No. 5 Georgia’s defense to provide test for Mississippi State freshman QB Van Buren in 2nd start
Mississippi State (1-4, 0-2 SEC) at No. 5 Georgia (4-1, 2-1), Saturday 4:15 p.m. ET (SEC Network)
BetMGM College Football Odds: Georgia by 33 1/2.
Series record: Georgia leads 20-6.
WHAT’S AT STAKE?
Georgia will complete back-to-back home games before playing its next three away from Athens, including games at No. 1 Texas on Oct. 19 and No. 9 Mississippi on Nov. 9. Georgia recovered from a 41-34 loss at Alabama by taking a 31-13 win over Auburn last week. Coach Kirby Smart called on his team to “cut it loose” with a more impressive offensive showing this week. Mississippi State will be playing to end a four-game losing streak after beating Eastern Kentucky 56-7 to open the season.
KEY MATCHUP
Mississippi State freshman QB Michael Van Buren made his first start in a 35-13 loss to No. 1 Texas on Sept. 28 and faces another tough challenge against a tough Georgia defense led by defensive back Malaki Starks. Van Buren completed 12 of 23 passes for 144 yards and rushed for a touchdown against the Longhorns. Starks has an interception and two tackles for losses this season.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Mississippi State: S Isaac Smith missed the game at Texas after sustaining a hard blindside block against Florida but leads a rebuilding young defense that ranks last in the SEC. The sophomore’s 51 tackles (32 solo) lead the conference and rank fourth in FBS, while his SEC-best 12.75 stops per contest rank fourth in the nation. Smith posted 17 and 15 stops in consecutive games against Arizona State and Toledo and led the team in tackles in four consecutive games to open the season.
Georgia: WRs Dominic Lovett, who has a team-leading 22 catches, Arian Smith, whose 278 receiving yards lead the team, and Dillon Bell, with three TD catches, will be QB Carson Beck’s top targets. WR Colbie Young was suspended indefinitely by Smart following his arrest this week. Smith and Bell each have 18 receptions. Beck has passed for 12 touchdowns with only three interceptions.
FACTS & FIGURES
Mississippi State will visit Georgia for the first time since 2020. Georgia leads the series 20-6 including a 12-1 record at Sanford Stadium. Mississippi State’s last win in the series was a 24-10 decision in Athens in 2010. ... The visiting Bulldogs are tied for 109th in the nation with their average of 31.60 points allowed. ... Following the loss to Texas, State will be playing its second consecutive game against a top-five opponent. ... It is the first time since 1971, when Mississippi State lost to No. 4 Alabama and No. 5 Auburn in consecutive games, that the visiting Bulldogs have played back-to-back top-five opponents. ... Georgia sophomore center Drew Bobo, the son of offensive coordinator Mike Bobo, made his first career start against Auburn as Jared Wilson was held out with a foot injury.
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football.
The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season!
