Georgia football also needs to be ready to slow down the Vols leading rusher Tiyon Evans.
Through nine games, he has 81 carries for 525 yards and six touchdowns. Evans averages 6.5 yards a touch and 75 yards a game.
Between him and Hooker, they share most of the carries — Jabari Small being the third — but Evans is the one Georgia must demoralize.
He hasn’t done much in the last two weeks, but he has three 100-yard games on the season and can make plays if his offensive line allows him to do so.
Evans will be someone Tennessee tries to get going against the defense, and Georgia must make sure they get him down quickly. He can break tackles, so wrap him up and force him to question his ability to run the ball.
Most people think it’s the passing game that Georgia will have to eliminate the passing game, but they must do the same with the rush attack. Tennessee averages 217.1 yards a game on the ground, but they haven’t played a rush defense quite like Georgia’s. Regardless if a team has a rush average that impressive, they are doing something right.
Georgia gave up too many rush yards to Missouri last week, and this week they will make it a point to suffocate Evans and the rush attack because that is the kind of defense they are. Last year the Dawgs allowed negative one rushing yards. In 2019, the Vols rushed for 70 yards. In 2018 it was 66 yards, and in 2017 Georgia allowed Tennessee to run 62 yards.
The Dawgs don’t like to give up many rushing yards to Tennesse, which will be no different this year. Evans has confidence, though, so Georgia must stop him so that they can create the same results as the last four years.