Rivalry games highlight the best college football games of the week

(24) Auburn at (5) Georgia – 7:00 pm – ESPN

In the 123rd edition of The Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry, Auburn will travel to Athens to play the Georgia Bulldogs.

Since losing to LSU in Death Valley, the Bulldogs have reeled off back-to-back dominant performances against Top-10 teams. Last weekend, Georgia improved to 8-1 and clinched their second straight SEC East title after crushing Kentucky on the road. The victory set up a December 1st showdown with Alabama in the SEC Championship game, with the winner being a near lock for a College Football Playoff spot.

However, the Bulldogs can’t overlook the Tigers this weekend, who will be looking to set the stage for their season finally against Alabama in the Iron Bowl. That said, if the Bulldogs continue to commit to the run, they should have no problem controlling this game from start to finish.

Although Auburn is only 6-3 on the season, they have shown they can compete in a big game. The Tigers were able to beat Washington in their season opener, suffered a 1-point loss to LSU, and took down No. 20 Texas A&M last weekend.

Outside of their lopsided loss to Mississippi State, Auburn has shown flashes of why they were ranked in the top-10 to open the season. Quarterback Jarrett Stidham and the Tigers offense will come to play, but their defense must find a way to slow down Georgia’s stable of running backs to give Auburn the opportunity to upset the Bulldogs.

Georgia has been in this position before and knows how to handle business heading down the stretch in the SEC. The Bulldogs will run the ball effectively and control the game from start to finish.