I found out earlier this afternoon that I had tested positive for COVID-19. I immediately left work and isolated at home. At this time, I do not have any symptoms relative to COVID,” Saban released in his statement today. “I informed our team of my positive test at 2 p.m. today on a Zoom call and let them know offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian will oversee preparations at the complex while I work from home.”

There have been positive player tests at Ole Miss, who Alabama beat last week, and the SEC has already bumped two games this week due to COVID-19 outbreaks.  The Missouri vs Vanderbilt game and the Florida vs LSU game will both be played the week of December 12 due to positive tests at Florida and Vanderbilt.  Nineteen players tested positive for Florida.

No statements have been released on the status of Saturday night’s game between Georgia and Alabama.

Georgia vs Alabama: Expert picks and predictions

The UGA Wire presents our weekly expert score, stat and game predictions ahead of Georgia football at Alabama.

The No. 3 Georgia Bulldogs (3-0, 3-0) travel to Tuscaloosa this weekend to face off against Nick Saban and the No. 2 Alabama Crimson Tide (3-0, 3-0).

This matchup features two of the top quarterbacks in all of college football so far.  Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett, A.K.A. ‘The Mailman’, currently has the No. 3 QBR at 93.1 while Alabama quarterback Mac Jones has the No.2 QBR at 95.3.

Alabama currently leads the series 40-25-4 and is sitting on a five game win streak that dates back to 2008.

This is without a doubt both teams biggest game on their 10-game conference only schedule for 2020.

With that said, the UGA Wire staff has put together a number of score, stat and game predictions ahead of Saturday’s matchup.

Here are the picks:

The money makers:

No. 3 Georgia (+6) @ No. 2 Alabama (-6)

(Odds courtesy of BetMGM)

UGA WIRE Game Picks:

Joe Vitale: Georgia

James Morgan: Alabama

Henry Sillen: Georgia

J.C. Shelton: Georgia

 

Spread Pick (Georgia +6 / Alabama -6):

JV: Georgia +6

JM: Alabama +6

HS: Georgia +6

JS: Alabama +6

 

Over/Under (57):

JV: Over

JM: Over

HS: Under

JS: Over

 

Score prediction:

JV: Georgia 31, Alabama 34

JM: Georgia 24, Alabama 35

HS: Georgia 27, Alabama 24

JS: Georgia 30, Alabama 28

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4

Kirk Herbstreit makes SEC Championship Game predictions

ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit makes his precision for the 2020 SEC Champion Game.

The SEC revealed its schedule for the 2020 college football season on Monday night.

Following the schedule reveal, predictions came rolling in from some of the more prominent analysts in the world of college football.

One of those being ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit, who made his prediction for the SEC Championship Game this December.

Herbstreit projects another Georgia vs Alabama showdown in Atlanta this year, he said on the SEC Network.

“I felt Alabama would be the team in the West,” he said. “I love LSU and Coach O, but I think they lost a lot there, so I would favor Alabama, even though that schedule looks tough. I would put Georgia. I was sneaky wanting to pick Florida with all the Georgia hype, but that (Florida) schedule makes me nervous. I have Georgia and Bama with Bama prevailing and winning the SEC.”

This would be a rematch of the upcoming October 17 matchup between the Tide and the Dawgs in Tuscaloosa.

CFN predicts outcome of Georgia vs Alabama

College Football News predicts the outcome of Georgia vs Alabama in September.

Georgia vs Alabama will be one of the most anticipated games of the 2020 college football season, and certainly the biggest matchup in September among all FBS games.

If Georgia wins this game, the Dawgs might jump all the way to No. 1 in the rankings…they’d certainly deserve to. But a loss is not the end of the world for UGA either. Play the Tide close and Georgia will earn America’s respect. If we get blown out like we have in recent years on the road vs SEC West teams, Kirby Smart will have to run the table the rest of the way if he wants to get back to the College Football Playoff.

Pete Fiutak of College Football News previewed the September 19 game in Tuscaloosa, and gave reasons on why both Georgia and Alabama can win this game.

Why Georgia Will Win

Via Fiutak:

The defensive front seven should be in place to hold up against the pounding that Alabama is going to try to apply.

The Bulldog secondary, though, will be the strength early on.

