While Georgia’s impending SEC Championship matchup with LSU isn’t a home game, it might as well be in the eyes of the Bulldogs.
Georgia has a significant level of comfort playing in Mercedes-Benz Stadium, which is only an hour and a half from Sanford Stadium.
“We take a lot of pride in playing there,” sophomore defensive back Javon Bullard said. “This is the University of Georgia, so we feel that this is our state. We played there earlier this year and last season, so it means a lot to us, and we want to make sure we can go out there and be victorious in this game.”
The Bulldogs play in Atlanta often due to being perennial mainstays in the SEC Championship game. Georgia’s most recent trip to Atlanta came in its 49-3 win over Oregon in the Chick-fil-A kickoff game in September.
Even so, Georgia hasn’t played phenomenally in Mercedes-Benz with a cumulative record of 3-4 since it was opened for play in August 2017. Still, the Bulldogs see it as a home field each time they travel there.
“We always treat Atlanta like its our backyard, like we’re down the road in Sanford,” junior defensive lineman Zion Logue said. “We do treat it like a home-field advantage. Going off of playing Oregon earlier this year and how many other countless times we’ve played there in the past, just try to use that to our advantage.”
One of those four losses came to LSU in the 2019 SEC Championship game, where the Bulldogs were crushed 37-10 by the eventual national champion Tigers.
While LSU isn’t in a position to make another championship run, it will be looking to play spoiler to the undefeated Bulldogs.
“Coming off a loss is when the Tigers are the most dangerous Tigers,” Logue said. “We just know we gotta go in there with the right mindset from the start of the game to the end of the game. So, we gotta just play. Don’t think just because Texas A&M beat them, they’re not gonna come ready to play. (They will because) it’s the University of Georgia.”
Nevertheless, Georgia isn’t coming into the game with a special motivation or sense of urgency. It’s the same as every other week -- just with the elusive conference championship on the line.
“Nah, not at all. We’ll attack this week just like we attack any other week and attack this game like we’d attack any other game,” Bullard said. “It’s the same thing. We’re still gonna have the same type of practices. The energy is still there. If anything, it’s more energy. Nothing’s off at all.”
