College Football

Who would Georgia rather play in the CFP: USC or Ohio State?

Published Dec. 2, 2022 3:29 p.m. ET

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It’s time for Georgia fans to break out their USC sweatshirts Friday night.

That’s what FOX Sports lead college football analyst Joel Klatt suggested when debating who the Bulldogs would rather play in the upcoming College Football Playoff: USC or Ohio State.

Who should Georgia want to face in the CFP: USC or Ohio State?

Joel Klatt breaks down whom the Georgia Bulldogs should want to face in the College Football Playoff: USC Trojans or the Ohio State Buckeyes?

As it stands right now heading into Friday night's Pac-12 Championship Game, the No. 1-ranked Georgia Bulldogs would take on the No. 4-ranked USC Trojans in a College Football Playoff semifinal matchup, while Michigan and TCU would play in the other semifinal.

However, if USC loses to Utah in the Pac-12 title, that’s where things could get fascinating, as No. 5 Ohio State could find itself in a position to take that fourth and final CFP spot.

Klatt is adamant that Alabama, who currently sits at 10-2 and will not play in the SEC Championship Game, should not make the CFP if a team currently ranked in the top-four loses. Therefore, if USC were to lose in Friday’s Pac-12 title game, Klatt believes Ohio State is the only team that would have a legitimate case to make the CFP.

So, Klatt asks, which team would the Bulldogs rather face: The Trojans or the Buckeyes?

Both teams feature prolific offenses that rank among the best in the FBS. The Buckeyes are putting up 44.5 points per game, which ranks second in the country, while the Trojans average 42.5 points per contest, good for third.

But when it comes to roster construction from top to bottom, Klatt points out that Ohio State’s roster is far closer to Georgia from a pure talent level.

"While their QB is playing out of his mind, the roster for USC in its totality is not anywhere close to the roster that Ohio State has," Klatt said on a recent episode of his podcast, "The Joel Klatt Show." "Ohio State is probably the only team in the country up to this point that any of us have said ‘yeah, they match up decently with Georgia.’"

Which team would get the fourth playoff spot if USC loses?

Joel Klatt breaks down which team would make the College Football Playoff if the USC Trojans lose in the Pac-12 Championship.

Heading into Saturday’s SEC Championship Game against LSU, Kirby Smart’s team has won 30 of its last 31 games. Georgia’s only loss during that stretch has come at the hands of Alabama in last year’s SEC title game. The Bulldogs surrendered 536 total yards of offense in that matchup, 421 of which came through the air. Alabama QB Bryce Young completed 26 passes to eight different players, including three touchdown passes of 13, 55 and 67 yards.

According to Klatt, the Buckeyes have the playmakers on the outside to attack the Georgia in a similar fashion, if that game were to transpire.

"Ohio State can get out there and do what Alabama did to Georgia last year, which is threaten them vertically," Klatt said. "When you start looking at the roster and looking at the makeup of this team, Georgia doesn’t want to see USC lose. That’s going to be a much tougher game for them in the semifinal if they face the Buckeyes."

It is not unprecedented for a team to slip up late in the season and then go on to win a national championship, which is precisely what happened with Georgia last year.

"Who’s to say Ohio State can’t fix some of the things that went wrong for them in the last 7:20 against Michigan and go out there and play really well in the playoff," Klatt said. "In the good weather, in the dome. That’s a tougher matchup for Georgia.

"If I’m a Georgia fan … I’d rather see USC than Ohio State in a national semifinal."

Read more:

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• USC-Utah, Michigan-Purdue: Championship Week By The Numbers
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Each week, FOX Sports college football analyst Joel Klatt dives into his Top 10 teams, answers questions and discusses the biggest storylines in college football on his podcast. Download "The Joel Klatt Show" here.

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