The big one is here.
On Saturday at 3:30 p.m. on CBS, Georgia and LSU will square off in the SEC Championship Game in what will be a College Football Playoff play-in game for Georgia.
Flor LSU, the Tigers can probably afford to drop this one given their undefeated record and body of work to date.
But for the Dawgs, this is it. It’s win or go home. We suffered defeat in the exact same scenario last season and Kirby Smart will put out all the tricks to make sure that does not happen.
Georgia and LSU are two very different football teams.
LSU’s offense is incredible. Georgia’s, well, is not.
Georgia’s defense is equally as good as LSU’s offense. LSU’s defense is nothing special.
How this game plays out will be fun to watch. LSU will score points, less points than usual I would assume. Can Georgia hang in there and match them?
Here are how these two teams match up statistically.
OFFENSE:
SCORING OFFENSE
LSU is 2nd in the nation averaging 48.7 points per game.
Georgia is 40th at 32.9.
RUSHING OFFENSE
LSU has the 57th ranked rushing offense averaging 170 yards per game on the ground.
Georgia averages 200 yards per game rushing, which is 33rd in the FBS.
PASSING OFFENSE
At 390 passing yards per game, LSU has America’s 2nd ranked passing offense.
I had to scroll 74 spots down to find Georgia, which sits at 76th in this category with 220 passing yards per game.
TOTAL OFFENSE
LSU again is at the top in this category. Its 2nd ranked total offense tallies on average 560.4 yards per game.
Again, Georgia is well-below at 420.6 yards per game, which is 55th.
FIRST DOWNS
No. 2 again for LSU and I feel like I’m being repetitive. The Tigers average 27.7 first downs per game.
Georgia’s offense averages 21.3 first downs per game, which is 63rd.
PENALTIES
A weakness! LSU averages 6.1 penalties per gamer for 60.3 yards, which is 92nd nationally.
Georgia ranks 39th in this category, giving up an average of 5.6 penalties per game for 46.8 yards.
TURNOVER MAGIN
LSU has a turnover margin of +6, which is 24th nationally. The Tigers have forced 18 turnovers and surrendered 12.
Georgia has a +2 turnover margin, haven given up 11 and gained 13. That’s 49th nationally.
SACKS ALLOWED
LSU has not done a bad ob of protecting Joe Burrow, but they have not been great either. The Tigers surrender 2.25 sacks per game, which is 77th.
Georgia has been right there at the top all season, and as we enter Saturday’s game the Dawgs are allowing just .75 sacks a game, 3rd in the FBS.
DEFENSE
SCORING DEFENSE
LSU allows 22.1 points per game, which is 31st overall.
Georgia is No. 2 in this category, allowing use 10.4 points per game.
RUSHING DEFENSE
LSU has the 28th run defense, giving up 124.5 yards on the ground per game and a total of 12 rushing touchdowns.
Georgia has America’s No. 2 ranked rushing defense, giving up just 71 yards a game on the ground and just one rushing touchdown all season.
PASSING DEFENSE
LSU’s passing defense is 56th in the country, allowing 221.4 yards through the air.
Georgia has the nation’s 15th ranked passing defense. The Dawgs give up 186 passing yards per game.
TOTAL DEFENSE
In total defense, LSU’s No. 35, allowing 345.9 yards per game and 5.11 yards per play.
Georgia is No. 4, allowing 257 yards per game and just 4.12 yards per play.
SACKS
LSU averages 2.5 sacks per game, which is 37th.
Georgia is 62nd, getting 2.17 sacks a game.
SPECIAL TEAMS
PUNT RETURNS
LSU is 22nd, averaging 12.32 yards per return.
Georgia is averaging 11.38 yards per return, which is 28th nationally. Dominick Blaylock has been coming on strong lately.
KICK RETURNS
LSU averages 19.43 yards per kick return, which is 85th.
Georgia averages 18.7 yards per return – 97th.
KICKING
LSU’s Cade York is 18/21 this season, while Hot Rod is 24/28. Both an average of 85.7%.
PUNTING
LSU does not punt it enough for me to be able find the rankings.
After a rough start to the season, Jake Camarda has found his groove. Currently, he is 5th in the nation, averaging 47.3 yards per punt.
