Georgia outside linebacker Davin Bellamy knows he's in the middle of a three-week stretch he will never forget.
The fifth-year senior from the Atlanta suburb of Chamblee played in Sanford Stadium for the final time Saturday in a 42-13 win over Kentucky. This week's challenge is a trip to Georgia Tech for the Governor's Cup and Peach State bragging rights, while next week will represent Georgia's first venture to the Southeastern Conference championship game since 2012.
"It is wild," Bellamy said Saturday night with a grin. "I'm thankful we were able to add one more game by winning the SEC East and getting to Atlanta, but we can't overlook Georgia Tech. They've had our number these last few years, and we know it's going to be a rough game."
Paul Johnson's Yellow Jackets have defeated Georgia in their last two trips to Athens, prevailing 28-27 last November in a game the Bulldogs led 27-14 entering the fourth quarter. Last year's matchup pitted a pair of 7-4 teams, but the Bulldogs are 10-1 and ranked No. 7 this time around, while Georgia Tech is 5-5 and coming off a surprise 43-20 setback at Duke.
The Yellow Jackets, who are playing an 11-game regular season due to Hurricane Irma canceling their Sept. 16 game at Central Florida, still pose a unique challenge with their triple-option offense. Georgia Tech ranks sixth nationally with 319.3 rushing yards per game and had 47 carries for 277 yards (5.9 per carry) at Duke.
"It's impossible to emulate until you take your first snap against them," Bulldogs coach Kirby Smart said. "Your players don't run their offense as fast as they do. There are some things you can try and do to speed it up and give them a picture. We've tried a lot of different things to help with that throughout the year, even in the offseason, and it's just a very unique offense.
"Our players have another challenge in front of them to where they have to buy in to play against that offense and understand that it's the next thing in front of us. It's the next objective, and this senior class again will get defined by how they play in these kinds of games. They have to embrace it, love it and go get after it."
Georgia has owned Georgia Tech in Atlanta, winning eight consecutive times in Bobby Dodd Stadium since the infamous Jasper Sanks fumble in 1999, and the Bulldogs will have to make it nine in a row to remain in the chase for college football's four-team playoff. Throw in state pride and atoning for last season's loss, and Georgia should not be lacking for motivation this week in practice.
Bulldogs players will not have classes this week due to the Thanksgiving break, so it will be mostly football with some feasting.
"We just need to focus on one opportunity and one opponent at a time," senior receiver Javon Wims said. "We're self-motivated, and we're going to come out wanting to improve just because that's what we do."
Said Bellamy: "The younger guys know how important this week is. If they don't, they'll definitely find out."
Georgia opened Sunday as a 12.5-point favorite over Georgia Tech.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.