Georgia-Ohio State: Three Keys to Victory for the Bulldogs
ATLANTA — It’s almost time. It feels like we’ve been waiting forever for the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl between No. 1 Georgia and fourth-seeded Ohio State, but the time is almost here. DawgsHQ has provided you with tons of coverage throughout the week with boots on the ground in Atlanta as both the Bulldogs and Buckeyes have shared their thoughts on the game. Having heard all that, here are three things that we think will be crucial towards a Georgia victory and a chance at a second straight National Championship in Los Angeles.
Make CJ Stroud Uncomfortable
CJ Stroud is one of the best quarterbacks in the country for a reason: he’s talented and can get the ball to his receivers seemingly with ease. However, like most quarterbacks, he doesn’t necessarily enjoy throwing with players in his face. Think back to what the Bulldogs did against Hendon Hooker in the Tennessee game. That’s the kind of pressure that we’re talking about. I’m not saying seven sacks, but Georgia has got to get pressure on Stroud from Jalen Carter and the rest of the front seven or generate it in other ways like it did with Javon Bullard versus the Vols to make Stroud uncomfortable and mess with the Buckeyes’ ability to throw the ball.
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Stetson Bennett at His Best
From one Heisman Trophy finalist in this game to the other. Stetson Bennett is comfortable in Mercedes-Benz Stadium, and he’s comfortable in big games. He’s played in plenty during his time as Georgia’s starting quarterback. Last year on this stage, Bennett played one of the best games of his career against Michigan, helping Georgia advance to the National Championship Game. Lots of attention coming into the game has been on Ohio State’s passing game, but with the weapons that surround Bennett like Brock Bowers, Darnell Washington, AD Mitchell and others, he can change the conversation quickly to one focused on Georgia.
Strong Play from the Secondary
We mentioned the importance of the front seven and their ability to get pressure on CJ Stroud. If they are able to do that, it’ll help the secondary out in a tough matchup against the talented Ohio State wide receivers. Either way though Georgia is going to need its defensive backs to play one of their best games. They rose to the occasion in their biggest challenge of the season against Tennessee. Last time we saw them though it wasn’t quite as pretty in the SEC Championship win over LSU. Where do they fall on that spectrum Saturday? We’ll have to wait and see, but the better they are, the better off the Bulldogs will be. Keep an eye on Kelee Ringo, Kamari Lassiter and Malaki Starks early as I think we’ll know how the game is going to go with these guys based on their play out of the gate.
