No. 2 Texas goes for a title in its first SEC season, but must get by No. 5 Georgia

Published Dec. 5, 2024 3:51 p.m. ET

Associated Press

ATLANTA (AP) — Texas wasted no time making its presence felt in the mighty Southeastern Conference.

In their debut as a member of the powerhouse league, the No. 2 Longhorns posted the best regular-season record and earned a spot in the SEC championship game Saturday.

“Not a lot of teams can go into a league their first year — especially the SEC — and get a chance to play for the championship,” Texas running back Jaydon Blue crowed.

In an intriguing matchup between the brash newcomer and a stellar member of the old guard, Texas (11-1, 7-1 SEC, No. 2 College Football Playoff ) will face No. 5 Georgia (10-2, 6-2, No. 5 CFP) at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

The Bulldogs are playing in the title game for the seventh time in nine seasons under coach Kirby Smart, who has won a pair of national championships and established Georgia as the dynasty everyone else is chasing.

Adding more fuel to the fire, the Dawgs handed Texas its only loss during the regular season with a 30-15 drubbing in Austin back in mid-October.

“Georgia and Kirby have been the standard in college football,” Longhorns coach Steve Sarkisian said. "Georgia has got the heart of a champion and you see it time and time again.”

No matter the outcome in the A-T-L, both teams are headed to the College Football Playoff.

But there's still plenty on the line, with the winner claiming both a coveted SEC championship and a trip straight to the Sugar Bowl for the national quarterfinals on New Year's Day.

The loser will be saddled with an extra playoff game, likely hosting a first-round contest on either Dec. 20 or 21.

“It's an opportunity to rest and recover while others are playing formidable opponents,” Smart said. "It removes you from that.”

Longhorns vs. Dawgs, Part II

Texas is eager to atone for its only loss of the season, that ugly performance against Georgia when the Longhorns were ranked No. 1.

“We’re going to have to play a better version of football than the first time around,” Sarkisian said. “We were out of character, out of sorts.”

It was the most lopsided loss for a No. 1 team at home in 42 years.

“They deserve to get our best shot,” Sarkisian said. "I know we’re going to get their best shot.”

Quarterback duel

Both starting quarterbacks will be looking for better performances than they showed in the first matchup.

Georgia won despite Carson Beck tossing three interceptions, while Quinn Ewers of Texas had two fumbles to go along with a pick.

Also keep an eye on Texas backup Arch Manning, who came on in last week's victory over Texas A&M to run for a touchdown on fourth down. With Ewers still nursing a sprained ankle, Manning could provide an intriguing change of pace with both his arm and his legs.

“He’s a really good athlete that can take off and run at any time, which is the toughest guy to defend," Smart said. “I’d much rather have a guy that only runs than a guy that does both.”

Injury report

Trevor Etienne rushed for three touchdowns in the first meeting with Texas, but he's missed three straight games with a rib injury and was listed as questionable for Saturday.

Georgia has also been without defensive lineman Christen Miller, who is dealing with a shoulder injury. Without Miller, the Bulldogs surrendered a season-high 260 rushing yards in an eight-overtime victory over Georgia Tech.

Texas could be missing Outland Trophy finalist Kelvin Banks Jr., who went down last week with a leg injury after just seven plays.

Freshman Trevor Goosby will start at the crucial left tackle position if Banks can’t go — and be on the firing line against a Georgia defense that bullied the Longhorns for seven sacks in October, two of which resulted in fumbles.

Run, Texas, run

Texas had just 29 yards rushing the last time out against Georgia, but the Longhorns run game has been dominant of late.

Quintrevion Wisner has emerged as the go-to back with 344 yards in the last two games, averaging 5.8 yards per carry.

“When you have 30-40 carries in multiple games, there is a great commitment to the run," Smart said. "They’re extremely physical, they’ve got really good backs, their offensive line is massive and the quarterback does a great job putting them in the right runs.”

Georgia in the A-T-L

While Mercedes-Benz Stadium is only about a 75-mile drive from the Georgia campus, making this a de facto home game for the Bulldogs, that hasn't proven to be a big advantage when playing for the SEC title.

The Bulldogs are only 2-4 in conference championship games played at the Benz, not to mention an overtime loss to Alabama in the national title game at the end of the 2017 season.

Going back to the years when the Georgia Dome hosted the SEC championship, the Bulldogs are just 4-7 in Atlanta with the league championship on the line.

“We're essentially playing a road game,” Sarkisian said. “But I do expect a good amount of burnt orange to be there.”

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AP Sports Writer Jim Vertuno in Austin, Texas, contributed to this report.

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