No. 9 Georgia Bulldogs (6-1), +1.5, 48.5 O/U at No. 11 LSU Tigers (5-1), -1.5, 48.5 O/U
Tiger Stadium, Baton Rouge, L.A., 3:30PM Eastern, Saturday
By Jay Horne of Predictem.com
Death Valley host a clash between SEC titans when the number 9 Georgia Bulldogs roll into Baton Rouge to take on the number 11 LSU Tigers. Both teams are in similar situations considering they are both making a run to play for the SEC Championship. LSUs one loss this year to Florida has them trailing Alabama by one game in the SEC West. Georgia whose one loss came from Alabama is in a tie for first in the SEC East. A loss to either team could ruin their chances for playing in the Georgia Dome site of the SEC Championship at seasons end.
The Tigers come back home after a tough road win against South Carolina. The Tigers were able to wear down the Gamecocks defense late in the game to win by a touchdown. The SEC is arguably the hardest conference in the nation to win on the road considering the top to bottom strength of the conference. LSU hopes this plays into their favor when they get Georgia at home in Death Valley.
The Bulldogs were impressive last week when they knocked off Vanderbilt who were ranked 22nd at the time. Georgias defeat over the Commodores moved them into a first place tie in the SEC East. Georgia All-American Knowshon Moreno led the Bulldogs with a season high 172 yards in route to their victory over Vanderbilt. Moreno has become one of the most dangerous tailbacks in all of college football and will need to be big this week if Georgia plans to get the victory.
Moreno may have a tough time against one of the premier rush defenses in college football. LSU claims the #15 ranked rush defense in America only allowing 96 yards per game on the ground. The Tigers defense has been solid this year if you throw out their 51 point collapse against Florida. Throw that game out the window and LSU has only allowed 15 points per contest. The Tigers offense has been accountable for posting 31.2 points per game in route to their success and they will need that to continue Saturday.
Georgia leads the SEC in passing at 260 yards per game also ranking them #22 in the nation. Add that to the threat of Morenos rushing threat and Georgia has established a powerful offense. The Bulldogs defense is one of the best in the nation. Georgia has held teams to 270 yards per game ranking them #12 in the nation. Georgia also sports the #3 ranked rush defense in America holding opponents to 61 yards per game rushing. A big help to Georgias success has been their ability to keep teams from scoring. The Bulldogs defense has held teams to a mere 17 points per game also one of the best in the nation. The Bulldogs defense will look forward to another test when they square off with the LSU offense.
Sportsbetting.ag has opened the line on this ballgame favoring LSU by 1.5 points basically being a pick a winner game. The over/under for the game has been set to 48.5 points. The early betting action has been fairly equal with the public slightly favoring Georgia. Moneyline numbers have Georgia at +105 and LSU at -125.
LSU running back Charles Scott has been excellent this season when getting his hands on the ball. Scott has averaged 105 yards per game rushing and has racked up 631 yards on the season with 8 touchdowns. Scott could have a tough time against the extremely strong Georgia rush defense, but last week the LSU offensive front wore down an equally good South Carolina defense. LSU hopes to continue to establish the run so they can then throw the ball to WR Brandon LaFell. LaFell has been the go to guy for the Tigers air attack this season catching 33 passes for 462 yards and 3 touchdowns. QB Jarrett Lee has been the starter for recent weeks. Lee has had most the snaps but dont be surprised to see Andrew Hatch get a few snaps as well. Hatch has been used in some running formations to confuse defenses and could very well see some snaps come game time.
Georgias Matthew Stafford has been excellent this season with his arm. Stafford leads the SEC racking up 1,697 yards this season through the air averaging 242 yards per game passing. Stafford has amassed a QB rating of 142.64 second in the SEC to only Heisman winner Tim Tebow of Florida. Knowshon Moreno leads the SEC in scoring being responsible for 66 points this season. Moreno has piled up 762 yards rushing this season with 11 touchdowns. Stafford and Moreno are the main reasons Georgia has such a balanced offense and defenses must respect both the rush and the pass. Georgia hopes this will give the Tiger defense problems and they can put up some big numbers when they travel to Baton Rouge.
Betting numbers- Georgia is 1-2-2 ATS in their last 5 games going 5-0 SU on the road. The total has gone under in 4 of their last 5 games for the Bulldogs. LSU is 5-0 in their last 5 games at home. LSU is 2-3-1 ATS this season. The last 4 out of 5 games in the Georgia vs. LSU series has went on the over total for the game. Georgia is 4-2 in their last 6 games SU against LSU.
Jays Pick – Georgia +105 ML.
