WHERE: Sanford Stadium

WHEN: Saturday, 4:15 p.m.

RECORDS: Georgia 4-1, 2-1; Mississippi State 1-4, 0-2

TV/RADIO: SEC Network (Taylor Zarzour, Matt Stinchcomb, Alyssa Lang); Georgia Bulldog Radio Network (Scott Howard, Eric Zeier, DJ Shockley); Sirius XM (160 or 192).

After watching Vanderbilt shock Alabama and Arkansas upset Tennessee, maybe folks will start believing Kirby Smart when he says anything can happen in the SEC.

The Bulldogs certainly will not be overlooking Mississippi State.

Despite grinding out an 18-point win last week over Auburn, there’s plenty for Georgia to clean up before the schedule resumes next week with three of the next four games against teams ranked in the Top 10.

A date at top-ranked Texas will be first on next week’s agenda. But Smart and the Bulldogs won’t concern themselves with the Longhorns until Saturday’s game against MSU is complete.

The Bulldogs will forge forward without the services of wide receiver Colbie Young, who was suspended indefinitely by Smart following his arrest Tuesday morning.

Young’s absence means the opportunity will be there for other receivers to step up their respective game for the Bulldogs, who hope to finally find some early offensive rhythm.

It’s also going to be interesting to see how the crowd responds to Smart’s challenge to make the environment at Sanford Stadium more of a factor.

Georgia’s coach let that be known following the win over Auburn, drawing the ire of some, with others backing Smart on his attempt to help rally the fan base.

Defensively, the Bulldogs appear to have a significant advantage considering that Mississippi State will be starting a true freshman quarterback in Michael Van Buren. Van Buren made his first career start two weeks ago at Texas, a game MSU lost 35-13, and shouldn’t find the going much better against Georgia, which holds a 20-6 edge in the series.

Georgia: QB Carson Beck, RB Trevor Etienne, WR Dominic Lovett, WR Arian Smith, WR Dillon Bell, OL Earnest Greene III, DE Mykel Williams, LB Jalon Walker, N Nazir Stackhouse, LB CH Allen, S Malaki Starks, CB Daylen Everette.

Mississippi State: QB Michael Van Buren, RB Davon Booth, WR Trent Hudson, WR Kevin Coleman, DE De’Monte Russell, FS Corey Ellington, CB Montre Miller.

Georgia

Running back Roderick Robinson - Out

Linebacker Smael Mondon - Out

Offensive lineman Tate Ratledge - Out

Defensive lineman Jordan Hall - Questionable

Offensive lineman Jared Wilson - Questionable

Mississippi State

Quarterback Blake Shapen - Out

Cornerback Traveon Wright - Out

Receiver Creed Whittemore - Out

Safety Tyler Woodard - Out

Receiver Trent Hudson – Out

Start faster offensively: We’ve been saying this for how many weeks now? Perhaps this will be the week the Bulldogs finally find their offensive rhythm before the end of the first half.

Offensive line needs to dominate: Taking the Tennessee Tech game out of the equation, we’ve yet to see Georgia’s offensive line really establish its will in either of its four FBS games.

Start creating turnovers: Georgia is 13th in the SEC in turnover margin, a number that Smart needs to see changed. In five games, the Bulldogs have forced six fumbles but recovered just two. They’ve also intercepted just two passes in five games. Georgia will be facing a freshman quarterback on Monday, so the timing could not be better if it wants to improve that number.

Don’t ask freshman quarterback Michael Van Buren to do too much: Although he is 20 years old, Van Buren is still a true freshman in terms of experience. He’s athletic and capable of making plays but asking him to cut it loose may play right into the hands of the Bulldogs.

No turnovers: This would obviously be a game killer as Mississippi State certainly cannot have any turnovers if it wants to be in a position to win the game come the fourth quarter.

Run the ball: That’s something that MSU has not done a very good job at so far. Through five games, Mississippi State is dead last in the SEC in rushing offense, averaging just 3.5 yards per carry.

