SEC Championship Preview

Atlanta:

In a rematch of last year’s National Championship game, the Alabama Crimson Tide will take on the Georgia Bulldogs for the 2018 SEC crown on Saturday, December 1st.

In a battle of the two best teams in the SEC and arguably the country,  all eyes will be turned on the major war that will take place on the field between the Crimson Tide and the Bulldogs.

Last year’s game was one of the greatest College Football games of all time with the Crimson Tide edging out the Bulldogs 26-23. Tua Tagovailoa was an absolute monster in the second half of the Championship game last season leading Alabama in the second half to the program’s 17th National Championship.

On paper the Crimson Tide has advantages at just about every positions on the field, however, Georgia as of late has been playing their best football since last seasons run at the Championship.

Let’s take a look at each critical key position on the field in this game.

Quarterbacks:

Tua Tagovailoa vs. Jake Fromm

Advantage: Alabama

With an impressive  Heisman like the season, it’s a no-brainer to give the advantage to Tua Tagovailoa and the Crimson Tide. Tua has thrown for 3,189 yards, 36 TD, and only 2 INT.

Running backs:

Damien Harris vs. Elijah Holyfield

Advantage: Alabama

This one is much like the Quarterback battle that will take place on Saturday. Harris and the other three Alabama running backs have been putting up massive numbers this season.

Defense:

Alabama vs. Georgia

This matchup is the one matchup that is downright even, through every position on this side of the ball. Alabama and Georgia are neck and neck in every number when it comes to defense.

Advantage: Even

Here’s what both Coaches said about the game:

Nick Saban-

“Obviously we’re excited about the opportunity that we have to play in the SEC championship game. You’ve heard me before talk about what a great venue this is, what a great opportunity it is for players. It’s always a great competitive venue because you’re always playing against a very highly ranked, talented team. And there’s certainly no question about that when it comes to playing Georgia which is, in my opinion, one of the best, most complete teams in the country.”

“But I’m really proud of our guys for what they’ve been able to accomplish so far this year. This is why guys come to this school is they get to play in games like this against great teams, and this will be a great challenge for us.”

Kirby Smart-

“As we open up, we’re excited for the opportunity to play in the SEC Championship game. I think it’s a credit to the seniors on this team to be able to go to this game two years back to back, which sometimes can be difficult to do. And it’s an honor to be in it, playing one of the hottest teams in the country, one of the best teams in the country. And we know a lot about them. They know a lot about us. We had a short week last year to prepare for them, so it was kind of a short window, especially when you compare it to what we had to prepare for the first game, the Oklahoma game.”

“But they’ve got a great team. I don’t think anybody would argue that. They’ve got very few deficiencies in any area, talented quarterback, explosive offense, and the first thing you notice when they turn the tape on is how fast and how much they score. And they play some good teams in our conference and they still score a lot of points”

Both quarterbacks had this to say about the massive rematch:

Tua Tagovailoa-

“This is the new year. This is a new team. There’s new challenges that we’re faced with. We do understand that this is a really, really good defensive team. They’re really good offensively as well. They run a lot of things similar to what our defense runs. So with that being said, we’re looking forward to the challenges that we’re about to be faced with this Saturday.”

Jake Fromm-

“We’re excited to play in the SEC Championship and ready to defend our title.”

This game between the Bulldogs and the Crimson Tide is bound to be an all-out war between two of the best teams in the country. When Alabama and Georgia take the field on Saturday afternoon all of College Football will be watching the rematch of the century.

Broadcast information (SEC Championship)

TV- CBS, 2:00 CT (Brad Nessler, Gary Danielson, and Jamie Erdahl)

Mercedes- Benz Stadium