Things to know: Vanderbilt believes ‘structured’ front can stop Georgia run – DawgNation

Vanderbilt coach Clark Lea knows the drill when matched up against Kirby Smart’s Georgia teams, and it starts with stopping the Bulldogs’ run game.
Georgia ranks fourth in the SEC and 22n in the nation with 222.2 rushing yards per game, while the Commodores rank 10th in the SEC and 48th in the country allowing 115.5 yards on the ground each outing.
But Lea, the fifth-longest-tenured coach in the SEC at his current school, now entering his sixth year at the helm, has confidence his Vanderbilt defensive front can get the job done.
“The numbers are the numbers, but my belief is if we’re playing Vanderbilt football and we’re structured, and we have intensity at the point of attack, we can make those run plays hard and force them into higher-leverage pass situations on third down,” Lea said at his press conference this week. “If you don’t do that, you’ll be chasing the game down.”
Lea explained the Commodores might need to play a bend-but-don’t-break style of defense, facing UGA quarterback Gunner Stockton to execute to sustain long drives.
“Drives that sustain into the red zone don’t feel good, but every time they snap it, you have an opportunity to make a play,” Lea said. “What cannot happen is one of those runs break the line of scrimmage and gets into the end zone, or, it’s a play-action shot (deep pass) that gets behind us because we have bad eyes or we’re not contesting the ball down the field.
“I’ve got confidence in our run wall, and if we’re flattening blocks an playing aggressive at the second level, I expect our run defense to be able to handle the run game.”
When: 12:45 p.m.
Where: Sanford Stadium
Rankings and records: Georgia (4-0, 2-0 SEC), No. 2 in AP Top 25 Poll. Georgia, No. 3 in Sagarin computer rankings; Vanderbilt (3-1, 0-1 SEC), No. 41 (of 266) in Sagarin computer rankings.
TV/radio: ESPN; Georgia Bulldogs Sports Network radio; Sirius XM 84 or 172.
Weather: Partly sunny with a high of 84 a chance of showers and thunderstorms.
Series: Georgia leads 61-20-2, won 37-20 in 2023 at FirstBank Stadium in Nashville.
Last meeting: The Bulldogs outgained the Commodores 552 yards to 219 yards in a 37-20 victory in Nashville but suffered a loss of different sorts as star tight end Brock Bowers suffered an ankle injury that forced him to leave the game and would plague him throughout the season. On a more positive note, a then-freshman receiver at Vanderbilt named London Humphreys caught a pass over the middle and ran away from the UGA defense for a 49-yard touchdown to give Vanderbilt an early 7-0 lead. Humphreys’ play caught Kirby Smart’s attention, and he transferred to Georgia after the season and has become one of the team leaders on the current Bulldogs’ team.
Last outings: Georgia capitalized on four Oklahoma turnovers, including a fumble that Chris Cole returned for an 85-yard touchdown to extend UGA’s lead to 21-0 after the Sooners had reached the Bulldogs 4-yard line.
Vanderbilt lost 31-15 at Auburn despite outgaining the Tigers 311-279 and owning the time of possession (37 minutes, 32 seconds to 22:28. Freshman quarterback Jared Curtis was 22-of-33 passing for 199 yards and an interception on a Hail Mary pass attempt. Curtis also rushed for 46 yards and Vanderbilt was 4 of 4 on fourth-down conversions with him under center.
Georgia injury report: OLB Amaris Williams (out); S Tyriq Green (out); OL Marcus Harrison (out); RB Nate Frazier (questionable); WR Isiah Canion (questionable); OLB Chase Linton (questionable).
Vanderbilt injury report: CB Jaylin Lackey (out); LB Jamison Curtis (out); DL Aaron Bryant (out); DL Nikhil Jefferson (out); QB Jared Curtis (questionable); EDGE Miles Capers (probable); OL Clinton Azubuike (probable); OL Lyndon Cooper (probable).
The line: Georgia is a 24.5-point favorite.
1) The Bulldogs have scored two touchdowns and 12 points on defense through the first four games on Tyriq Green’s fumble recovery for a touchdown against Western Kentucky and Chris Cole’s fumble return for a touchdown, which represents the most in one season since the 2021 CFP championship team scored 28 points with four pix-sixes and two safeties.
2) Georgia is outscoring its opponents 63-0 in the first quarter of games this season and 133-12 in the first halves of games.
3) Vanderbilt receiver Junior Sherrill has been Jared Curtis’ go-to guy, and he ranks fifth in the SEC and 21st in the FBS ranks with 367 receiving yards. Sherrill has four or more catches in eight of the past nine contests.
4) Vanderbilt ranks fourth in the SEC and 12th in the FBS ranks with 3.25 sacks per game, Georgia ranks tied for eighth in the SEC and tied for 27th in the nation with 2.75 sacks per game.
5) Gunner Stockton is second in the nation with a 209.05 pass efficiency rating behind Miami’s Darian Mensah (228.23) and is on pace to set UGA’s school record for best completion percentage (70.13%). Stockton’s 37 career touchdown passes rank ninth in school history, one behind UGA offensive coordinator and former quarterback Mike Bobo (38).

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