With what’s shaping up to be a colossal matchup against No. 9 Auburn on the horizon, Georgia probably could afford to rest some of its bruised and battered players and play some backups Saturday in its homecoming game against struggling Appalachian State.
But bring up that scenario, and the Bulldogs growl like a pack of cornered strays.
“We’ve got to get ready to win this game — period,” snapped offensive coordinator Mike Bobo.
It’s the offense that has felt the biggest impact from the rash of injuries that have shaped Georgia’s season. At various times Bobo has been without his four top receivers and his two top tailbacks.
Two of those players came back Saturday against Florida, and their inherent value was evident as the Bulldogs held on for a 23-20 victory. Tailback Todd Gurley, who was out for four weeks recovering from a badly sprained ankle, accounted for 187 yards and two touchdowns. Michael Bennett, sidelined three weeks following knee surgery, made five catches.
By all indications, both will play Saturday, when Georgia (5-3, 4-2 SEC) plays host to the Mountaineers, a 2-7 FCS team making its first appearance between the hedges. Even though Gurley had to be sidelined for a quarter against the Gators as he struggled with conditioning and other lingering effects of his injury, the Bulldogs plan to start him.
“We’re expecting him to play and he’s expecting to play, and we’ll take it from there,” Bobo said.
Likewise, quarterback Aaron Murray will make his 50th career start. The fifth-year senior needs two touchdown passes to surpass Florida’s Danny Wuerffel (114, 1993-96) as the SEC’s all-time leader. Bobo said there are no specific plans to get backup quarterback Hutson Mason in the game unless time and score dictate.
Georgia will play without at least two other offensive stars. Wide receiver Chris Conley has been unable to return to practice since suffering an ankle injury on the last play of the Oct. 19 game against Vanderbilt. Also, tight end Arthur Lynch has been out all week because of the bruised ribs he suffered in the hard-hitting brawl that was the Florida game.
But otherwise, it’s all hands on deck for the Mountaineers. And given the Bulldogs’ penchant for keeping things close regardless of opponent, it follows that they would enter this contest wary.
Four times this season Georgia squandered double-digit leads and allowed an opponent to get within a single score, including Saturday when it led Florida 23-3. Even North Texas gave the Bulldogs fits for a while, playing to a 21-21 tie into the third quarter. So no one is taking Appalachian State for granted.
“I’ve got a lot of respect for this team we’re about to play,” Georgia coach Mark Richt said. “They have great athletes, and they’re well-coached, and we’ve got to hook it up best we can. … They’ve all kind of gone down to the wire for us, so we don’t really expect anything different, quite frankly.”
This is not the same caliber of Appalachian State team, however, that famously knocked off Michigan in 2007. The Mountaineers are transitioning out of FCS and into FBS and are exempt from competing for the Southern Conference championship this season. That appears to have been a distraction. Last week they lost at home to Chattanooga, giving up 21 fourth-quarter points in a 35-28 defeat.
“I think we’re too far away from that,” Appalachian State coach Scott Satterfield said of a potential upset. “I mean, there’s not anybody on this team that was around during that time. It’s a completely different team. Back then we were coming off a couple of national championships with a lot of the same players that were coming back, offensively and defensively.”
This matchup actually is ideal for the Bulldogs. While the offense hopes just to stay healthy, the defense will look to continue the improvement it has shown in the past three outings.
Georgia hasn’t given up 400 yards to an opponent since the Oct. 12 win at Tennessee. And the Mountaineers run an up-tempo, run-oriented spread offense similar to the one Auburn is employing to great effect under first-year coach Gus Malzahn.
“This game is about us,” Bulldogs linebacker Amarlo Herrera said. “We have to go out there and show what we can do. This is a chance for us to go out and try and play perfect. They have a good quarterback and have a couple of receivers who are able to go up and make a play on the ball.
“Everybody still has to step up and play as hard as we did last week. I don’t think anybody can stop our guys if we do that again this week.”
