No. 2 Texas gets a chance at revenge against No. 5 Georgia in Saturday’s SEC Championship in Atlanta with a College Football Playoff first-round bye on the line.
Georgia defeated Texas 30-15 in Austin on Oct. 19. It was a Bulldogs resume-defining win for the Bulldogs and the only loss of the season for the Longhorns. Since then, Georgia has lost to Ole Miss and barely survived an eight-overtime thriller against Georgia Tech. Meanwhile, Texas defeated in-state rival Texas A&M, the first game between the two in 13 years, to clinch a spot in the SEC title game.
Texas and Georgia should both be in the 12-team playoff regardless of Saturday’s result, but a chance at a bye and an easier path to the ultimate goal of a national championship keeps the stakes high.
As it stands now, Georgia would host No. 10 Indiana in the first round of the CFP, but a third loss could potentially send the Bulldogs on the road next week.
Texas vs. Georgia: Need to know
Key injury: Kirby Smart said Thursday he was “hopeful” running back Trevor Etienne would be able to play against the Longhorns after missing the Bulldogs’ last three games. Etienne had a big game against Texas in their first meeting, totaling three touchdowns and 87 yards. Georgia’s run game has never met preseason expectations but getting Etienne back with Nate Frazier would be big for an offense that doesn’t want to overly burden Carson Beck.
Rollercoaster QB experience: Speaking of Beck, the first go around with the Longhorns didn’t go so well even if Georgia still won. He threw three interceptions as part of a four-game midseason tailspin that saw him throw more interceptions (9) than touchdowns (5). After a loss to Ole Miss in Oxford, Beck has pulled it back together and has 941 passing yards, 11 touchdowns and zero interceptions in Georgia’s last three games. Which version of Beck shows up against Texas will play a big role in the final result.
Arch package: Against Texas A&M, Steve Sarkisian finally deployed an Arch Manning QB package that utilized the third-generation star’s legs for the game’s first touchdown. With Quinn Ewers banged up in the Kentucky game, it made sense to go to Manning in the red zone to open up a different part of the offense. With the package’s success against the Aggies and the need to protect a hampered Ewers, there could be more Manning — especially in the run game — against a Bulldogs defense that held Texas to only 29 rushing yards in the first game between the two.
How to watch Texas vs. Georgia live
Date: Saturday, Dec. 7 | Time: 3:30 p.m. ET
Location: Mercedes-Benz Stadium — Atlanta, Georgia
TV: ABC | Live stream: fubo (Try for free)
Texas vs. Georgia prediction, picks
It’s always challenging to beat a team twice in one season – Georgia has even been the beneficiary of that truth against Alabama in the past – and Texas will be ready to go this time around. It got the bad performance out of its system in what was one of the biggest sports weekends in Austin history. Texas defense looks superb right now, the offense less so, and should be able to harass Carson Beck again. It’ll be very close and the Mercedes-Benz Stadium crowd will be decidedly in Georgia’s favor, but I like the Longhorns to win Round 2. Pick: Texas -2.5
SportsLine’s proven computer model is calling for three outright upsets during college football’s championship week. Visit SportsLine now to see them all, plus get spread picks for every game from the model that simulates every matchup 10,000 times.
