Missouri Tigers football vs. Georgia Bulldogs: Prediction, TV, kickoff time, bet line
THE DETAILS
When: 11 a.m. Saturday
Where: Memorial Stadium, Columbia, Missouri
TV: SEC Network
Betting line: Georgia by 13
Radio: KMBZ (98.1 FM)
PREDICTION
It was delayed just about a month, but the Missouri Tigers and Georgia Bulldogs will finally play this season. And it’ll come with a fun wrinkle: a ranked matchup. It’ll be No. 25 Mizzou vs. No. 9 Georgia on Saturday, courtesy of the College Football Playoff committee listing the Tigers. MU’s won five of its last six games, an impressive feat in Mizzou coach Eliah Drinkwitz’s first season.
It’s been an unpredictable yet successful first year for Drinkwitz as he’s guided the Tigers to a 5-3 record. He’s had to navigate a pandemic and a slew of other issues, but he enters this game with plenty of momentum.
Now, he gets a shot at one of the SEC East’s premier teams in Georgia. The Bulldogs and Florida have won the last six division titles, putting them at the elite level the Tigers are striving to get back to. Ever since Drinkwitz has taken over, his stated goal has been to win the SEC East. That’s not happening this year, but beating Georgia would make a statement to the rest of the conference.
That is, of course, easier said than done. Georgia has a quarterback now in USC transfer J.T. Daniels, who’s played the past two games. He has a slew of weapons at his disposal, too, despite the Bulldogs having a mixed performance offensively this season. Where Mizzou will run into problems is facing the Kirby Smart-led defense. Drinkwitz called it a “clone” of the Alabama defense, which makes sense considering Smart comes from Alabama coach Nick Saban’s coaching tree.
It’ll be a hectic day Saturday between No. 9 Georgia coming into town for football, while No. 6 Illinois visits Mizzou Arena for a men’s basketball game. That gives both squads an opportunity to chase history.
We’ll say it’s a close game all day Saturday. When the Bulldogs score, the Tigers find a way to figure out that pesky defense themselves. But Georgia pulls away in a close one at the end, showing that, at least for one year, Mizzou still has some ways to go.
Georgia 28, Missouri 24