The No. 3 Georgia Bulldogs (11-1, 7-1) take on the No. 9 Alabama Crimson Tide (10-2, 7-1) on Saturday from Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium for the SEC championship. This game will be Kirby Smart’s fifth-straight appearance in the conference title, and the Bulldogs’ second against the Tide in 2025.
Kickoff is set for 4 p.m. ET, and DraftKings has Georgia as a 1.5-point favorite over Alabama. In the first meeting back in September, Kalen DeBoer’s program came into Sanford Stadium and handed the Dawgs their only loss of the season, beating UGA 24-21.
Looking ahead to the game, which will air on ABC, one key stat stands out as a potential edge for Georgia in the rematch over Bama.
According to CFBStats, UGA ranks No. 34 in the nation in rushing against opponents from its own conference. Its 184.25 rushing yards per game against SEC opponents places Mike Bobo’s offense No. 3 in the league, trailing only Missouri and Texas A&M. Alabama’s rushing attack, led by Jam Miller, ranks No. 11 in the FBS against teams from within its conference, averaging 109.25 yards per game. That puts it 12th in the SEC, with Oklahoma, LSU, Texas and South Carolina ranking below it.
Miller, who leads Alabama with 493 rushing yards (and 108 receiving yards), is listed as questionable for Saturday’s game. ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported that Miller is facing ‘facing long odds’ to play on Saturday after suffering a leg injury in last week’s Iron Bowl. Alabama’s second-leading rusher Kevin Riley (222 yards) is listed as out for the game. That means Daniel Hill (217 rushing yards) will likely receive a majority of the snaps at running back.
As for UGA, the Dawgs’ running game is carried by Nate Frazier (809 yards) and Chauncey Bowens (493 yards). Bowens is expected to make his return on Saturday after missing the Bulldogs’ last two games with an injury.
“Chauncey has been like he has the last couple of weeks, so he’s been doing good,” Smart said of Bowens this week.
Alabama’s run defense ranks No. 36 in the FBS, allowing 124.33 yards per game on the ground. Georgia’s run defense has been spectacular, ranking sixth in the country and allowing just 86.08 rushing yards per game.
The last time these two teams met, Alabama won the game, but Georgia outrushed the Tide by 110 yards on five fewer carries. Alabama finished the game with 117 rushing yards on 38 attempts, while Georgia ran for 227 yards on 33 carries. Bowens led all rushers with 119 yards. That game also served as Bowens’ coming-out party, as prior to it he had outings with 33 yards, 56 yards and 32 yards.
