How Georgia Stacks Up with SEC West Powerhouses
Coming into Week 8, the SEC West had not lost to a team outside of the division. Georgia ended that streak with authority in Little Rock on Saturday afternoon, topping the Razorbacks 45-32 in a game that wasn't as close as the score suggests.
With the win, Georgia improved to 6-1 (4-1 SEC), and has taken control of the SEC East.
Is there more in the future for head coach Mark Richt's Bulldogs?
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There could be.
While Mississippi State and Ole Miss have burst onto the scene and become the darlings of the college football world, Georgia has quietly kept winning—even without star running back Todd Gurley over the last two weekends—and put itself in position to not only win the SEC East, but control its own destiny in the race for the College Football Playoff.
If Georgia wins out, that would include a win over Auburn and whoever emerges from the SEC West in Atlanta. Not only would that resume be enough to earn a playoff spot, but it'd likely be enough for the Bulldogs to be, at worst, the No. 2 team in the country.
How good are they, though?
Very good, but still not up to par with the SEC West's powerhouses.
Not only did Georgia survive road trips to Missouri and Arkansas without Gurley, it looked great doing it. Nick Chubb has rushed for 345 yards and three touchdowns in Gurley's stead, quarterback Hutson Mason has thrown three touchdowns without throwing a pick and the secondary—which has been a sore spot for going on a half-decade—has forced six interceptions over the last two games.
Georgia is certainly playing the part of a true College Football Playoff contender, and as the SEC Network's Tony Barnhart notes, teams falling around the country is certainly helping in Georgia's push for a playoff spot.
It is, however, still too early to buy the Bulldogs for real.
Is the secondary really fixed? Will Mason's consistent play continue? Can they survive long-term if Gurley's suspension isn't lifted? What will happen if a good defense takes Chubb away and puts the game in Mason's hands?
None of those questions can be answered yet.
Meanwhile, they've all been answered by the two Mississippi schools.
Rebels quarterback Bo Wallace has become more consistent this year, posting the SEC's third-best passer rating (162.97) and hasn't thrown a pick in SEC play. When Ole Miss needed him to win a game, he did against then-No. 3 Alabama, with two touchdowns in the final quarter to spring the 23-17 upset. The Rebel defense has been lights-out all season long and has proven that it's not only consistent, but capable of scoring on its own.
Mississippi State has produced a consistent front seven and an offense that score in a variety of ways under Heisman contender Dak Prescott. Head coach Dan Mullen's crew can play ground-and-pound football with Prescott and running back Josh Robinson, or open things up with De'Runnya Wilson outside and a variety of receiving options in the slot.
Georgia isn't as complete of a football team quite yet, but it has looked like one over the last two weeks.
At this point, that's all that matters in the grand scheme of things.
Richt's crew has survived to a point where it does control its own destiny, and with two weeks to prepare for a reeling Florida team and then a trip to Kentucky the week prior to hosting Auburn, as long as the momentum keeps going up until that Nov. 15 showdown with the Tigers, that's all that matters.
Barrett Sallee is the lead SEC college football writer and video analyst for Bleacher Report, as well as a co-host of the CFB Hangover on Bleacher Report Radio (Sundays, 9-11 a.m. ET) on Sirius 93, XM 208.
Quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. All stats are courtesy of cfbstats.com, and all recruiting information is courtesy of 247Sports. Follow Barrett on Twitter @BarrettSallee.
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