For the second straight home game, the Georgia defense shutout an SEC opponent, as the No. 6 Bulldogs (8-1, 5-1) smothered Missouri (5-4, 2-3) on their way to a 27-0 win.

It was the third shutout of the season for Georgia. The Bulldogs clearly have the SEC’s top defense, as they’re allowing just 10.1 points per game. Georgia is also the only team in the country that has not yet given up a rushing touchdown.

If there was one player that really stood out, it would be freshman wide receiver George Pickens. He finished the game with 5 catches for 67 yards, but two of those went for touchdowns.

Both of those were of the spectacular variety and both got plenty of Georgia fans excited on an otherwise ho-hum night from the offense.

Next week will be a big game for Pickens on a couple of fronts. First, if Lawrence Cager is unable to go — he reaggravated his shoulder injury and did not play in the second half — Pickens will become Georgia’s No. 1 target on the outside. Secondly, Pickens will be playing against Auburn, a school he was committed to right up until National Signing Day, when he flipped to Georgia.

As for Saturday night, Pickens’ quarterback was very happy with how the freshman played.

“I think George does a job of stepping up when his number is called,” Fromm said. “We’re always trying to focus on the details with George and he did a great job of knowing the details. We’re really proud of him for going and making plays when they came his way.”

Related: With George Pickens, Georgia football has to live with the bad to enjoy the good

Looming over Georgia’s strong performance was all the talk of the College Football Playoff debate. Alabama picked up its first loss of the season, as it fell to No. 2 LSU, 46-41. Georgia has better wins than the Crimson Tide, but Alabama’s loss is far better than Georgia’s defeat to a now 4-6 South Carolina squad.

A quick polling of the national media shows that opinion does seem to be split on where the Bulldogs and Crimson Tide should rank. Some have Alabama as the nation’s top one-loss team, while others give the nod to Georgia.

After the game, Smart was asked about whether Georgia should be trying to impress the committee, given all the attention surrounding the rankings.

Related: Georgia football coach Kirby Smart focused on ‘next step,’ not style points

“I don’t really think about style points. I just think about what we have to do to win the game and what we have to do to be more efficient and what we have to do to be at our best,” Smart said. “That’s a good football team. There’s a reason they’re ranked in the top fifteen in the country in almost every single defensive category.”

After the game, a handful of current and former Bulldogs chimed in with their thoughts on the game.

The Bulldogs return to action next week against No. 11 Auburn. The game is set for a 3:30 p.m. kickoff on CBS.

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