Georgia Football: How UGA can overcome Auburn on Defense

Roquan and Natrez need to be at their best:

This could be one of the areas where we see the biggest difference from the last game. While Natrez Patrick was back after his suspension, he ended up playing less than 30% of snaps in the game. He looked rusty which is hardly surprising after missing 4 weeks of football.

Patrick looked close to his best against Georgia Tech. That’s a difficult team to play against and he was running sideline to sideline just like Smith. If both of them are able to cover ground the way they were against Notre Dame, that could make a huge difference.

We all know how good Smith is. He missed a tackle in the last game, which is pretty much the only one I have seen him miss all year. If he continues to play to the level that we know he can, this team has a great chance. His ability to cover the pass will also be crucial to stopping Stidham and his checkdowns.

While Reggie Carter and Juwan Taylor try their best, this team needs Smith and Patrick to be out there pretty much every play in this game. The dropoff between them and the backups is just too great in a game this big. That’s another reason why UGA will lean heavily on these two players this week. If they can hold up, stay on the field and stop drives, this defence can stop Johnson. If they stop Johnson, they have a chance.