Georgia Football hoping that Vols buy into run-game hype

The Georgia Football team struggled to stop the run last week against Missouri, but Tennessee shouldn’t be fooled by that one day. That’s exactly what the Dawgs want them to do on Saturday.

There’s no hiding what happened last week. The Georgia Football team struggled to stop Missouri running the football. That’s disappointing because traditionally, that’s not who Georgia is. They take the running game away from opponents and force them to beat them through the air. That’s been the blueprint that Kirby Smart has laid since arriving in 2016.

But this past week, they did something different. Missouri relies on Drew Lock to win them games, not their running backs. So UGA focused on Lock, getting pressure on him and taking away his passing options. Despite the somewhat sloppy play at times, that strategy worked. Lock had perhaps his worst game in the last two years and didn’t throw for a TD for the first time in 14 games.

Tennessee comes into this weeks game looking to run the football. That’s a key component of the Jeremy Pruitt football brand. He learned under Nick Saban just like Kirby Smart after all. They’ve been relatively decent at that so far, rushing for over 800 yards in their first four games. Their gameplan this week will center around trying to beat Georgia at the line of scrimmage and run the ball at will.

The problem with that, however, is that UGA knows it’s coming. Tennessee does not have a QB that can beat the Dawgs with his arm. Jarrett Guarantano is not going to scare Georgia’s cornerbacks with throws into tight windows. The Vols have only thrown for three TD’s so far this season and that’s despite the fact that they have been playing from behind in two games.

Georgia want’s the Vols to run at them. Tennessee’s offensive line is the biggest weakness on their team right now. UGA doesn’t have the huge, All-American DT’s that Kirby Smart wants right now. But they are much better in the trenches on defense than casual observers realize. Tyler Clark continues to impress, Jonathan Ledbetter is consistently good and Julian Rochester flashes potential even if it’s not on every play.

The Dawgs know that Guarantano is not going to beat them on Saturday. They know that the only chance that Tennessee has is to somehow establish the run despite having a weak offensive line. Vol fans who think that last week was a sign of how they are going to win this game will likely be disappointed come Saturday. Georgia is looking for another chance to show that their run defense is one of the best in the nation and I’m pretty confident that is something they prove this week.