Georgia and Florida will be meeting on the football field for the 99th time this Saturday and for the 88th time in Jacksonville. This will be the eighth time the two teams will both be ranked in the top ten, with the Dawgs holding a 4-3 advantage in those games, including a win last season.
Georgia holds the series advantage 53-43-2 (and I count 1904). The Bulldogs have won six of the last nine meetings, but if you at the series on the whole—well, it's definitely gone back-and-forth.
Fifty-seven different quarterbacks have started against the Gators. No matter who starts Saturday, he'll be making his first against Florida. Here's how the last six starting quarterbacks that have faced Florida have fared in this series.
Last week against Kentucky, Georgia had 215 yards rushing. It was the third time this season the Bulldogs have had over 200 yards on the ground. The Dawgs have won 30 straight games in which they've rushed for that amount or more (only Clemson and Ohio State have longer active streaks). Zamir White led all Dawg ball carriers last week with a career-high 136 yards and a score. He's one of two players in the SEC with at least one rushing touchdown in every game this season (Kevin Harris of South Carolina being the other). He currently has a streak of six games in a row (including last season’s Sugar Bowl) with a touchdown rush. Here are streaks of some notable Georgia running backs through the last forty seasons.
The team that has rushed for more yards in the Georgia/Florida game has won the last 14 meetings. Here's our weekly look at Georgia’s five main running backs this season, in terms of rushing by quarter.
James Cook has had eight receptions for 163 yards in the last two games combined. He currently is second on the Bulldogs, with 173 yards receiving, and third on the Dawgs with ten receptions this season. His 17.3 yards per reception is the eighth-most in the SEC, but the leader amongst running backs.
Fifteen different Dawgs have at least one reception this season, with six of them having at least one touchdown.
When Georgia held Kentucky to just three points last week, it marked the ninth time under Kirby Smart that the Bulldogs held an opponent without a touchdown, and the second time this season (Auburn). Georgia is one of three FBS teams that have held opponents twice this season to zero touchdowns. Army and Notre Dame are the other two.
The Bulldogs defense had three sacks against the Wildcats last week. It was the fourth straight game in which the Dawgs had at least three. Georgia leads the SEC in sacks with 17. The Dawgs led the SEC in sacks in 2002, 2004 and 2007. Georgia’s 3.4 sacks per game are way ahead of any season under Kirby Smart as you can see below.
Two of Georgia’s highest sack totals by an individual has happened against Florida. Freddie Gilbert in 1981 and Jarvis Jones in 2011 each had four.
As I mentioned up top, Georgia is 4-3 in matchups with Florida in which both were ranked in the top ten. The Bulldogs won those meetings in 1984, 2008, 2018, and 2019. The Dawgs are 8-5 against teams ranked in the AP top ten under Kirby Smart (9-5 in all polls).
The Florida game will be the fourth ranked opponent for Georgia this season. The four games are tied for the most by any school in the FBS.