Defensively, Georgia endured a second-half meltdown last Saturday at home against Mississippi State and hopes to correct its issues this week in a top-10 showdown in Austin against No. 1 Texas.
Mississippi State freshman quarterback Michael Van Buren carved up the Bulldog secondary, completing 20 of 37 pass attempts for 306 yards, three touchdowns, and an interception in the loss.
“I think in the first half, we played a really good football game,” Georgia safety Malaki Starks said following the 41-31 victory over Mississippi State. “I think the second half we didn’t. I don’t think we’ve played a complete game of football yet. “It’s very frustrating because you want to put in the work. We talked all week about having pride in our performance, which is huge on the defensive side of the ball and offensive side, but, you know, we’ve got to find a way to finish better.”
Georgia’s pass defense needs to improve against the Longhorns, who currently rank No. 5 nationally in scoring offense (43.2 points per game) and No. 7 in total offense (495.7 yards per game).
Texas is led by veteran quarterback Quinn Ewers, who has passed for 890 yards, nine touchdowns, and three interceptions this year. The Longhorns have relied on Arch Manning as well. The redshirt freshman signal-caller has passed for 901 yards, nine touchdowns, and two picks.
Georgia doesn’t prepare differently for facing a team with two talented quarterbacks. The Bulldogs’ defensive unit embraces the challenge of facing Ewers and Manning in this top-five matchup.
“It doesn’t change how we prepare if they’re different style quarterbacks, but they’re not different style quarterbacks,” Georgia head coach Kirby Smart insisted on Monday. “They’re both good. “I’ll say this. You watch the games that Arch has played. He played well. He did some good things. Look at his numbers. He played, came out in the first couple of plays against Mississippi State, ripping it and firing it in his first SEC [game], and played well.
“Quinn is a great player, and they got a great quarterback every week. Your effort and technique are the number-one way to eliminate explosive plays.”
Georgia doesn’t rank in the nation’s top 50 units in pass-efficiency defense. Mississippi State proved the Bulldogs’ secondary has some issues to address at the midpoint of the regular season. However, Jackson and Georgia’s defense appear ready to face the challenges presented by the Texas offense.
“It’s another great SEC opponent,” Jackson said. “They have a very explosive offense. They have great skill players, a great running back, and a great quarterback, but thankfully so do we. We see that every week in practice. Every other week, the work we’ve put in on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday will give us the confidence to go out there and do what we need.”