…Georgia running backs have rushed for 37 touchdowns in the Red Zone since the 2023 season - most among FBS Teams.

…Georgia quarterbacks have six completions for 20 or more yards in close and late situations this season - most among FBS Teams

… Carson Beck (UGA) has averaged 12.9 Yards per Attempt (440 yards/34 attempts) in the 4th quarter this season-- 2nd-best among FBS quarterbacks; Average: 7.2.

…Beck has completed passes for 20+ yards on 81 of his 577 total passing attempts (14 percent) since the 2023 season - T-6th-best among Power Conference quarterbacks; Average: 11 percent.

…Trevor Etienne has rushed for 10 or more yards on 33 of his 183 carries (18 percent) since the 2023 season - 4th-best among SEC Running Backs; Average: 14 percent.

…Etienne has averaged 6.9 all-purpose yards per Touch (689 APY/ 00 touches) on 1st down since the 2023 season - 7th-best among Power Conference running backs; Average: 5.4.

…Nate Frazier has averaged 7.7 yards from scrimmage per touch (154 yards/20 touches) on 1st down this season - T-8th-best among Power Conference running Backs; average: 5.6.

…Dominic Lovett has 11 receptions on 13 targets (85 percent Reception Pct) in the Red Zone since the 2023 season - 2nd-best among FBS Receivers; Average: 53 percent.

…Lawson Luckie has averaged 33.8 receiving yards per game (135/4) this season - 4th-best among SEC Tight Ends; Average: 15.6.

Georgia has allowed just 173.9 receiving yards per game (3,304/19) since the 2023 season - best in the SEC; Average: 216.4.

Georgia opponents have averaged 36.5 Passing Attempts per TD (548 Pass Attempts/15 Passing touchdowns) since the 2023 season - 3rd-best in FBS; Average: 20.5.

… Georgia has allowed just 10.5 yards per completion (3,304 yards/314 completions) since the 2023 season - 11th-best in FBS; Average: 11.8.

Georgia has tackled opponents for a loss on just 1 of 33 rushing attempts (3 percent TFL percent) on 3rd and short since the 2023 season - 2nd-worst in the SEC; Average: 10 percent.

…Mississippi State wide receivers have five receptions for 20 or more yards in the 4th quarter this season - 4th-most among SEC teams.

…Mississippi State has gone for two on two percent of PATs since the 2023 season - 3rd-lowest among SEC offenses; Average: five percent.

…Mississippi State has been sacked on 18 percent of pass attempts (8/45) in the 4th quarter this season - worst among SEC Offenses; Average: seven percent.

…Michael Van Buren has been sacked 5 times on 1st down this season - 3rd-most among SEC quarterbacks.

…Davon Booth has rushed for two touchdowns on 54 carries (27 carries per touchdown) since the 2023 season - 10th-worst carry per touchdown rate among SEC running backs; Average: 18.9.

…Kevin Coleman has 15 first down receptions this season -7th-most among SEC receivers.

…Justin Ball has not gained 40+ yards on any of his 20 receptions since the 2023 season - T-worst among SEC tight ends.

…Mississippi State has forced 18 fumbles since the 2023 season -T-3rd-most in the SEC.

…Mississippi State has allowed passes of 20+ yards on 3 of 21 attempts (14 percent) on 3rd and long this season - 3rd-best in the SEC; Average: nine percent.

…Mississippi State has allowed just 10.5 yards per completion (1,124 yards/107 completions) this season -T-3rd-best in the SEC; Average: 11.3.

…Mississippi State has forced 18 fumbles on 656 carries (36.4 carries per fumble) since the 2023 season = 4th-best in the SEC; average: 40.9.

…Opponents have averaged 21.4 completions per game (107/5) against Mississippi State this season - T-22nd-worst in FBS; Average: 18.3.

Mississippi State may be the worst team in the SEC. But after what we saw last week in the SEC, does that even matter? Georgia still has much to improve on and needs to do so quickly before facing the toughest part of its schedule with three of the next four games against teams ranked in the Top 10. Prediction: Georgia 45, Mississippi State 14