Numbers can lie, but after six games, it's worth a look at how No. 2-ranked Georgia and No. 13-ranked LSU matchup in their Saturday game (3:30 p.m., CBS; News 95.5 and AM-750 WSB) at Tiger Stadium.
The Bulldogs (6-0, 4-0 SEC) opened as an 8 1/2-point favorite over the Tigers (5-1, 2-1), who are coming off their first loss of the year, a 27-19 at the hands of No. 14 Florida.
Georgia doesn’t have any wins against currently ranked teams, and a case was being made last week that LSU deserved a higher ranking based on the Tigers’ wins over ranked opponents Miami and Auburn.
While the Bulldogs have yet to face a challenge, they’ve dominated in the fashion one might expect of a championship contender.
Georgia has trailed only once this season — for 15 seconds in the first quarter against Vanderbilt — and the Bulldogs have won each game by two touchdowns or more.
Here are how the teams compare in the national statical rankings, with the country’s top team in each category also listed:
TOTAL OFFENSE
1. Texas Tech, 591.4 yards per game
33. Georgia, 470.2
78. LSU, 396.6
SCORING OFFENSE
1. Alabama, 54.2 points per game
19. Georgia, 43.2
48. LSU, 33.8
RUSHING OFFENSE
1. Georgia Tech, 373.0
16. Georgia, 250.4
53. LSU, 192.0
PASSING OFFENSE
1. Washington State, 410.4 yards per game
78. Georgia, 219.8
92. LSU, 204.6
THIRD DOWN CONVERSION - OFFENSE (percentage)
1. Central Florida, .620
25. Georgia, .464
55. LSU, .413
TOTAL DEFENSE
1. Michigan, 232.6 yards per game
6. Georgia, 275.6
32. LSU, 333.8
SCORING DEFENSE
1. Washington, 11.6 points per game
6. Georgia, 13.0
12. LSU, 15.0
RUSHING DEFENSE
1. Michigan State, 40.3 yards per game
16. LSU, 103.0
23. Georgia, 108.2
PASSING DEFENSE
1. Miami (Fla.), 138.8 yards per game
17. Georgia, 167.4
78. LSU, 230.8
THIRD DOWN CONVERSION - DEFENSE (percentage)
1. Miami (Fla.) .171
22. Georgia, .309
49. LSU, .350
NET PUNTING
1. Texas A&M, 45.00 yards net per punt
24. LSU, 40.78
63. Georgia, 37.73
KICKOFF RETURN
1. Alabama, 42.40 yards per return
30. Georgia, 24.20
55. LSU, 21.67
PUNT RETURN
1. Minnesota, 38.50 yards per return
18. Georgia, 18.11
36. LSU, 12.75
KICK RETURN DEFENSE
1. Wyoming, 12.67 yards per return
118. LSU, 26.50
126. Georgia, 31.50
PUNT RETURN DEFENSE
1. Arkansas State, (-) 3.25 per return
55. Georgia, 7.00
61. LSU, 7.80
QUARTERBACK SACKS
1. Oklahoma State, 4.80 per game
43. LSU, 2.60 per game
116. Georgia, 1.00 per game
QB SACKS ALLOWED
1. Buffalo, 0.00 per game
33. Georgia, 1.40 per game
45. LSU, 1.60 per game
TACKLES-FOR-LOSS
1. Miami, Fla., 12.00 per game
54. LSU, 6.4 per game
117. Georgia, 3.8 per game
TACKLES-FOR-LOSS ALLOWED
1. Central Florida, 2.5 per game
11. Georgia, 4.0 per game
40. LSU, 5.20 per game
TURNOVER MARGIN
1. Kansas, Plus 2.40 per game
8. LSU, 1.40
13. Georgia, 1.20
TIME OF POSSESSION
1. Army, 40.13 per game
18. LSU, 33:04
28. Georgia, 32:15
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