Keys To Georgia vs. Tennessee Tech

By Tim Tucker

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

1. Focus. The Georgia program has been in the eye of a storm since last weekend’s blowout loss to Florida. Will the players be able to put the noise aside and focus on this game?

2. Depth. Georgia, like all Division I-A teams, has 85 players on scholarship. Tennessee Tech, like all I-AA teams, can have only 63.

3. Turnovers. If there’s any formula by which Tennessee Tech could pull off a monumental upset in this game, it probably would include Georgia turning the ball over a bunch of times.

A Georgia win would ...

• Put the Bulldogs (4-4 entering the game) within one victory of bowl eligibility with three regular-season games to go.

• Improve the Dogs’ record in Sanford Stadium non-conference games under coach Mark Richt to 25-1, the lone loss being last year’s to Georgia Tech.

• Improve the Dogs’ all-time record in homecoming games to 69-17-2.

A Tennessee Tech win would ...

• Avenge a 67-0 loss to Georgia in Sanford Stadium in 1943, the schools’ only previous meeting in football.

• Put the Cookeville, Tenn., school on the college-football map ...

• ... and cause an unmitigated meltdown in Bulldog Nation.

Keep an eye on ...

• For Georgia: Kansas State returned two kickoffs for touchdowns against Tennessee Tech in September, so Brandon Boykin -- Georgia’s kickoff returner -- bears watching closely. He already has two 100-yard returns this season.

• For Tennessee Tech: Safety Caleb Mitchell was hard to miss last week in a 20-13 victory over Tennessee State. He had 13 tackles, two sacks, one interception, two pass breakups, one fumble recovery and one fumble forced.

The numbers game

• 49-7 -- Margin by which Tennessee Tech lost its only other game this season against a Division I-A opponent (Kansas State)

• 35-3 -- Margin by which Tennessee Tech lost its most recent game against an SEC opponent (Auburn in 2007)

• $475,000 -- Amount Georgia will pay Tennessee Tech for the game

• +4 -- Tennessee Tech’s turnover margin this season, compared to Georgia’s -15

History book

• Series record: Georgia leads 1-0.

• Last meeting: Georgia won 67-0 in 1943.

The bottom line

Georgia hasn’t been able to take anything for granted in this erratic season, but it should be able to take for granted a win over a I-AA opponent. Right?