Hugh Freeze reveals what stands out to him about Georgia defense

In one of the more underrated games in Week 7 of the college football season, No. 10 Georgia travels to Auburn this weekend. It is a clash of historic SEC rivals.

The Bulldogs have opened SEC play with a 2-1 record, enjoying wins over No. 15 Tennessee and Kentucky. However, they once again fell to No. 17 Alabama two weeks ago, marking their 10th loss in the last 11 meetings between the two conference juggernauts. Things haven’t been going well for Hugh Freeze‘s Auburn Tigers, meanwhile, as they are 0-2 in conference play with losses to No. 11 Oklahoma and No. 9 Texas A&M.

In both of these losses, Auburn was within one score, but not protecting the quarterback sunk the Tigers. Quarterback Jackson Arnold was sacked nine times in their 24-17 loss to the Sooners, and he was sacked five times in their 16-10 loss to the Aggies two weeks ago.

Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze spoke highly of the Georgia defense during a media opportunity this week. The Bulldogs have won eight consecutive games in the rivalry, coming by an average score of 30-11. Auburn has scored more than 14 points just once (20 points in 2023) in a game against Georgia over that span.

Hugh Freeze speaks highly of Georgia’s defense

“I think their ability to adjust,” Freeze responded when asked what stands out the most to him about Georgia‘s defense. “If you look at how they go about adjusting, they’re still very talented. Those linebackers are as good as you’re going to see and the secondary is very talented. They’re big up front and maybe not as twitchy as some that you’ve seen, but boy they play their technique extremely well. They’re deep, but they adjust. I’ve played Kirby (Smart) a long time and if you hurt them with a play, you can be assured they’ll have an answer for the next time.

“He’ll have some sort of twist that we haven’t seen that will be prepared for us, but they’re certainly putting themselves in position to win most of their games. Even the Tennessee game, where they gave up a lot of points, that happens sometimes when teams get momentum. But their guys found a way to get stops when they had to in order to get the win, so they’re resilient also.”

Through five games this season, Georgia is allowing 313.2 YPG (8th best in SEC) and 18.4 PPG (8th best in SEC). While its defense hasn’t been quite as dominant as it’s been in recent years, Smart and his team are still getting results. It’s seeking its ninth consecutive win in the rivalry, dating back to 2017, this weekend in Jordan-Hare Stadium.

Kickoff between No. 10 Georgia and Auburn this Saturday is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET. The game can be seen on ABC.