ATHENS — Georgia football is finally returning back to Sanford Stadium, and the Bulldogs will do so as a decided favorite over Mississippi State, per VegasInsider.com.
Georgia is favored in the battle of Bulldogs by 24 points over Coach Mike Leach and his program in a game scheduled for 7:30 p.m. on Saturday night in Athens.
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It’s the first home game for Coach Kirby Smart’s team since a victory over Tennessee on Oct. 10, back when the UGA Bulldogs were undefeated and still in control of their own destiny.
Much has happened for Georgia since then, and not much of it good when one considers the injuries and poor play at the quarterback position.
A shoulder injury to former walk-on quarterback Stetson Bennett, who has gone 3-2 as the starter over the past five games, opened the door for Smart to consider a quarterback change last week.
USC transfer JT Daniels was getting reps with the first team last week and was expected to start for Georgia in its game at Missouri.
The Tigers, however, pulled out of the game last Wednesday citing COVID-19 protocol, exercising their right not to play once they fell beneath available scholarship player numbers on the defensive line. Walk-ons are eligible to play, but schools do not have to count the toward their availability numbers.
Mississippi State has also been dealing with their own COVID-19 numbers and did not play at Auburn as scheduled.
The Maroon Bulldogs won their most recent game, 24-17, over Vanderbilt on Nov. 7.
The UGA Bulldogs lost in their most recent game, 44-28, in Jacksonville, Fla., to the SEC East Division-leading Gators.
This next game on Saturday night in Athens will mark the first meeting between these teams since 2017, when a Smart-coached Georgia team beat a Mississippi State team headed by Dan Mullen, 31-3.
The teams have only met five times since 2000, with Georgia winning four of the five.
Smart, as a player, was on UGA teams that beat the Maroon Bulldogs twice, 38-19 in 1996 and 47-0 in 1997.
Other SEC Games
Florida (-31) at Vanderbilt, noon, ESPN
LSU at Arkansas (-2), noon, SEC Network
Ole Miss at Texas A&M (-9), 3:30 p.m., CBS
Kentucky at Alabama (-31), 4 p.m., SEC Network
Tennessee at Auburn (-10), 7 p.m., ESPN
Missouri (-1) at South Carolina, 7:30 p.m. SEC Network
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