PREVIEW: Georgia vs. Alabama by the numbers

ATLANTA — Alabama and Georgia football have been on a collision course since the last time they met in the College Football Playoff Championship Game last January.

The Crimson Tide won that battle 26-23 in overtime, and Alabama is a big favorite to beat the Bulldogs once again in the SEC Championship Game in Atlanta.

The No. 1-ranked Crimson Tide has dominated the season in historical fashion, ringing up a 12-0 record by defeating every opponent by 20 points or more.

Georgia is 11-1 and ranked No. 5 in the CFB Playoff Rankings but sure to move up to at least No. 4 when the new order is released Tuesday night.

Georgia, like Alabama, has a process that starts with an intense focus on recruiting and carries into daily competition on the practice field.

Here’s a look at how the teams compare in the NCAA statistics as well as against common opponents and with schedule strength:

TOTAL OFFENSE
1. Oklahoma, 583.8 yards per game
4. Alabama, 538.0
13. Georgia, 480.8

SCORING OFFENSE
1. Oklahoma, 50.3
2. Alabama, 49.0
13. Georgia, 40.1

RUSHING OFFENSE
1. Georgia Tech, 334.9
11. Georgia, 259.8
32. Alabama, 205.9

PASSING YARDAGE OFFENSE
1. Washington State, 379.8 yards per game
6. Alabama, 332.1
T-72. Georgia, 221.0

PASS EFFICIENCY
1. Alabama, 208.51 rating
3. Georgia, 177.72

THIRD DOWN CONVERSION %
1. Army, .571
3. Alabama, .534
7. Georgia, .496

TOTAL DEFENSE
1. Michigan, 262.5 yards per game
6. Alabama, 282.2
12. Georgia, 303.5

SCORING DEFENSE
1. Mississippi State, 12.0 points per game
3. Alabama, 13.8
10. Georgia, 17.2

RUSHING DEFENSE
1. Michigan State, 81.3 yards per game
15. Alabama, 114.0
27. Georgia, 128.4

PASSING YARDAGE DEFENSE
1. Michigan, 139.4 yards per game
10. Alabama, 168.2
T-13. Georgia, 175.1

PASS EFFICIENCY DEFENSE
1. Mississippi State, 97.27
7. Alabama, 103.29
29. Georgia, 116.84

THIRD DOWN CONVERSION % DEFENSE
1. Miami, Fla., .237
9. Alabama, .309
13. Georgia, .317

NET PUNTING
1. Texas A&M, 44.96 yards net per punt
46. Georgia, 38.31
118. Alabama, 34.00

KICKOFF RETURN
1. Utah State, 29.68 yards per return
16. Georgia, 24.13
24. Alabama, 23.48

PUNT RETURN
1. Minnesota, 22.25 yards per return
7. Georgia, 17.50
18. Alabama, 13.80

KICK RETURN DEFENSE
1. New Mexico, 14.89 yards per return
67. Alabama, 20.81
128. Georgia, 31.30

PUNT RETURN DEFENSE
1. Arkansas State, (-) 1.88 per return
2. Alabama, 0.50
50. Georgia, 7.00

QUARTERBACK SACKS
1. Northern Illinois, 3.83 per game
5. Alabama, 3.33 per game
T-101. Georgia, 1.67 per game

QB SACKS ALLOWED
1. Army, 0.18 per game
9. Alabama, 0.92 per  game
T-23. Georgia, 1.33 per game

TACKLES-FOR-LOSS
1. Miami, Fla., 10.5 per game
T-14. Alabama, 7.7
T-118. Georgia, 4.3

TACKLES-FOR-LOSS ALLOWED
1. Army, 3.00 per game
12. Alabama, 4.17 per game
15. Georgia, 4.42 per game

FEWEST PENALTY YARDS
1. Northwestern, 320 yards
48. Georgia, 595
62. Alabama, 640

TURNOVER MARGIN
1. Georgia Southern, +1.83 per game
T-9. Alabama, +0.83
T-44. Georgia, +0.25

TIME OF POSSESSION
1. Army, 39:15 per game
28. Georgia, 31:42
T-58. Alabama, 30:13

SCHEDULE STRENGTH (Per USA Today Sagarin Ratings)
1. UCLA, 78.18
28. Georgia, 74.23
55. Alabama, 71.41

COMMON OPPONENTS

AUBURN
Georgia 27, Auburn 10 (UGA 516 yards, Auburn 274)
Alabama 52, Auburn 21 (Bama 500 yards, Auburn 283)

TENNESSEE
Georgia 38, Tennessee 12 (UGA 441 yards, UT 209)
Alabama 58, Tennessee 21 (Bama 545, UT 258)

MISSOURI
Georgia 43, Missouri 29 (UGA 445 yards, Mizz 393)
Alabama 39, Missouri 10 (Bama 564, Mizz 212)

LSU
LSU 36, Georgia 16 (UGA 322 yards, LSU 475)
Alabama 29, LSU 0 (Bama 576, LSU 196)

This article was written by Mike Griffith, DawgNation.

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