No. 1 Georgia aims for elusive SEC Championship Game win

Top-ranked Georgia has posted consecutive regular season conference titles and has won its first national championship in more than four decades, but it’s the one thing the Bulldogs haven’t won in any of the past four seasons that’s motivating them on Saturday.

“We’re still chasing the SEC championship this week, that’s what we’re focused on,” Georgia receiver Ladd McConkey said. “There’s been so many guys that have played in the SEC Championship before but haven’t won it. That’s a goal that we set at the beginning of the year, is to win the SEC championship. We’re trying to go out and get that done, then the rest, focus on that when it comes.”

Georgia will be making its fifth appearance in the SEC title game in the past six years when it faces No. 14 LSU (9-3) at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Saturday at 4 p.m.

Since defeating Auburn to win the SEC championship in Kirby Smart’s second year as head coach in 2017, the SEC title game hasn’t brought back fond memories for the Bulldogs.

In 2018, No. 4 Georgia squandered a 28-14 lead with 12:38 left in the third quarter to No. 1 Alabama, which rallied for a 35-28 win that knocked the Bulldogs from playoff contention.

The next year, No. 2 LSU throttled No. 4 Georgia 37-10, eliminating the Bulldogs from advancing to the College Football Playoff and propelling the Tigers to the national championship.

Last year, No. 1 and undefeated Georgia played its worst game of the season, as No. 3 Alabama pulled away in the second half for a 41-24 win that secured the Crimson Tide’s spot in the College Football Playoff. Georgia knocked off the Crimson Tide a little more than a month later, 33-18, to win the national title.

While Georgia was expected to win the SEC’s East Division and play for the conference title, LSU’s appearance is surprising considering the Tigers had a losing record last year, had numerous players transfer out of the program and brought in a new coach, hiring Brian Kelly from Notre Dame.

“We’re worried about winning the SEC championship — that’s the most important thing on our agenda, is to have an opportunity to do something that rarely gets done,” Smart said. “I mean, it’s tough to win an SEC championship.”

LSU opened with 24-23 loss to Florida State and fell to 4-2 following a 40-13 setback at home to then-No. 8 Tennessee, But the Tigers reeled off five straight wins — including a 32-31 overtime win over then-No. 6 Alabama — before a 38-23 loss to lowly Texas A&M dashed their playoff hopes.

‘We weren’t talking about (the SEC title game) in the summer,” LSU linebacker Micah Baskerville said. “We were talking about what was important now, just buying in, everybody making their own time to work out, everybody doing their questionnaire, things like that.”

There’s a reason Georgia is favored by around 17 points. LSU is coming off a loss to the last-place Aggies (5-7) and have won three games by four points or fewer, while all but one of Georgia’s victories are by at least 10 points.

The Bulldogs are ranked first nationally in scoring defense (11.33 points per game), second in rushing defense (79.5 yards per game), fourth in total defense (270.7 ypg) and 12th in scoring offense (38.2 points).

“The scheme is outstanding,” LSU coach Brian Kelly said. “They mix it up, three down and four down. They do a really good job when they get you into third down, they’re going to give you a variety of looks.”

Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett has completed 67.2 percent of his passes for 3,151 yards, 16 touchdowns and six interceptions, leading an offense that is eighth in the country in yards per game (488.8).

Tight end Brock Bowers has 46 receptions for 645 yards with five touchdowns, while Ladd McConkey has 46 catches for 606 yards and four touchdowns. Kenny McIntosh has been a threat out of the backfield with 35 receptions for 437 yards and a score, in addition to rushing for 654 yards and eight scores on 123 carries.

Daijun Edwards is averaging 5.3 yards per carry, having rushed for 604 yards and seven touchdowns on 115 carries. Kendall Milton has rushed for 420 yards and six touchdowns on 64 carries, an average of 6.6 yards an attempt.

LSU counters with dual-threat quarterback Jayden Daniels. He’s completed 68.6 percent of his passes for 2,566 yards with 15 touchdowns and two interceptions, in addition to rushing for a team-leading 824 yards and 11 scores on 174 carries.

Josh Williams (481 yards, 6 TDs) and Noah Cain (340 yards, 7 TDs) each average more than five yards per carry. Malik Nabors has a team-high 58 receptions for 726 yards and a touchdown, with Kayshon Boutte adding 42 catches for 431 yards ana score. Jaray Jenkins has 332 yards and five touchdowns.

“I just feel like we get teams’ best shots every week,” Georgia defensive back Christopher Smith said. “I don’t think no team is going to lay down to us because they want to be able to spoil our season.”