Preview of the SEC Championship game, with a free pick

If you’re gonna win the national title this season, at some juncture you’re gonna have to take down Georgia. The SEC Championship game finds the top-ranked Bulldogs (12-0, 8-0 conference) with their 29-game win streak and the No. 8 Alabama Crimson Tide (11-1, 8-0).

Game time at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta is 4 PM (ET) Saturday afternoon. It’s been a decade since neither of these teams were involved in the Southeastern Conference title game (2013 Auburn-Missouri). 

Georgia ended its regular season with a 31-23 win at in-state rival Georgia Tech, the final made closer when the Jackets scored the game’s last 10 points. Kendall Milton led the way with 156 rushing yards (two touchdowns).

Alabama lost to the Texas Longhorns, 34-24, in the second week of the college football season, then finished the season with 10 wins in a row. ‘Bama’s last-gasp, Jalen Milroe-to-Isaiah Bond touchdown pass won the Iron Bowl, 27-24, over Auburn in a thrilling final minute.

Georgia is a 6½-point favorite (total at 55), according to college football odds. The moneyline is Bulldogs -220, Tide at +180.

Alabama is leading the all-time series, 42-26-4, though the Dawgs took the last meeting, 33-18, January of 2022 (2021 national title game). ‘Bama is after an 11th SEC title, while Georgia is looking at a fifth. 

They’re the "D"-awgs

The Georgia Bulldogs have had a history of dominating on defense, and no exception this season, UGA is eighth in the nation, having surrendered just 16.5 points per game. They’re ninth in total defense (297.5 yards/game).

Quarterback Carson Beck (3,495 passing yards. 22 touchdowns, six interceptions) is as good as any7one in the conference at the position, his friends including Brock Bowers and Domiic Lovett (combined 100 receptions, nine touchdowns).

The backfield tandem of Daijun Edwards and Kendall Milton have team to gain more than 1,400 yards (21 touchdowns).

That the Bulldogs are on the cusp of a 30-game winning streak in this era is quite amazing.  

Turning the Tide

A mess on offense to begin the season, the Alabama Crimson Tide turned the corner, at least 40 points in half of their last eight (albeit against some suspect competition).

Quarterback Jalen Milroe (2,526 passing yards, 21 touchdowns [12 rushing touchdowns], six interceptions) pulled the Iron Bowl out of the fire in the final seconds, one of the highlights of his late-season turnaround. 

Wideout Jermaine Burton (749 yards, seven touchdowns) is among the targets, while Jase McClellan (803 yards, six touchdowns) leads the ground game. McClellan, however, has been hampered by an injured foot, his status ahead of this game is not known. 

Defensively, the Tide is surrendering just under 320 yards/game, so a bit more than Georgia.

Back the Bulldogs

Georgia is the 2-1 (+200) favorite to win the national title, Alabama at +850 (17-2), as per college football championship odds. A loss to the Tide, however, throws this edition of the College Football Playoff into chaos. 

We don’t see it. 

While the Alabama Crimson Tide come into this game with a ton of momentum, they were also lucky to survive against a mediocre Auburn Tiger team in their last game. One can’t ignore that, along with the "questionable" status of its star in the backfield.  

Georgia is the best in the college game until someone knocks them off, with fewer issues and more balance than the Tide. 

It will be the Georgia Bulldogs winning this game by more than a touchdown. Go under, too.