TV: 6 p.m. Saturday, ESPN.
Line: Georgia by 4.
Records: Mississippi State 3-0, 1-0 SEC; Georgia 3-0, 0-0.
Last meeting: Georgia had little trouble dispatching Mississippi State on Oct. 1, 2011, in Athens, Ga. The Dawgs won 24-10 with dominant defense and two Aaron Murray touchdown passes in the first quarter.
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Keys to the game
Is Mississippi State that good? The Bulldogs throttled LSU 37-7 last week as seven-point underdogs. Nick Fitzgerald threw two touchdown passes and ran for two scores, saying afterward: “There is nothing more fun than just going out there and kicking someone’s butt, for the lack of a better term. We had a great time.” Wow.
Will Georgia shuffle the deck? True freshman quarterback Jake Fromm played well enough to guide Georgia to victory at Notre Dame. Week 1 starter Jacob Eason (knee) returned to practice this week but is expected to play only in an emergency. The Dawgs expect running back Sony Michel, a close second to Nick Chubb on the depth chart, will return after missing last week’s game with a tweaked ankle.
Can Georgia keep Fitzgerald in the pocket? Mississippi State’s quarterback is a 6-foot-5, 223-pound redshirt junior from Richmond Hill, Ga. Fitzgerald broke an SEC record for quarterbacks last season with eight 100-yard rushing games. The Dawgs did a spectacular job on Notre Dame’s Brandon Wimbush (16 rushes, 1 net yard) and will need a similar effort Saturday.
Teddy Greenstein’s pick: Count on this one going down to the wire. Georgia 24, Mississippi State 23.