KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — College football rivalries are unique unto themselves, and Georgia-Tennessee is no different.
It’s a game of immediate consequence in the sense the schools are in states that border one another and often clash on the recruiting trail, particularly in talent-rich metro Atlanta.
Georgia coach Kirby Smart approaches all games with vigor, but there’s an added layer to the Tennessee game as the Bulldogs did not defeat the Volunteers when Smart was a player for the Bulldogs.
Smart, asked this week what stood out about the games he played against Tennessee, flatly said, “That we lost, I mean, that’s what stands out.
“It’s what you remember, is how the game went. It was loud, it was a great atmosphere, (and) it was the same as a coach.”
To Smart’s point, he was 0-4 against the Vols from 1995-98, so he had no appetite for conversation when asked about intercepting a pass thrown by former Tennessee quarterback Peyton Manning in Neyland Stadium while playing safety his redshirt freshman season in a 30-27 loss.
“We lost that game,” Smart said, “so that’s not exactly the best moment for me.”
Smart has been on the other end of the spectrum as a defensive coordinator and head coach in Neyland Stadium against Tennessee, winning all eight of those games by double digits.
Georgia has won the past four games in Knoxville with Smart as head coach by an average of 30.5 points, while at Alabama the Crimson Tide won by an average margin of 24 with Smart serving as defensive coordinator for former coach Nick Saban.
Things to know for Saturday’s Georgia-Tennessee game
When: 3:30 p.m. Saturday
Where: Neyland Stadium (cap. 101,915)
Rankings and records: No. 6 Georgia (2-0); No. 15 Tennessee (2-0)
TV/radio: ABC/Georgia Bulldog Sports Network and SiriusXM 84
Weather: Sunny with a high of 85 degrees, low-to-mid 80s at kickoff
Series: Georgia leads 29-23-2. The Bulldogs won in Athens last season, 31-17.
Key injuries: Georgia — guard Juan Gaston (ankle) is questionable, offensive tackle Earnest Greene lll (back) is probable. Tennessee — offensive tackle David Sanders (upper body) is questionable, defensive tackle Jaxson Moi (upper body) is questionable, defensive end Tyree Weathersby (unspecified) is questionable.
Last meeting: Georgia won 31-17 after falling behind 10-0 in the first quarter. Former UGA quarterback Carson Beck sparked the comeback with a 14-yard run that led to a 17-point second quarter for the Bulldogs and finished 25-of-40 passing for 347 yards and two touchdowns.
Georgia tailback Nate Frazier led the UGA ground game with 68 yards rushing and put the game away with a 2-yard TD run that closed the scoring in the game with 2:25 left. Tennessee’s Dylan Sampson led all rushers with 101 yards and a TD on 19 carries, while former Vols quarterback Nico Iamaleava was 20-of-33 passing for 167 yards and carried 12 times for 18 yards, including the five times he was sacked by Georgia defenders.
Betting line: Georgia opened as a 7-point favorite, but the line has fluctuated down to 3.5 points as of Friday.
Tickets: The game is sold out. Tickets on the secondary market having been selling this week over face value, starting at $433 in the upper level and $511 each in the lower deck.
Storylines for Saturday’s Georgia game
Josh Heupel hurdle
Heupel, four years into his Tennessee tenure, is the most successful Vols’ head football coach since Phillip Fulmer’s College Football Hall of Fame career in Knoxville. Heupel’s 30 wins from 2022-24 represent the most wins in a three-year stretch since Fulmer’s Vols won 30 from 1998-2000. Tennessee has won two of the past three against two of its primary rivals — Alabama and Florida — but in his first four rivalry games with Georgia, Heupel has not won, and that has been well-documented.
Gunner Stockton’s road test
Stockton, Georgia’s fourth-year quarterback, has played in 11 games, including the first two starts this season. Saturday’s game in Knoxville will be Stockton’s first start in an opponents’ stadium. Smart has talked about the challenges a road game presents, and Stockton’s ability to handle the pressure and manage the offense in the hostile environment will be paramount to his team’s success.
Joey Aguilar’s SEC introduction
Aguilar is a well-traveled, 24-year-old veteran quarterback who will be facing his first SEC defense after playing the previous two seasons at Appalachian State following stops at City College of San Francisco (2019-20) and Diablo Valley (Calif.) Community College (2021-22). Aguilar’s early success in 2025 — completing two-thirds of his pass attempts with five TD passes and no interceptions — has brought great expectations, and with that, added pressure to perform against a Georgia defense that has ranked among the nation’s best in the Smart era.
Rivalry streak
Georgia has won eight consecutive games in what has been an annual rivalry dating to the introduction of division play in the SEC in 1992, when both teams were placed in the now-defunct East Division. It’s UGA’s longest win streak in the series, but it’s one shy of the rivalry win streak record held by Tennessee, when the Vols won nine in a row between from 1989 to 1999. The introduction of a nine-game schedule in the SEC in 2026 is expected to bring an end to the annual nature of the rivalry, but the teams will, at a minimum, play every other year under the new model.
Key injuries
The Georgia offensive line was expected to be a work in progress after four starters off last season’s team moved on to 2025 NFL preseason camps, and with injuries to starting right tackle Earnest Greene lll and starting right guard Juan Gaston, the Bulldogs have had to juggle the lineup. The lack of cohesion that ensued was evident when UGA failed to score on five plays from the Austin Peay 1-yard line in Saturday’s 28-6 home win over the FCS opponent. Smart and his staff have had a week to fix those things, with Greene expected to play and Gaston questionable.
About the Author
Mike is in his eighth season covering SEC and Georgia athletics for AJC-DawgNation and has 30 years of collegiate sports multimedia experience, 25 of them in the SEC including beat writer stops at Auburn, Alabama, Tennessee and now Georgia. Mike was named the National FWAA Beat Writer of the Year in January, 2018.
