ATHENS — Georgia spends its off weeks prepping for future opponents. This is hardly new, as the Bulldogs uses the downtime to advance scout and prepare for things it might see in the coming weeks.

The Bulldogs work back to front in terms of opponents, meaning the next team on the schedule is the one Georgia ends with.

That would be the Alabama Crimson Tide, who Georgia plays on Sept. 27.

This will be the first time Alabama visits Athens since Kirby Smart became the program’s coach. The last time Alabama played at Sanford Stadium was in 2015, when Smart was still the defensive coordinator at Alabama.

The Crimson Tide won 38-10 that day in what was Mark Richt’s final season. The teams have met seven times since then, with Georgia’s lone win in the series coming in the 2022 National Championship game.

When these two teams met last season, Alabama jumped out to a 30-7 lead in the first half, only for Georgia to grab a 34-33 lead in the fourth quarter.

But a 75-yard touchdown from Ryan Williams proved to be the difference in the game, as Alabama won 41-34.

“The memory is just losing to Alabama,” offensive lineman Micah Morris said. “Obviously, things didn’t work out how we wanted to. I mean, we fought though, but it just didn’t work out how we wanted to. The main thing I’m looking forward to is just getting back out there with my guys and just trying to do better than last time, just really preparing. We’ve got, like you said, a bye week and then another week, so we have a lot of time to get ready.”

Georgia had an off week prior to last year’s game against Alabama, yet it did not make a difference.

The Crimson Tide also has the week off to prepare for Georgia. The Crimson Tide is 2-1 on the season, with the loss coming on the road against Florida State.

Alabama is just 2-4 in true road games under Kalen DeBoer. But even with this not yet looking like a vintage Alabama team, Georgia isn’t overlooking the Crimson Tide.

“I think it’s always a great game, you know, from the past year,” linebacker Chris Cole said. “It’s always been a great, like, rivalry, you know, all these great games and the SEC championships, you know, national championships. It’s just another game to get better at.”

Georgia enters the game with a 3-0 record, fresh off a 44-41 win over Tennessee.

Alabama has similarly begun its preparations for Georgia, with DeBoer weighing in on Georgia quarterback Gunner Stockton.

“He’s played in some big games in just a short amount of time,” DeBoer said on Wednesday’s SEC coaches’ teleconference. “When you look at the end of last year, and this last week in particular, he’s done a nice job just managing the offense and then making plays when he needs to, throwing the ball down the field, finding his matchups and then keeping plays alive with his feet. He really, I think, adds a dimension to their offense because of that. 

“So, I think they’re doing a good job utilizing his skill set and the offensive personnel that are around him, and that’s a credit to Georgia’s staff.”

This is a massive game for both teams. Alabama doesn’t have much room to work with following its loss to Florida State. Add potentially another road loss to DeBoer’s record and the criticism around the second-year coach will only grow louder.

Yet the game might be bigger for Georgia, given its struggles against the Crimson Tide.

Georgia likes to view every opponent as the same, not putting too much emphasis on any one contest. The Bulldogs are putting that to the test this week, without pouring everything they have into a game that is still over a week away.

“I would say whenever we’re facing pretty much any opponent, just coming in with the right mindset and just executing our plays,” Morris said. “Sometimes things just don’t work out the way that we want it to, but we’ve just got to understand that this game, you’re not going to win every game. All we can do is just put our best foot forward every game we go out there.”