Florida Atlantic vs. Georgia: Complete Game Preview

After a big win against Missouri, the Bulldogs are back at home to face Florida Atlantic.

This will be another opportunity for the Bulldogs to work on some things they need to correct. But the Owls are looking to get better each week under new head coach Carl Pelini.

This will also be the second consecutive night game for the Bulldogs but it won’t be nationally televised. But honestly, does this game really need to be in front of a national crowd?

Who: Florida Atlanta vs. Georgia

When: Saturday, 7:30 P.M.

Where: Athens, Georgia

Stadium: Sanford Stadium (92,746)

TV: Comcast Sports Southeast (Regional)

Radio: Sirius 136

Internet Stream: GTV on georgiadogs.com

Depth Chart for Georgia

QB: Aaron Murray, Hutson Mason, Christian LeMay

RB: Todd Gurley, Ken Malcome , Keith Marshall

FB: Merritt Hall, Richard Samuel

FLK: Tavarres King, Rantavious Wooten, Chris Conley

SE: Marlon Brown, Michael Bennett, Malcolm Mitchell

TE: Arthur Lynch, Jay Rome

LT: Kenarious Gates, Mark Beard, Austin Long

LG: Dallas Lee, Ben Reynolds

C: David Andrews, Chris Burnette

RG: Chris Burnette, Greg Pyke

RT: John Theus, Watts Danztler

DE: Abry Jones, Garrison Smith

NT: John Jenkins Kwame Geathers

DE: Cornelius Washington, Ray Drew, Mike Thornton

OLB: Ramik Wilson, Chase Vasser, Josh Dawson

OLB: Jarvis Jones, Jordan Jenkins, T.J. Stripling

ILB: Michael Gilliard, Amarlo Herrera

ILB: Alec Ogletree, Christian Robinson

CB: Malcolm Mitchell, Sanders Commings, Devin Bowman

CB: Branden Smith, Damian Swann

SS: Shawn Williams, Corey Moore, Josh Harvey Clemons

FS: Bacarri Rambo, Connor Norman

P: Colin Barber, Adam Erickson

PK: Marshall Morgan, Jamie Lindley

PR: Branden Smith, Damian Swann

KR: Branden Smith, Todd Gurley, Malcolm Mitchell

Depth Chart for Florida Atlantic

QB: Graham Wilbert, Stephen Curtis

RB: Damian Fortner, Travis Jones

W: Daniel McKinney, Paul Moore

X: Byron Hankerson, Jenson Stoshak

Z: Marcus Cunningham, William Dukes

TE: Nexon Dorvilus, Alex Deleon

LT: DeAndre Williams, Robert Nasiff

LG: Andrew Czuprynski, Jordan Sessa

C: Jimmie Colley, Mustafa Johnson

RG: Ricaldo Henry, Mike Marsaille

RT: Joseph Bailey, Vinny Davino

LE: Andrew Stryffeler, Robnison Eugene

RT: Jimmy Jean, Kayvon Sherrill

LT: Trevon Coley, Brandon Bryant

RE: Cory Henry, Martin Wright

LB: Adarius Glanton, Randell Johnson

MLB: Andrae Kirk, Randell Johnson

LB: David Hinds, Blake Nehls

CB: Keith Reaser, Demetrius Williamson

SS: Brent Harstad, Damian Parms

FS: Jeremy McKinght, David Lozandier

CB: D’Joun Smith, Sharrod Neasman

NICKEL: Christian Milstead

P: Sean Kelley, Joey Silvari

PK: Sean Kelley, Vinny Zaccario

KR: Travis Jones, D’Joun Smith

PR: Keith Reaser, Travis Jones

What Happened to the Bulldogs Last Week

The Bulldogs played in their first SEC game of the season against Missouri last week. Georgia started of slow but was able to blow past the Tigers 41-20.

Jarvis Jones forced two turnovers in the second half, which led to scores. He also led the team with nine tackles.

Marlon Brown made his 2012 debut and did not disappoint. He totaled 106 receiving yards and two touchdowns.

Todd Gulrey did not put up the same numbers he did against Buffalo, but he did have 65 rushing yards on eight carries and did score on a 1-yard run late in the fourth quarter to put the game out of reach.

Aaron Murray had another strong game, going 22-of-35 for 242 yards and three touchdowns and one interception. He now has six touchdowns in the last two games.

What Happened the the Owls Last Week

Florida Atlantic began Sun Belt Conference play last week as they went up against Middle Tennessee. It was not a good start for the Owls as they fell 31-17 to the Blue Raiders.

The Owls trailed only 7-0 at the half, and cut the lead to 14-3 midway through the third with a Vinny Zaccario field goal.

But the Blue Raiders scored on every drive after that to pull away from the Owls.

Quarterback Graham Wilbert did have a strong game for the Owls, going 25-of-32 for 260 yards and two touchdowns. He completed six passes to Williams Duke and Travis Jones. Five of Wilbert’s passes went to Daniel McKinney who led the team with 75 receiving yards.

Running back Damian Fortner led the Owls with 45 yards on 13 carries.

What It Means to Both Teams

This game really does not mean a lot for Georgia. It’s another tune-up game before they take on the rest of their SEC schedule.

The good thing about this game for the Bulldogs they will have Chase Vasser and Sanders Commings back after being suspended the last two games. The coaching staff can ease them in the lineup so they will be ready to go the following week against Vanderbilt.

The Owls will look to play hard and give the Bulldogs somewhat of a challenge. This game is by far the biggest for the Owls this year, so they will look to put on a good showing for the fans at Sanford Stadium, as well as the viewers watching across the Southeast.

Key Player for the Bulldogs

After a monster game against Missouri, Jarvis Jones will look to have an even bigger game against the Owls. The current SEC Defensive Player of the Week, as well as the Nagurski Defensive Player of the Week, is a better player this year than last year, and that’s a scary thought.

He is the defensive leader for the Bulldogs and he should really put up some big numbers against a not so great Owls offense.

Key Player for the Owls

The Bulldogs defense will be going up against quarterback Graham Wilbert, who made his first start last week against Middle Tennessee.

As mentioned earlier, Wilbert passed for 260 yards and two scores. But was not mentioned was he completed his first 11 passes and tied a school record for single game completion percentage (78).

He has improved his game tremendously from last year as he tossed seven touchdowns and 15 interceptions in 2011.

The Bulldogs Will Win If ...

Because of the mismatches at every position, the Bulldogs will win if they simply show up.

If they go out there, play their game and not give the Owls any additional chances to score, then it should be a rout at halftime.

And that’s what fans want to see. They want to Bulldogs to start fast on both sides of the ball and finish stronger as the game winds down.

Georgia has had issues getting off to fast start the last two weeks, so if there’s any time to work on that, it would be on Saturday against FAU.

The Owls Will Win If ...

Because of the mismatches at every position, the Owls will win if the Bulldogs don’t come to the stadium.

But seriously, this will be a challenging game for the Owls and the only way they have a shot at winning is if the Bulldogs constantly make mistakes which give the Owls short fields throughout the game.

That said, they have to be flawless on offense. They were able to play that way in the second half of the Middle Tennessee game, but the Bulldogs are a different beast and could swallow the Owls up if they are not careful.

Prediction

This game will be another dress rehearsal for the Bulldogs before they face seven consecutive SEC opponents. So they want to hammer the Owls early so they can get the second and third teamers in the game.

The Owls will be a better team under Pelini, but they are in no position to give the Bulldogs a challenge because the No. 7 ranked team in the country wants to prove they are a top-10 team. They will prove that on Saturday with a dominating performance against the Owls.

Prediction: Georgia 50, Florida Atlanta 3