Nolan Smith to serve as ESPN College GameDay guest picker for Georgia vs. Ole Miss
Former Georgia star Nolan Smith is set to serve as the celebrity guest picker on ESPN’s College GameDay this week, he announced via Instagram. Smith is currently playing in the NFL for the Philadelphia Eagles, who are on a bye this week.
College GameDay is making the trip to Athens this week for Georgia’s highly anticipated game against Ole Miss, which will mark a homecoming for Smith. He played for the Bulldogs from 2019-22 and helped the program win back-to-back national championships before heading to the NFL.
“Nolan Smith here, outside linebacker for the Philadelphia Eagles. I’m not a celebrity, but I will be your guest picker at 11:30 on Saturday, and you know who I’m rooting for,” Smith said in the video. “Come watch me talk trash on the stage and I will be back in Athens for the first time in a long time. Go Dawgs and the Philly Dawgs coming at you.”
In his time with Georgia, Smith totaled 110 tackles, 20.0 tackles for loss and 12.5 sacks as a key part of the Bulldogs defense. However, his senior season ended prematurely as he suffered a torn pectoral muscle that kept him out of the SEC Championship and College Football Playoff.
The Eagles then selected Smith with the No. 30 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, and he joined the growing list of former Bulldogs to play in Philadelphia. Through nine games of his rookie season, he has seven tackles and a sack.
A closer look at Saturday’s matchup between Georgia, Ole Miss
Georgia and Ole Miss find themselves in the top 10 of the CFP rankings this week. The Bulldogs held strong at No. 2 for the second straight week after handling No. 12 Mizzou on Saturday. UGA made some big defensive plays, none bigger than Nazir Stackhouse’s late interception, to help get the 30-21 victory and improve to 9-0 on the season.
As for the Rebels, they found themselves in a back-and-forth affair with Texas A&M last week in what turned out to be a 38-35 shootout. Jaxson Dart had a huge day, throwing for 387 yards and two touchdowns, while Quinshon Judkins had 102 yards and three touchdowns on the ground as the Ole Miss offense was firing on all cylinders.
Georgia and Ole Miss will square off Saturday at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN from Sanford Stadium with College GameDay in attendance.