Georgia vs. LSU: Bulldogs Will Make Tigers Work for SEC Title

If the LSU Tigers are going to enter the BCS National Championship game at the Superdome as the unbeaten SEC champions they will first have to beat the Georgia Bulldogs, and that is not a task they can afford to take lightly.

Georgia will make LSU earn that title.

This Bulldogs team may play in the forgotten SEC East, but they have one of the top 10 defenses in the nation and a quarterback in Aaron Murray that can wreak havoc on opposing units.

The Tigers will have to work for every inch through the air against a secondary that refuses to give up yards.

Let's look at the reasons Georgia will provide a tough matchup for LSU.

4. Gerogia Has Experience in Close Games

Everyone knows LSU has one of the top defenses in the country, they allow only 10 points per game, second best in the NCAA.

But Georgia has a great defense of their own, giving up only 17 points per game.

This is clearly a battle of two great defensive units and should make for the type of close game that can give the Bulldogs a shot.

LSU has played only one game this season decided by single digits, the overtime thriller against the Alabama Crimson Tide, and while that is a testament to how dominant they have been it also means they have little experience in tight ball games.

Georgia has played five such games, winning the last four of them.

That type of experience can only benefit the Bulldogs if this game remains close in the second half.

3. Aaron Murray Can Cause Problems

Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray can cause serious problems for the LSU secondary.

The sophomore quarterback has 2698 passing yards on the season and 32 touchdowns.

Granted, LSU cornerback Morris Claiborne is going to shut down half the field, but Murray is smart enough to avoid him and make good decisions.

Only two of Murray's 10 interceptions have come in the last four weeks.

LSU may give up only 168 passing yards per game this season, but that statistic jumps to over 200 yards away from Death Valley.

A fact that the Bulldogs will attempt to take full advantage of.

2. Georgia Can Stop the Pass

Georgia is 15th in the country in passing yards allowed per game.

LSU is 100th in the country in passing yards per game.

I think the Bulldogs just found a mismatch.

Sure, LSU quarterback Jordan Jefferson has gained some traction recently, throwing for over 200 yards against the Arkansas Razorbacks, but Georgia has not given up 200 yards passing in five weeks.

This is a talented secondary that has the ability to make the Tigers completely one-dimensional.

Of course, that dimension is pretty good, LSU averages over 218 yards each week on the ground.

But stopping the pass is a good building block for the Bulldogs in this conference championship game.

1. The Bulldogs Have Won 10 in a Row

LSU may be undefeated but the Bulldogs are riding a 10-game win streak of their own.

This Georgia squad has rallied since losing their first two games and has a ton of momentum coming into the SEC Championship.

Couple that with the fact that the Georgia Dome provides a de facto home field advantage for the Bulldogs and you have reason to believe they are more than just a speed bump on LSU's path to immortality.

Georgia has not ran the gauntlet like LSU, but they have beat ranked foes in the Auburn Tigers and Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets on their road to this matchup.

The Tigers are clearly the better football team, but that doesn't mean the Bulldogs are going to make it easy for them.

In fact, they just might turn this game into a dogfight.