Alabama Crimson Tide at Georgia Bulldogs

The 2015 season marks the second season under defensive coordinator Jeremy Pruitt. Through 4 games, the Bulldogs are +3 in turnover margin, scoring 24 points off five opponent turnovers. Opponents have been limited to 16 points a game. In 2014, Georgia finished with a +16 turnover margin and that ranked fourth nationally and was the fourth best in school history. Also in 2014, the Bulldogs ranked fifth in the SEC in scoring defense at 20.7 points a game. Georgia is second in the league this season with five interceptions.

Saturday, October 3
Alabama Crimson Tide at Georgia Bulldogs
TV: CBS
Where: Sanford Stadium, Athens, GA

Georgia’s ability to run the football has helped it to a 4-0 start. In the opening win over ULM, Georgia tallied 243 rushing yards and four touchdowns. Then, the Bulldogs had 281 yards and two touchdowns in the road win against Vanderbilt. Georgia had 246 yards on the ground and four touchdowns during the victory over the Gamecocks. Sophomore Nick Chubb, one of the nation’s top running backs, leads the way with 468 yards on 56 carries (8.4 average) and four touchdowns this season. He has had 11 consecutive games with at least 100 yards rushing and that is the nation’s second longest active streak behind Toledo’s Kareem Hunt at 12 games. Georgia’s rushing attack is bolstered by the fact that four offensive line starters returned from the 2014 unit  seniors John Theus(LT), Kolton Houston (RT), junior Greg Pyke (RG) and sophomore Brandon Kubla now (C, LG in 2014). Sophomore Isaiah Wynn has joined the crew at LG.

The Crimson Tide owns the all-time series advantage, 37-25-4, and won the most recent matchup in the 2012 SEC Championship Game, 32-28. The victory propelled Alabama into the national championship game where the Crimson Tide dominated Notre Dame, 41-14, earning the Tide’s 15th national title in program history.

On Sept. 12, Alabama limited Middle Tennessee to 275 yards of offense, one week after holding Wisconsin to 268 yards of total offense in the season opener. In head coach Nick Saban’s 111-game tenure at Alabama, the Crimson Tide has limited opponents to under 300 yards of total offense 68 times, or 61.3 percent of the time. UA held six of 14 opponents below 300 yards last season.

Running the ball is no easy task against the Alabama defense with the Tide yielding just two rushing scores this season. On Sept. 12, the Crimson Tide limited Middle Tennessee to 86 rushing yards on 31 attempts a week after stifling a potent Wisconsin rushing attack in the AdvoCare Classic, allowing just 40 total yards to the Badger rushers on 21 carries. The Crimson Tide continued the trend from a season ago, where the defense allowed a lowly five rushing touchdowns in 14 games, which was the fewest in the nation (UCF was second with nine). The Tide lead the nation in allowing the fewest rushing touchdowns since the start of the 2005 season, surrendering only 73. Since head coach Nick Saban arrived in 2007, the Crimson Tide has allowed 57 rushing touchdowns. Ohio State is No. 2 in that category, giving up 87 since 2007.

Georgia leads the SEC and is ranked third nationally in Pass Efficiency at 195.3 with eight touchdowns and no interceptions. Individually, junior QB Greyson Lambert is also No. 1 in the conference and third nationally in Pass Efficiency at 201.0. In Georgia’s last two games, Lambert was a combined 33-for-35 for 476 yards and five touchdowns and is currently second nationally in Completion Percentage (76.5). He ended up setting a school record with 22 completions in a row over a two-game period, which was two short of Tennessee’s Tee Martin who finished with 24 over two games in 1998.

The Bottom Line: Georgia has too many talented players at skilled positions for Alabama to handle at once.

Selection: Georgia -2