It’s going to be one of the nation’s best defenses after getting dates against Virginia and East Tennessee State to tune-up.

To see Fiutak’s reasons for why Alabama will win, click here.

In the end, Fiutak has Alabama winning in a close battle, which would be ok with most Georgia fans. The playoff committee would have to gain a lot of respect for these Dawgs if they play the mighty Tide like that on the road.

Read Fiutak’s full prediction here.

FootballScoop predicts Georgia will be featured in two College GameDay matchups

Georgia football is projected to be featured in two College GameDay matchups this 2020 college football season.

I know, you’d rather be reading about which early-enrollees are turning heads at Georgia workouts. I’d rather be writing about that. Unfortunately, that’s not the world we are living in right now.

Instead, we are in a constant state of speculation, which can actually provide some entertaining stories like the one Zach Barnett of FootballScoop posted this week.

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He wrote a story predicting where ESPN’s College GameDay show will visit during each week of the 2020 college football season.

In his predictions, he had Georgia being involved in two College GameDay matchups.

The first one is a sure-thing…Georgia at Alabama on September 19 in Tuscaloosa.

From FootballScoop:

Speaking of sure things, Georgia at Alabama is perhaps the surest thing of the entire season. A rematch of the 2017 national championship and 2018 SEC title game, this game comes three days shy of the THIRTEEN YEAR anniversary of Georgia’s last trip to Tuscaloosa.

The other one is on Halloween, where Barnett predicts College GameDay will visit Jacksonville for the World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party. Not a bad prediction, as both teams will likely be in the top-ten playing for a spot in the SEC Championship Game.

Florida has finished second to Georgia in the SEC East in each of Dan Mullen’s first two seasons and, with a returning quarterback in Gainesville and a new offense coming in Athens, there’s a belief that the Gators can climb the hump this year. Florida vs. Georgia will be the ultimate trick or treat for Mullen.

Athens, Georgia was also mentioned as a possible destination on October 6. The Bulldogs will be hosting Auburn in The Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry, but there’s also plenty of other top-tier matchups taking place that weekend.

October 6 matchups include: Texas-Oklahoma, Clemson-Florida State, LSU-Florida, Auburn-Georgia, Minnesota-Wisconsin, Iowa-Ohio State, Rutgers-Purdue.

Oklahoma vs Texas gets GameDay that weekend in his predictions.

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Ref admits to blown call during Georgia vs Alabama national championship: ‘He wasn’t offside’

The ref from Georgia football vs Alabama in the national title game has admitted to the missed Tyler Simmons call.

The officiating during Georgia’s national title game vs Alabama has haunted UGA fans for two years now.

There were a number of missed calls by the Big Ten officiating crew that night in Atlanta, but none bigger than when Georgia wide receiver Tyler Simmons was called offside prior to blocking Alabama’s punt deep in Bama territory.

Georgia was leading 13-0 in the third quarter and it was the Dawgs’ game to lose. That blocked punt might have been enough to put that game away, but instead, even though video replay clearly shows Simmons was onside, the Bulldogs were flagged. That play has replayed over and over and over in the heads of Georgia fans on a loop ever since that night.

It was one we will never forget.

Someone else who is yet to forget it, and probably never will, is retiring Big Ten referee Dan Capron, who admits his crew did in fact get that call wrong.

In an interview with the Chicago Tribune, Capron said:

We had a miss. Alabama was on the ropes. They were deep in their own territory and they’re punting. The punt gets blocked. There’s a flag on the ground because the line judge had Georgia offside. Oh, boy. He (the player, Tyler Simmons) actually had a running start and timed it (properly). He wasn’t offside.

But that wasn’t my call. The blocking backs, a split-second before the snap, moved. That was a false start. That should have been my call. It still wouldn’t have been a blocked punt but instead a five-yard penalty against the offense. You never want to make a mistake of any kind in such a high-profile atmosphere.

This blown call, though painful to rewatch, has become almost justice movement among Georgia fans, who have turned it into t-shirts and memes.

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I appreciate Capron owning up the mistake, but in now way is that enough to win over the DawgNation. The problem is, there were a ton of missed calls in that game, but yes, that offside penalty was the most memorable.

In the end, though, that’s just part of the game.

Here’s a compilation of some of the missed calls.