All offseason and even into the opening week of the 2026 season, the Week 4 matchup between Oklahoma and Georgia was billed as must-see television and one of the marquee games of the entire season.
But stuff happens and things do change, and in the case of the once 11th-ranked Sooners, things have not gone as most OU fans, and even quite a few in the media, expected. As a result, the importance, as well as the interest, in Saturday's game at Sanford Stadium in Athens, Georgia, has diminished precipitously.
But the game is still on the schedule, and it will be played. The biggest question is: Can Oklahoma make it a competitive game against the nation's No. 2-ranked team, or will things go sideways early and turn ugly, as many now fear?
There isn't much doubt that the Sooner defense, which over the last two years has evolved into one of the best in college football, will make the Georgia offense earn everything it gets on Saturday.
The real question is: How will the struggling Oklahoma offense manage to advance the ball, move the chains and put enough points on the scoreboard to win the game when it has reached the red zone just one time in the last two games and averaged 12 points a game? And, oh, by the way, Georgia may have a better defense than the Sooners do this season.
Oklahoma goes into the game at Georgia -- the Sooners' first-ever time "Between the Hedges," which is how Georgia fans refer to football games played there -- with a 2-1 record to open the season. While that's hardly a record to be ashamed of, the woeful performance of the OU offense in the past two games against Michigan and New Mexico makes it seem more like 1-2. Were it not for the Sooners' strong defensive stands last weekend vs. New Mexico, that's exactly what it would be.
Georgia has had a relatively easy time of it so far, winning its first three games, including a 45-17 road victory over SEC foe Arkansas this past weekend, by an average margin of 46 points. The Bulldogs are the reigning SEC champions and have won the conference title three of the last four years. They were again the favorite to win the conference in this season's SEC Preseason Media Poll.
Oklahoma and Georgia have played each other in football just one time previously. That was in the memorable semifinal round of the 2017 College Football Playoff, when Georgia overcame a 14-point halftime deficit to defeat Baker Mayfield and the No. 2-seeded Sooners 54-48 in overtime.
How to watch Oklahoma vs. Georgia
When: 2:30 p.m. CT Saturday
Watch: ESPN (watch using fuboTV free trial)
Announcers: Bob Wischusen (play-by-play), Louis Riddick (analyst) and Stormy Buonantony (sideline reporter)
What to know about Georgia
- Georgia not only is the best team in the SEC statistically so far this season, but ranks No. 1 in the country in scoring offense (59.3) and No. 4 in total offense (539 yards per game). The Bulldogs are equally elite on the defensive side of the ball: No. 3 nationally in stopping the run (45.7 yards per game) and No. 7 in total defense (211.3). (By contrast, Oklahoma ranks 9th in the country in total defense, allowing 215.3 yards per game).
- Since the 2021 season, Georgia owns the best record in the FBS at 68-7 (.907), including back-to-back national titles in 2021 and 2022. The Bulldogs are perfect through the first three games this season and like to hit their opponents in the mouth right from the start, outscoring the three teams they've played thus far (Tennessee State, Western Kentucky and Arkansas) 56-0 in the opening quarter.
- The Georgia offense is led by fifth-year quarterback Gunner Stockton, who owns a 15-3 record as a starter. He has an NCAA-best 259.3 passing efficiency rating this season and has completed a remarkable 84.4% of his passes, which ranks second-best at the FBS level. Stockton has nine touchdown passes this season and only seven incompletions. As a team, Georgia has 12 touchdown passes through three games, distributed among 11 different receivers. Nate Frazier , who's questionable, is the leading weapon when the Bulldogs run the ball, averaging 67.0 yards per game and 8.4 yards per carry.
- The Bulldogs have made 19 trips inside the red zone this season. They've scored touchdowns on 17 of them.
What to know about Oklahoma
- Although Oklahoma dropped out of the Associated Press Top 25 this week (the votes received was equivalent to No. 29 nationally), the Sooners are at No. 24 this week in the Coaches Poll, down three spots from a week ago.
- The Sooners have lost several starters on both offense and defense in recent weeks. Offensive tackle Michael Fasusi, wide receiver Trell Harris, linebackers Kip Lewis and Cole Sullivan, and safety Michael Boganowski all missed last week's game against New Mexico. Even more notable, though, starting defensive tackle David Stone, arguably Oklahoma's best defensive player, suffered a dislocated knee in practice on Monday. Harris, Sullivan and Boganowski were all listed as out for Georgia in the initial availability report issued on Wednesday. Lewis was listed as probable and Stone as questionable to play.
- Through three games, Oklahoma ranks last in the SEC in total offense (329.7 yards per game) and next to last in both scoring offense (25.0) and rushing offense (110.3 yards per game). Nationally, those numbers translate to 123rd (out of 134 FBS teams) in rushing and 115th in total offense. Those figures aren't going to win you many games, especially in a conference as tough as the SEC.
- Outside of wide receiver Isaiah Sategna, the Sooners' best player on offense through the first three games has been tight end Rocky Beers. The Colorado State transfer has 10 catches for 171 yards and a touchdown. He's averaging 17.1 yards per catch.
Extra points
- The key matchup in this game is on third down when Georgia has the ball. The Bulldogs have been successful 62.1% of the time this season in third-down conversions, fourth-best in the nation. On the other side of the ball, Oklahoma ranks fifth nationally, stopping opponents 22% of the time on third-down attempts.
- Georgia is 58-5 when playing at home under Kirby Smart. The Bulldogs are 113-12 under Smart when they score 20 or more points and 87-3 when they score 30 or more.
- The Sooners are 7-12 all-time against teams ranked No. 2 in the AP Top 25 at the time the game was played. The last time Oklahoma played in such a game was at No. 2 Ohio State in 2017. The Sooners won that game 31-16.
Prediction
This is going to be an extremely difficult task for the Sooners. I'm not sure they could beat Georgia this season even if they were at full strength and living up to all of the preseason expectations. Most media sources have predicted Georgia to prevail in this game all along. That prediction has gotten even stronger over the past two weeks.
Georgia 38, Oklahoma 17
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