ATHENS — The first words have been slung. None of those likely will end up on a bulletin board, but at least parameters have been established for Saturday’s monumental matchup between No. 1 Texas and No. 5 Georgia in Austin.
The gist is this: Neither team believes the moment will be too big, and each is incredibly impressed with the other.
“The most complete team that we’ve seen or faced this year and probably in multiple years when you look at what they’re doing defensively, offensively and special teams,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said. “They are clearly one of the best teams in the country with what they do. Got a great quarterback, great defense, great scheme. Should be a great matchup. This is really what you come to Georgia for, to play in these moments.”
Said Texas coach Steve Sarkisian: “I have a ton of respect for coach Smart and the job that he’s done at Georgia. They’ve kind of somewhat been the standard of college football here now for the last six, seven years. … They’ve recruited really well, they’ve got great schemes, they’re really well-coached. I know the moment won’t be too big for them coming into DKR, but with that being said, we need DKR to be rocking.”
“DKR” is Darrell K. Royal Stadium, also known as Texas Memorial Stadium. But the Longhorns make full use of hyphens when it comes to their historic venue. Now in its 101st year of operation, the stadium’s official name is Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium at Campbell-Williams Field. Those last two names were added in 2021 to pay homage to former Longhorns running backs Earl Campbell and Ricky Williams.
Considering the rich football history of the University of Texas, there is much respect to be paid to its past. Of course, Georgia has a fairly rich football history itself, very little of which of it shares with the Longhorns.
The teams have played only five times never in the same place. To date, they’ve met in Austin, Atlanta, Dallas, Miami and New Orleans. Texas has won four of them.
Georgia’s only win in the series came at the end of the 1983 season in the 1984 Cotton Bowl in Dallas. The No. 7-ranked Bulldogs defeated the No. 2 Longhorns 10-9. That gave birth to one of the Bulldog Nation’s favorite jokes. “What time is it in Texas? Still 10 to 9.”
The Bulldogs will be visiting Austin for only the second time ever and the first time in 66 years. Georgia opened the 1958 season at Texas Memorial Stadium and lost 13-8. The Longhorns’ other three wins came in Miami at the Orange Bowl (41-28) on Jan. 1, 1949, in Atlanta on Georgia Tech’s Grant Field (26-7) in the 1957 season opener and in New Orleans on Jan. 1, 2019 in the Sugar Bowl (28-21).
As for this one, No. 1 vs. No. 5 represents the highest-ranked matchup in the series. The Longhorns (6-0, 2-0 SEC) moved up to the top spot in both opinion polls after Alabama lost to Vanderbilt on Oct. 5. Texas is coming off a 34-3 win over then-No. 18 Oklahoma in the Red River Rivalry in Dallas. Georgia (5-1, 2-1) prevailed 41-31 on Saturday over Mississippi State, a team the Longhorns defeated 35-13 in Austin on Sept. 28.
This will be the ninth time in history the Bulldogs have played the nation’s No. 1 team. They’re 3-5 in those previous games and have won the past two: 27-13 over Tennessee in 2022 and 33-18 over Alabama to win the 2021 national championship Jan. 10, 2022.
The Longhorns opened Monday as a 3.5-point favorite. That represents the first time the Bulldogs have not been favored in a game since opening the 2021 season against No. 3 Clemson in Charlotte. Georgia won that one 10-3.
The Bulldogs aren’t using their underdog status as motivation.
“I don’t personally believe that we’re ever been an underdog,” Georgia safety Dan Jackson said Monday. “That’s kind of how I’ve been seeing it throughout my career.”
Both teams are battle-tested. Texas played then-No. 10 Michigan in Ann Arbor on Sept. 7 and defeated the Wolverines 31-12 before 111,170 at Michigan Stadium. There were 92,100 on hand in the Cotton Bowl for the win over Oklahoma.
No. 1 Georgia opened the season with a 34-3 victory over then-No. 14 Clemson in the Aflac Kickoff game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The Tigers haven’t lost since and rose to No. 10 in the latest AP ranking.
Georgia fell to No. 2 after struggling to defeat Kentucky 13-12 in Lexington on Sept. 14. Two weeks later, the Bulldogs had No. 4 Alabama on the ropes in Tuscaloosa. But after pulling ahead 34-33 with 2:31 to play, the Crimson Tide threw a 75-yard touchdown pass 13 seconds later to score a 41-34 victory.
So, here we are, finally to Georgia-Texas, slap-dab in the middle of the season. It’s a game that many at SEC Media Days in Dallas this summer predicted would be No. 1 vs. No. 2 between undefeated teams. The Longhorns, at least, have held up their end of the bargain.
Highlighted by an explosive offense led by quarterback Quinn Ewers (and Arch Manning), the Longhorns are averaging 495.7 yards and 43.2 points per game. They move the ball primarily through the air, averaging 322.2 passing a game. Eight different receivers have caught a total of 18 touchdown passes, led by former Alabama receiver Isaiah Bond (21-369-3). Tight end Gunnar Helm (21-311-2) has been doing a good impression of Brock Bowers lately. Quintrevion Wisner (45-278-2) and Jaydon Blue (61-269-4) pace a backfield that’s averaging more than 5 yards per carry.
It’s Ewers, though, that makes the Longhorns go.
“He’s played a lot of football, he’s a really good athlete and he’s been in Sark’s system,” Smart said of the 6-foot-2 quarterback. “I think the comparisons between him and Carson (Beck) are similar in terms of the kind of quarterbacks they are. They’re both better athletes than people think, they both have awareness of coverage and they’re really good in the pocket.”
Defensively, the Longhorns are allowing just 6.3 points per game. Led by sophomore linebacker Anthony Hill (42 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks), they average three sacks and just 103 rushing yards per game.
Against that defense, Georgia will look to get off to a quick start. The Bulldogs have scored only 31 first-quarter points all season, or 5.2 per game.
“Just start faster and eliminate the turnovers,” said running back Trevor Etienne, Georgia’s leading rusher at 67 yards per game. “You know, playing on the road in this league is hard. It’s hard to get a win. So we just need to go out there and try to win moment-by-moment and try to control the game early. That’s something we’re focusing on.”
Playing in Texas will be a new experience for everybody wearing the red and black. Georgia has been trying to get out there for years. Before the Longhorns joined the SEC, the Bulldogs were scheduled to visit Austin in 2028 with a return game in Athens in 2029. Now Georgia will play in “DKR” even before it visits Texas A&M, which joined the league in 2012.
A mass pilgrimage of fans is expected to follow the Bulldogs to the Lone Star State. Enormous stakes aside, the UGA contingent is excited about visiting a new place.
“I’m going to a place that I’ve never been,” Smart said of playing in DKR. “I assume none of our players have ever been there either for a game. So, it should be exciting. Great TV.”
Disney certainly thinks so. ESPN’s “College GameDay” will be on site all weekend, and ABC will carry the game in prime time Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
