Georgia seeks more offense vs. A&M

ATHENS, Ga. — Georgia’s offense has a chip on its shoulder.

Yes, the No. 4 Bulldogs are again in prime position to make a run at the College Football Playoff.

But heading into the home finale against No. 24 Texas A&M today, there’s a bit of grumbling about an offense that has struggled to break games open.

“We just use it as motivation,” tight end Eli Wolf said. “We’ve got to step up and do our part.”

Georgia (9-1, 6-1 SEC) was held to 251 total yards by Auburn last week, but still managed a 21-14 victory.

Over the last two weeks, Jake Fromm has completed less than half his throws (26 of 57). D’Andre Swift has gone over 1,000 yards but can’t seem to pop off a long run.

“We’re certainly looking, trying, reaching, trying to find ways to create those advantageous situations,” Coach Kirby Smart said. “But I just know our conference is very defensive when it comes to rankings and statistics. There’s a lot of good teams in it.”

Texas A&M (7-3, 4-2) will be making its first trip to Sanford Stadium since 1980, when the Aggies were members of the long-departed Southwest Conference. Georgia won 42-0 on the way to winning its only consensus national championship.

This is the first SEC meeting between Georgia and Texas A&M and only the sixth time they’ve ever faced each other. Under the scheduling formula in the 14-team league, they just don’t see each other that often.

“It’s crazy that they’ve been in how many years?” Smart said. “Seven years and they still haven’t played Georgia. That’s kind of wild to think about.”

After today, they won’t face each other again until 2024, when Georgia makes its first trip to College Station.

Like the 1980 team, these Bulldogs also have title aspirations.

Playing its third top 5 team of the season, Texas A&M is looking to derail those plans.

“They’re a great team,” receiver Jhamon Ausbon said. “It’s a great opportunity for us to show what we can do.”

Texas A&M rushed for 319 yards in last week’s victory over South Carolina, its best output on the ground since 2016.

But the Aggies and their two-back offense will be facing one of the nation’s stingiest defenses in Athens.

Georgia has allowed just 75.5 yards per game on the ground and went nine games without giving up a rushing touchdown until finally buckling in the fourth quarter against Auburn.

Smart said having a more experienced secondary has actually been a big reason for Georgia’s improvement against the run, allowing the guys up front to play more aggressively.

A season ago, the Bulldogs surrendered 134 yards rushing per game.

“You were holding on every time somebody moved or motioned,” Smart recalled. “This year you feel more comfortable being aggressive, and we’re reaping the benefits of experience.”

Texas A&M is riding a four-game winning streak, but the Aggies have yet to beat a ranked opponent this season.

This will be fourth team Texas A&M has faced that was in the Top 10 at kickoff. Clemson and Alabama were both at No. 1 when they defeated the Aggies, and Auburn was No. 8 when the Tigers hung on for a victory in College Stadium.

Texas A&M isn’t done, either. In the regular-season finale, the Aggies will face the current No. 1 team, LSU.

“Hopefully we learned from those games earlier in the year, how to approach those games and the level of ball you have to play at consistently,” said A&M Coach Jimbo Fisher, who is seeking his 100th career victory.