Georgia's Keys to Victory Against Florida

A banged-up Georgia team travels to Jacksonville Saturday to play the Florida Gators with the lead in the SEC East race on the line.

With one mark already in the loss column, Georgia football enters Jacksonville in a must-win matchup with the Florida Gators. 

The winner has claimed the last five SEC East championships, and the winner will likely claim the divisional title again in 2020. 

On paper, Georgia is the better team. The Bulldogs have a more reliable running game and an elite defense. The Gators are a matchup paper shredder, with an aggressive pass-rushing defense and a dynamic passing attack. 

If Georgia can accomplish these three things, it will be on a fast track to a fourth straight SEC East title.

No turnovers and control the clock

Georgia's biggest advantage against Florida's defense is its offensive line, especially in the first half. Florida is short starting defensive end Zachary Carter, who is serving a suspension for his involvement in the brawl prior to halftime against Missouri a week ago. The Bulldogs line will need to clear the way for running back Zamir White and Co. to pick up chunks of yards, drain the clock and keep the ball away from Florida quarterback Kyle Trask.

Though Georgia's offensive line accomplished that last Saturday at Kentucky, the end result was a measly 14 points. The blame for the low score lies solely on quarterback Stetson Bennett. The former walk-on killed two promising drives with inexcusable interceptions. One because he failed to step up in a clean pocket and let a ball get tipped; the other because he failed to get a throwaway ball out of bounds.

What good is controlling the clock if you can't score? If a team doesn't score against Florida, its dazzling offense can make you pay. Georgia can't afford to play catch-up against the Gators, so it's paramount that Bennett avoids turnovers.

Cover Pitts, limit Toney's yards after the catch

Florida's offense is one of the best in the nation, but it's not a particularly confusing one The Gators have two superstars, tight end Kyle Pitts and receiver Kadarius Toney. Simple doesn't mean easy to stop, however.

Pitts is a big, physical receiver and he doesn't always line up in typical tight-end spots. Toney is a running back who receives his handoffs downfield instead of in the backfield. If there isn't a defender hanging on him when he makes the catch, Toney can turn short passes into huge gains.

Beyond Pitts and Toney, Florida doesn't have any devastating players. Running back Dameon Pierce has only 34 carries in four games. Receivers Trevon Grimes and Malik Davis are good receivers, but they aren't primary targets.

'Third and Grantham'

It's cliche, and maybe it's a tad overdone, but until Todd Grantham-led defenses can start performing on third down, the "third and Grantham" jokes are going to keep coming. 

Florida is one of the worst teams on third- and fourth-down defense. The Gators have allowed 30 of 61 third downs, and seven conversions on nine fourth downs. For comparison, Georgia has only allowed 26 conversions on 73 third downs.

This ties back to the first key, Stetson Bennett, and how he plays. It doesn't matter how bad a defense is on third down; if the quarterback isn't making the throws and if most of those situations aren't third-and-manageable, conversions aren't going to happen.  

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