Georgia vs. Arkansas Week 4 Preview
Georgia is favored by 26 points over Arkansas with the over/under set at 52.5 total points
Quick-Hitters
- The Arkansas Razorbacks are 4-20 over the past two seasons and welcome in new head coach, Sam Pittman.
- Kirby Smart has led the Georgia Bulldogs to an impressive 44-12 record over four seasons.
- Georgia is favored by 26 points over Arkansas with the over/under set at 52.5 total points. CLICK HERE FOR LIVE GAME ODDS!
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Fresh Beginnings
The Arkansas Razorbacks are starting over yet again with first-year head coach Sam Pittman. Outside of two seasons at a junior college in the early 1990s, Pittman has no prior experience as a head coach. Oddly enough, he’s spent the last four years on the staff at Georgia, forcing him to make his coaching debut against his former boss, Kirby Smart.
Despite being 4-20 over the past two seasons, there are reasons to be optimistic about the Arkansas offense. For starters, Florida transfer Feleipe Franks takes the reins of the offense, giving the Razorbacks an experienced and somewhat proven quarterback. Arkansas also returns running back Rakeem Boyd, who rushed for over 1,100 yards last season, making him one of the most underrated backs in the SEC. On the other hand, the Arkansas offensive line and wide receivers have a lot to prove after poor performances in 2019.
Meanwhile, former Missouri head coach Barry Odom will try to turn around a defense that was dreadful in 2019. The front-seven is in surprisingly good shape with the return of Dorian Gerald and the addition of Clemson transfer Xavier Kelly, not to mention a healthy amount of depth. The caveat is the secondary, where the Razorbacks bring back some experience, but few impact players from a year ago.
Georgia's New Take
At Georgia, the situation is vastly different. Smart is 44-12 in four seasons in Athens, leading the Bulldogs to three SEC East titles. However, the quest for a National Championship continues and Georgia fans aren’t going to be satisfied until they reach the top of the college football world.
The Georgia offense is in a unique position, losing Jake Fromm to the NFL and then having Wake Forest transfer Jamie Newman opt out of the season. Fortunately, USC transfer JT Daniels has also found his way to Athens and will start if he’s medically cleared from an ACL tear. Otherwise, the Bulldogs will likely go with redshirt freshman D’Wan Mathis. Of course, the rest of the offense is far from set after losing running back D’Andre Swift and four starters from the offensive line, creating big questions for the entire Georgia offense to answer.
The silver lining for the Bulldogs is all of the experience they bring back on defense. The Georgia defense in 2019 didn’t have many known commodities before the season, but they're now filled with juniors and seniors who have proven to be productive players. The secondary is loaded and there are over half a dozen experienced linebackers on the roster, giving the Bulldogs an impressive amount of depth at nearly every position.
Areas To Watch
While Georgia is heavily favored in this game, it’ll be fascinating to see how much Arkansas has improved from a year ago. They have a proven running back and an experienced quarterback who won’t be intimidated by the Georgia defense. The Razorbacks have much more defensive talent than a year ago against a Georgia offense with plenty of uncertainty, even if Daniels is cleared to play.
