Georgia can further consolidate its College Football Playoff chances when it hosts Texas A&M in its final SEC conference game of the season on Saturday.
The Bulldogs remained at No.4 in the latest set of CFP rankings on Tuesday and are currently both the highest-ranked one-loss team and the only one-loss team in the top four.
Georgia clinched a third consecutive SEC East title with a 21-14 road win over No. 15 Auburn last week and defeating Texas A&M—which rank 24th in the Associated Press Top 25 poll—would give the Bulldogs four wins against ranked programs.
The Allstate Playoff Predictor gives Georgia a 42 percent chance of making the CFP, which would rise to 88 percent with a win over LSU in the SEC Championship Game.
As this graphic provided by Statista shows, with six one-loss teams behind them in the latest set of CFP rankings, however, the Bulldogs have minimal margin for error.
A win against the Aggies would further strengthen Georgia's resume, although it may not be enough to silence the doubters—who continue to wonder how a team that lost to a 4-8 South Carolina team can be the No.4 program in the nation.
The overtime loss to South Carolina, however, increasingly appears just a hiccup—albeit a significant one—rather than proof of an underlying issue. Following the loss to the Gamecocks, Georgia has won four straight games, shutting out Kentucky and Missouri in the process.
The Bulldogs are 3-0 against top-12 teams this season and an already excellent defensive unit is going from strength to strength. Georgia boasts the second-best scoring defense in the country, allowing a mere 10.5 points per game, and ranks in the top seven in rushing defense and pass efficiency defense.
The picture is not as rosy on the offensive side of the ball, with the Bulldogs ranking 80th in the country with just 220.3 passing yards per game. Jake Fromm has thrown for 1,968 yards, 16 touchdowns and three interceptions so far this season and ranks a modest 16th in the country in terms of quarterback rating with 78.7.
What the Bulldogs lack through the air, however, they have more than made up on the ground. Georgia averages 208.4 yards per game, the 25th-best rushing offense in the nation and the Bulldogs have as many rushing touchdowns—18—as they have passing.
Coach Kirby Smart suggested the running game was crucial to his team's passing game becoming a more potent threat.
"Play-action pass is set up by a really good, sound run game," he said in his press conference on Tuesday.
"The games we've been able to run it well, we've thrown it well on play-action pass. We don't look at stats particularly. We try to look at the ways we can have explosive plays and play-action pass is a good way to do that."
D'Andre Swift has run for 1,027 yards and seven touchdowns this season. He should relish facing a Texas A&M defense that has allowed over 130 rushing yards per game so far this season.
The Aggies defeated South Carolina 30-17 last week, extending their winning run to four games, and were one of the three new entrants in the AP Top 25 poll this week.
All three of the Aggies' losses this season have come against teams that were in the top 10 when they faced Texas A&M and Smart has urged his team to not underestimate the challenge.
"They're more experienced," the Bulldogs coach said of what had changed in the Aggies from the start of the season.
"They've got more backs playing at a really high level. [...] They're playing really good football now."
Here's all you need to know ahead of Saturday.
When and where is the game?
The Georgia Bulldogs host the Texas A&M Aggies at Sanford Stadium in Athens, Georgia, on Saturday, November 23.
Kick-off is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. ET.
TV coverage
The game will be broadcast nationally on CBS.
Live stream
A live stream will be available via CBS's digital platforms and fuboTV.
Series record
The two programs have met just five times, with Texas A&M winning on three occasions and Georgia prevailing twice.
The Bulldogs won the most recent meeting between the two, defeating the Aggies 44-20 in the Independence Bowl in 2009.
Odds
According to Oddschecker, Georgia is a 13-point favorite and 43/50 to cover the spread, while Texas A&M is a 19/5 underdog.
The over/under line in terms of total points scored is set at 47.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Dan Cancian is currently a reporter for Newsweek based in London, England. Prior to joining Newsweek in January 2018, he ... Read more
