5 things to know about Georgia-Tennessee State: The heat is on

ATHENS — Kirby Smart has no problem putting the heat on his players, but Mother Nature will be taking care of that on Saturday.

A heat index of approximately 100 degrees is in the forecast for the 3 p.m. kickoff time of Georgia’s season-opening game against Tennessee State at Sanford Stadium.

“Our kids are ready to go play and excited to go play and enjoying the heat,” Smart said on the SEC coaches teleconference on Wednesday.

“We’ve been in record temperatures and the last five to seven days have been really hot. It looks like it’s gonna be that way Saturday, so we’re excited to see our fans turn out and get to play and compete in it.”

Elijah Griffin, a 305-pound sophomore defensive tackle expected to make his first start, said dealing with the heat is a matter of preparation.

“It’s preparing yourself for hot conditions,” Griffin said. “Obviously, you’ve got to hydrate, you’ve got to eat right, sleep right. There’s a lot of factors that go into it.

“I know this weekend’s supposed to be hot, so you know we’re ready for it. We scrimmaged in it during fall camp, so we’re ready for it.”

Georgia junior running back Chauncey Bowens had a lion’s share of the carries in much of the scrimmage action, and he, too, feels Georgia is prepared for the hot conditions.

“One thing I will say is that we do practice in those conditions,” Bowens said. “We do that on purpose, to be able to train our bodies to go out and play in what we’re going to play in this weekend.

“That’s why we just stay outside and try not to be in the indoor (football facility), especially when we know we have games like this coming.”

Smart didn’t say it, but the reality is with Georgia being a 46.5-point favorite, if things go as analysts expect, the Bulldogs will have the luxury of substituting freely to keep players fresh.

Or more likely, Smart can make substitutions to give second- and third-team players the opportunity to gain valuable game-day playing experience.

Things to know for Saturday’s Tennessee State at Georgia game

When: 3 p.m.

Where: Sanford Stadium, Athens.

Rankings and records: Georgia, No. 3 in AP Top 25 Poll. Georgia, No. 6 in Sagarin computer rankings; Tennessee State No. 224 (of 266) in Sagarin computer rankings.

TV/radio: SEC Network+ livestream; Georgia Bulldogs Sports Network radio; Sirius XM 180 or 230.

Weather: Mostly sunny with a high of 97 and a heat index of over 100 degrees, chance of isolated showers or thunderstorms (20% to 24%) after 2 p.m.

Series: First meeting.

Last outing: Georgia lost in the College Football Playoff Sugar Bowl quarterfinal to Ole Miss, 39-34, to conclude its 2025-26 season. Tennessee State opened this season with a 26-24 loss to Jackson State at FirstBank Stadium on the campus of Vanderbilt University in Nashville.

Betting line: Georgia is a 46.5-point favorite.

Ole Miss running back Kewan Lacy (front) breaks away from Georgia defensive lineman Elijah Griffin (right) during the Sugar Bowl at the Caesars Superdome on Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026, in New Orleans. Georgia lost to Ole Miss, 39-34, to conclude its 2025-26 season. (Jason Getz/AJC)

5 things to know about Georgia:

1. The Bulldogs open the season with the best record in the Football Bowl Subdivision ranks since 2021 at 65-7, a run that includes back-to-back national titles (2021-2022) and three SEC championships (2022, 2024, 2025). Ohio State has the next-best record at 59-10, and the Buckeyes are the only other program to win 11 games or more each season dating back to 2021. Smart is 25-11 in one-score games, 40-17 against Top 25 teams and has an average recruiting class rank of 3.1.
2. Georgia returns seven starters on defense, but it’s worth noting that some of the new potential starters consist of sophomore defensive tackle Elijah Griffin (former 5-star); junior linebacker Justin Williams (former 5-star); Clemson transfer defensive back Khalil Barnes (30 career starts); and junior linebacker Chris Cole (former 5-star).
3. The Bulldogs have several returning game captains on the 2026 team, including Drew Bobo; Earnest Greene III; KJ Bolden; Raylen Wilson; Gunner Stockton; Jordan Hall; Gabe Harris Jr.; Quintavius Johnson; London Humphreys; and Lawson Luckie.
4. Georgia offensive tackle Greene has the most career starts (32) on the team, but the two Georgia players with the next most are both transfers — with Barnes starting 30 at Clemson and receiver Isiah Canion with 22 starts under his belt with Georgia Tech.
5. Smart has looked for this UGA team to be more explosive. So, with that in mind, the longest touchdown run on Smart’s 10-year head coaching era was an 83-yard touchdown dash by D’Andre Swift at then-No. 9 Kentucky in 2018, and the longest touchdown pass was a Stetson Bennett completion to Brock Bowers that went for 89 yards in Bennett’s first start of the 2021 season against UAB.