Georgia football has its final true road test of the 2025 season this Saturday when they travel to Starkville to take on the Mississippi State Bulldogs.
Mississippi State is riding high off its first conference win since 2023, and they would like nothing more than to keep the party going with an upset over the SEC foe they share a mascot with.
A critical ingredient of any upset bid is winning the turnover battle. And Mississippi State has plenty of reason to believe they can do that.
One reason Mississippi State can beat Georgia
Jeff Lebby’s Bulldogs lead the SEC in interceptions this season with 11. Though they didn’t have any turnovers in their win over Arkansas, they snagged two in a close loss to Florida and also picked off Arch Manning in their overtime loss to Texas.
Safety Brylan Lanier leads the team in interceptions with three. Cornerback Kelley Jones is second on the team with two and has only allowed seven receptions on 29 targets this season.
“They get after it,” Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said via 247sports.com of Mississippi State’s secondary. “They’re very disruptive. They confuse you with different packages. They have some different looks they use.”
Though they share a mascot and a conference, the similarities between Georgia and Mississippi State’s programs essentially end there.
Georgia has been able to recruit premier prospects and have defenses littered with four and five-star talent. That hasn’t been the reality for Mississippi State, who has had to find other ways to be competitive in the nation’s toughest conference.
This year, Mississippi State has prioritized hunting for turnovers and negative plays, quick momentum shifters that can swing games immediately and mitigate the vast difference in raw athletic ability that they often encounter against SEC opponents.
“I haven’t seen this kind of length in a long time at corner and safety,” Smart said “Allows you to tip balls, knock balls down, intercept balls. They are very lengthy and can get balls down and create havoc through what they do. They’ve done a really job this year creating those turnovers. They’re plus in the margin. Anytime you’re plus in the margin in our league, that’s winning because it’s a really competitive league in terms of turnovers.”
Gunner Stockton, Georgia offense must play mistake free football
Mississippi State is likely going to try and force some mistakes out of Georgia quarterback Gunner Stockton. But their aggressiveness on defense could get them into trouble and give up some explosive plays if they’re not careful. Arkansas and Texas were able to make them pay through the air, and Georgia could be next in line.
Mississippi State has had to be more opportunistic on defense this season to compensate for an undersized front that allows 162.1 rushing yards per game, the second-most in the SEC. If Georgia can continue to run the ball well with Stockton making plays on top of it, the offense should have no issues putting points up.
But if Georgia has another slow start and even produces a giveaway or two, they could be playing right into Mississippi State’s hand. There’s never a good time to turn it over, but especially not in a road environment against a team coming off its biggest win in years.
“It’s one of the loudest places I’ve coached, and I’ve coached there a lot,” Smart said. “They’ve got a lot of pride in how they play and how their team plays and the support of their team.”