ATHENS — Georgia and Michigan would appear to be two programs headed in opposite directors after their most recent outings, but a closer look reveals the teams are more similar than some might think.
The No. 2-ranked Wolverines and the No. 3 ranked Bulldogs will meet at 7:30 p.m. on Dec. 31 in the Orange Bowl College Football Playoff Semifinal in Miami Gardens, Fla.
Alabama and Cincinnati play in the other CFP at the Cotton Bowl in AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas at 3 p.m. on Dec. 31.
Georgia sixth-year head coach Kirby Smart is 64-15 (.810) leading the Bulldogs, while Michigan seventh-year coach Jim Harbaugh is 61-23 (726) with the Wolverines.
Here’s a statistical breakdown of the national leader in each category, and each CFP team (Georgia in boldface):
Schedule strength
1. Indiana, 78.78
7. Alabama, 75.66
31. Michigan, 73.73
35. Georgia, 73.25
82. Cincinnati, 65.39
Total offense
1. Ohio State, 551.4
6. Alabama, 495.5
18. Michigan, 451.9
27. Georgia, 442.8
44. Cincinnati, 429.6
Scoring offense
1. Ohio State, 45.5
4. Alabama, 42.5
7. Georgia, 39.2
9. Cincinnati, 38.8
13. Michigan, 37.7
Passing offense
1. Western Ky., 434.6
7. Alabama, 347.9
50. Cincinnati, 248.7
53. Georgia 247.9
67. Michigan 228.1
Rushing offense
1. Air Force, 340.8
10. Michigan, 223.8
30. Georgia, 194.9
47. Cincinnati, 180.9
Third-down conversion offense
1. Coastal Carolina, .541
2. Alabama, .536
23. Michigan, .451
33. Georgia, .438
56. Cincinnati, .414
Red zone offense
1. Oklahoma, .964
7. Michigan, .922
11. Alabama, .918
53. Georgia, .855
95. Cincinnati, .787
Turnover margin
1. Nevada, 1.33
7. Cincinnati, 0.85
17. Alabama, 0.77
40. Michigan. 0.38
69. Georgia 0.00
Time of possession
1. Army, 36
18. Michigan, 32
23. Alabama, 31
51. Georgia, 30
120. Cincinnati, 27
Total defense
1. Wisconsin, 240.8.
2. Georgia, 254.4
7. Cincinnati, 305.8
8. Alabama, 306.1
13. Michigan, 316.2
Scoring defense
1. Georgia, 9.54
4. Cincinnati, 16.08
4. Michigan, 16.08
20. Alabama, 20.23
Passing defense
1. Washington, 143.3
2. Cincinnati, 168.3
3. Georgia, 172.7
22. Michigan, 194.7
61. Alabama, 223.3
Rushing defense
1. Wisconsin, 65.2
2. SD State, 77.5
3. Georgia, 81.7
4. Alabama, 82.8
22. Michigan, 121.5
47. Cincinnati, 137.5
Third Down defense
1. Houston, .256
8. Alabama, .319
13. Michigan, .323
19. Georgia, .333
21. Cincinnati, .335
Red zone defense
1. Georgia, .600
3. Cincinnati, .667
46. Michigan, .800
64. Alabama, .829
Individual leaders
Passing leader
No. 1 Bailey Zappe WKU, 442-of-640, 5,545 yards, 56 TDs, 11 Ints
No. 59 Cade McNamara 199-of-308, 2,470 yards, 15 TDs, 4 Ints
No. 71 Stetson Bennett 148-of-231, 2,325 yards, 24 TDs, 7 Ints
Rushing leader
1. Lew Nichols CMU, 311 carries, 1,710 yards, 15 TDs
9. Hassan Haskins, 261 carries, 1,288 yards, 20 TDs
90. Zamir White, 135 carries, 718 yards, 10 TDs
Receiving leader
1. Jerreth Sterns WKU, 137 catches, 1,718 yards, 14 TDs
67. Brock Bowers 47 catches, 791 yards, 11 TDs
145. Cornelius Johnson 37 catches, 602 yards, 3 TDs
Punting
1. Matt Araiza, SDST, 76 punts, 51.37 avg.
8. Jake Camarda, 40 punts, 47.08 average
11. Brad Robbins, 43 punts, 46.42 average
Field goal kicking
1. Three tied at 19-20, .950
8. Jake Moody, 22-24, .917
35. Jack Podlesny, 17-21, .810
