ATHENS, Ga. — These are strange times for the fifth-ranked Georgia Bulldogs.
For the first time since 2020, they are looking to bounce back from a loss in the midst of the season.
The Bulldogs (3-1, 1-1 Southeastern Conference) host the struggling Auburn Tigers (2-3, 0-2) in another edition of the Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry on Saturday — a game that always carries a little extra juice, but even more so after what happened to Georgia last weekend.
Alabama held off the Bulldogs in a 41-34 thriller, snapping their streak of 42 consecutive victories during the regular season.
Georgia coach Kirby Smart insisted it’s business as usual between the hedges.
“We have a very set routine here, and we don’t make our routine based on outcomes,” he said. “I really believe in that process.”
Auburn is desperate for a victory, and second-year coach Hugh Freeze and the Tigers would like nothing more than to deliver a devastating blow to Georgia’s national championship hopes. That’s particularly true with the Bulldogs having won seven straight in the series, their longest streak since a run of nine in a row from 1923-31.
“This rivalry means a lot to a lot of people,” Auburn tight end Luke Deal said. “For us to have not beaten them since I’ve been here, it’s definitely something I want to get accomplished.”
Auburn’s 2-3 start is especially disappointing because all five games were at Jordan-Hare Stadium.
Now the Tigers hit the road against a Georgia team that has won 26 straight home games, the longest such streak in the Football Bowl Subdivision. Still to come for Auburn are road games against No. 9 Missouri and No. 1 Alabama.
Thorne looks back on last year’s game against the Bulldogs, who pulled out a 27-20 victory when Carson Beck hit Brock Bowers with a 40-yard touchdown pass in the closing minutes.
“Obviously they’re a great team, a championship team who’s done it before,” Thorne said. “But you take from last year that we can play with the top teams in the country. We’ve done it multiple times.”
The Tigers at least don’t have to worry about Bowers, the talented tight end who’s now in the NFL with the Las Vegas Raiders. Beck, though, is still around.
The returning starter began this season being hyped as a leading contender for the Heisman Trophy and likely one of the top picks in the 2025 NFL draft. Those projections have taken a big hit in the past two games.
The fifth-year player threw for just 160 yards in an ugly 13-12 win at Kentucky, when the Bulldogs scored the game’s only touchdown early in the fourth quarter to avoid an upset when they were still No. 1.
Last week, Beck threw for a career-high 439 yards and three touchdowns against Alabama, but the performance was marred by a dismal first half and a late interception in the end zone that cost Georgia a chance to force overtime.
In all, Beck turned the ball over four times (three picks and a fumble) in addition to costing the Bulldogs a safety when he was called for intentional grounding from the end zone.
Georgia’s defense is also licking its wounds after the Alabama loss.
The Bulldogs didn’t allow a touchdown in their first three games. That all changed against dual-threat quarterback Jalen Milroe and the Crimson Tide, who left the red and black feeling black and blue with a 547-yard onslaught.
Milroe passed for 374 yards and two touchdowns, and he rushed for 117 yards and two scores. Freshman receiver Ryan Williams had six catch for 177 yards, including the winning 75-yard touchdown for Alabama, which returned to No. 1 in the AP Top 25 this week.
All night long, Georgia was gashed for big plays and plagued by missed tackles.
“Obviously, we never plan on giving up points, but we just go over what we did wrong,” Bulldogs linebacker CJ Allen said. “The conversations don’t change because the standard is still the standard: to give up no points.”
Georgia has struggled in the first half of all three games against FBS opponents. Other than a 24-0 halftime lead over Football Championship Subdivision member Tennessee Tech, the Bulldogs have been outscored 36-16 over the first two quarters.
“I don’t have a great answer for that,” Smart said. “I can’t sit here and say they need to play desperate. I think that’s not a good choice of words, to play desperate. I think they need to play aggressive and play loose.”
Alabama was up 30-7 on the Bulldogs at the break. Georgia rallied to take a 34-33 lead before the Tide won it on the Milroe-to-Williams touchdown with just more than two minutes remaining.
“Certainly, I’m proud of the resiliency they showed,” Smart said. “But just as proud as I am of that, I’m disappointed at the start of it.”
Despite some rough patches for Beck, the Bulldogs are a model of stability behind center compared to the Tigers.
Payton Thorne will start again at quarterback for the Tigers, who don’t really have any other viable options.
Second-year freshman Hank Brown got a couple of starts in place of the struggling Thorne, only to hand the job right back with three first-half interceptions in a loss to Arkansas.
Last week, Thorne threw for 338 yards and three touchdowns against Oklahoma. But he had a back-breaking interception that was returned for a touchdown as the Sooners rallied from an 11-point deficit in the fourth quarter for a 27-21 victory.
“It’s hard to say he’s not the starter in these kinds of games,” Freeze said. “I think he gives us the best chance to win as long as he keeps taking care of the football.”