Southeastern Conference teams trending in opposite directions will meet for the first time in the regular season when No. 2 Georgia hosts Oklahoma on Saturday in Athens, Ga.
During the preseason, Oklahoma seemed likely to be the first opportunity for Georgia (3-0, 1-0 SEC) to face a ranked team. However, an unimpressive last two weeks for the Sooners (2-1) have knocked the preseason’s No. 10 team out of the Associated Press Top 25.
Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart’s team has yet to be challenged. After two blowout victories in nonconference play, Georgia cruised past Arkansas 45-17 in its SEC opener last week. While Oklahoma did not fare well against Michigan or New Mexico, Smart has prepared his group to expect more resistance than they’ve faced — especially from the Sooners’ defense.
“They’re very fundamentally sound, aggressive, attacking,” Smart said of Oklahoma’s defense, which has allowed just 7.7 points per game this year. “They’re tops in the country every year in tackles for loss and sacks. I don’t think people give their coaches enough credit for how they play. They get off blocks and they strike you.”
The only time the Bulldogs and Sooners have met prior to Saturday serves as a highlight of Smart’s 10-year-plus tenure in Georgia. When Georgia beat Oklahoma in the 2018 Rose Bowl, it was a College Football Playoff semifinal that sent Georgia to its first national championship game since 1982.
“Man, that was a long time ago,” Smart said of the Bulldogs’ 54-48 double-overtime win. “But it was an iconic game because of what it meant and what it led to and where it was played.”
Nearly a decade later, Georgia is led by senior quarterback Gunner Stockton, who has completed 38 of 45 passes for nine touchdowns through three games. Stockton’s 84.4% completion percentage ranks second nationally.
That’s just one of the areas of concern for Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables.
“They’ve got great players everywhere and they’ve gotten them to play at a really high level,” Venables said. “Gunner Stockton, I love how he plays. The guy’s been a winner his whole life. He plays the game the right way. … Our players are excited about the opportunity. We’ve known about this challenge since the schedule came out.”
The Sooners have scored just 24 points over the last two games and turned the ball over three times in last week’s 14-6 win over New Mexico.
Quarterback John Mateer has been a source of the offensive woes. The fifth-year senior who was picked off twice by the Lobos knows his play must improve — and fast — ahead of his biggest test to this point.
“I’m not going to tap out,” Mateer said. “I’m not going to give up on my guys. They’re not going to give up on me. My teammates have done a great job. I appreciate them more than they know. I’m getting tired of them saying that they have my back because they’re only saying it because I keep making mistakes.”
Standout Oklahoma defensive tackle David Stone’s availability is in question. The preseason second-team All-SEC pick went down with a knee injury Monday at practice.
“His knee kind of popped out,” Venables said. “We’ll see where he’s at. The X-rays were positive. He said his pain was about a 2 out of 10 right now.”
Stone posted a career-high eight tackles as well as two tackles for loss against New Mexico.
