Coming off a much-needed bye week, Auburn is set to host No. 10 Georgia on Saturday for the Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry after a two-game road skid.
Following back-to-back losses against current No. 6 Oklahoma and No. 5 Texas A&M, the Tigers will look for their first ranked win against a top-10 squad since 2021. They will also be in search of their first win over the Bulldogs, who lead the all-time series 65-56, since 2017.
Led by 10th-year veteran head coach Kirby Smart, Georgia is coming off a 35-14 win over Kentucky and enters with a 4-1 overall record.
Here is a look at the Tigers’ Week 7 opponent:
Another big test for the Tigers
Obviously, Auburn hoped to be sitting in a better spot after its first two conference games. The Tigers lost both contests by a mere 13 points and walked away from both thinking they should/could have won.
But they didn’t, and they’re hoping to win their first game in SEC play against a juggernaut in Georgia.
However, that’s a lot easier said than done.
The Bulldogs enter this one with 438.6 yards per game on offense while giving up 313.2 yards on defense. Defensively, the Bulldogs are 13th nationally against the run, allowing just 82 yards per game. Allowing just 18.4 points per game, the Bulldogs have shut down their opponents in 10 quarters this season.
Offensively, Georgia is recording 206 yards per game on the ground and has surpassed the 200-yard mark in two games. Its least productive day rushing came against Kentucky with 183 yards.
Players to know
QB Gunner Stockton
After seeing action throughout the 2024 season as a reserve behind Carson Beck, Stockton made a grand appearance in last year’s SEC Championship game versus Texas and assumed starting duties in Athens this offseason.
This year, Stockton has tossed for 1,047 yards and six touchdowns. A gritty running threat, he’s rushed for a team-high five scores and 194 yards. He went the first four games without throwing an interception,157 consecutive passing attempts, until last week against Kentucky.
After a strong showing in his 2025 debut, Stockton became the first Georgia player to have two passing touchdowns and two rushing scores in a season opener in the past 80 years.
He’ll be making his second SEC road start this season in a hostile environment on Saturday.
RB’s Chauncey Bowens
Paving the way for Georgia’s potent rushing attack, Bowens has recorded a team-high 310 yards rushing with three scores. He recorded his first career start last week against Kentucky and ran for 70 yards on a career-high 15 carries – a week after tumbling for a career-high 119 yards in a loss to Alabama. He is the only Bulldogs rusher to go over 100 yards this season.
His counterpart, Nate Frazier, started the first four games and is second on the team with 253 yards and two scores on 50 carries, giving the Bulldogs a solid 1-2 punch in the backfield.
WR’s Colbie Young and Zachariah Branch
Statistically, these two are neck-and-neck and are easily Stockton’s favorite targets out wide.
Young has recorded 247 receiving yards on 18 receptions with one touchdown. He has posted 70-plus yards in two outings and tallied a team-high four receptions for 59 yards in the Bulldogs’ loss to Alabama.
Branch, a speedy wideout who is a threat out of the backfield as well, is second on the team with 234 yards on 18 catches and two scores. He had a team-high five catches for 69 yards in the road win over Tennessee. In that game, he registered a 36-yard score and caught the game-tying two-point conversion, ultimately sending Georgia to an overtime win. He hauled in three receptions for a total of 95 yards and a touchdown in the season opener against Marshall, and is a threat on special teams as a returner as well.
LB CJ Allen
The top tackler for the Bulldogs this season, with 36 total stops, Allen is the leader in the middle of the Georgia defense.
Allen notched his first career forced fumble and fumble recovery in last week’s win over Kentucky. He collected a team-best eight stops against Alabama and posted a career-high 11 stops with two quarterback pressures against Tennessee.
LB Raylen Wilson
Wilson comes into this one with the second-best mark on the defense, recording 32 tackles.
He posted a career-best nine stops and three quarterback pressures against Tennessee. Additionally, he is one of just four Bulldogs to record a sack on the season.
Quick Game Overview
Simply put, Auburn needs to see an offensive resurgence in this one. It’s paramount that the Tigers establish a run game in the early goings and don’t leave everything up to their defense, yet again. The Bulldogs will most likely do what the last two SEC opponents have done: make Auburn beat them through the air. And Auburn simply hasn’t shown it can do that yet.
Georgia is going to run the ball; it has done so at a high level in every game thus far. It has a slew of talent out wide for Stockton to throw to. Auburn’s defense is certainly capable of holding the Bulldogs’ offense at bay. But if the Tigers see another offensive performance that resembles that of two weeks ago, they will be in for a long night under the lights in Jordan-Hare Stadium.
The Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry will kick off at 6:30 p.m. CT on ABC on Saturday.