UGA’s Green, Bama’s Jones ready to battle at WR

Athens — As the buildup continues for Georgia-Alabama, every angle is being probed. Alabama’s best-in-the-SEC rushing offense vs. Georgia’s best-in-the-SEC rushing defense. Georgia’s freshman center vs. Alabama’s mammoth nose guard. Georgia’s black jerseys vs. Alabama’s vengeance.

And then there’s today’s topic: the battle of the fabulous freshmen wide receivers.

Georgia’s A. J. Green and Alabama’s Julio Jones can’t escape comparisons. In high school, they were ranked the nation’s top two wide-receiver prospects by Rivals.com and Scout.com. And just four games into their college careers, they will share a stage Saturday night at Sanford Stadium.

Green, from Summerville, S. C., and called “Slim” by his quarterback, is coming off a breakout performance at Arizona State last week. Jones, from Foley, Ala., and called the more physical of the two, probably is due for a breakout performance of his own.

As a group of reporters gathered around Green after practice Tuesday night, one told him he’d heard Jones compared to Terrell Owens and Green compared to …

“Randy Moss,” Green instantly interjected.

He’s heard it all before - ever since 10th grade, he said - and seems more amused than impressed by it.

“I stay humble,” he said, “and laugh it off.”

But he is not oblivious to the order in which Rivals.com and Scout.com ranked him and Jones as high school senior receivers.

Jones No. 1.

Green No. 2.

“My 11th grade year, I was [No.] 1,” Green said, “and [then] he just came out of nowhere.”

“Most people rated [Jones] higher than A. J.,” Georgia coach Mark Richt acknowledged. “You gotta rate one of them higher than the other. I guess you could have had them tied for first.”

For the record, Green said he does not feel a rivalry with Jones.

Both are off to strong starts as collegians. Boosted by his dazzling first half at Arizona State - seven catches for 150 yards - Green leads the Bulldogs and the SEC in receiving yards with 300 despite his confession to “not knowing the system that well yet.” And on a team that emphasizes the run over the pass, Jones leads Alabama in receiving yards with 132 and touchdown catches with three.

Georgia didn’t recruit Jones. The Bulldogs had allotted two scholarships in their 2008 signing class for receivers and had early commitments from two they wanted: Green, who decided after 10th grade to attend Georgia, and Tavarres King. That was that.

King, who attended football camps with Jones in high school and now, of course, is Green’s teammate, compares the two: “Julio is a bigger receiver. [Jones is listed at 6-4, 215 and Green at 6-4, 200.] A. J. can leap, run; he’s got the ‘it’ factor.”

“I don’t really think they’re the same kind of receivers,” offered Alabama free safety Rashad Johnson. “I think Julio is probably more physical than this guy [Green] and probably a lot harder to tackle. But this guy [Green] does a great job of when the ball is up there, he goes up and gets it.

“You really haven’t had an opportunity to see what all Julio can do. I’ve seen it in practice, and if there’s a person who’s better right now, then he’s definitely really good.”

Jones wasn’t available for comment because Alabama coach Nick Saban doesn’t allow freshmen to speak with the media.

If Alabama is to avenge last year’s overtime loss to the Bulldogs, Saban said “a real key to the game” will be preventing Green and Georgia senior receiver Mohamed Massaquoi from making big plays.

“We have a tremendous amount of respect for those two players and the quarterback [Matthew Stafford],” Saban said. “They have shown a real capacity to make big plays downfield. That’s going to be a challenge for us. We’re going to have to jam them and keep them cut off.”

If Green needed any reminder that last week is, well, so last week, he got it from one of his high school coaches.

“Good game,” a text message from the coach read, “but now you get double coverage.”

“I’m, like, ‘thanks for that,’” Green said.

His reward for last week, it turns out, is another chance to be measured against Julio Jones.

— Staff writer Thomas Stinson contributed to this article from Tuscaloosa, Ala.