GEORGIA OFFENSE VS. KENTUCKY DEFENSE:

This game has the makings of a coming out party for Bulldogs QB Matthew Stafford. Stafford is 3-1 as a starter, but he took a step back last week against the Gators. Turnovers have hurt him badly. Stafford has thrown three touchdowns and nine interceptions. UF cornerback Ryan Smith said he picked up on Stafford's signals, knew which route was coming, and intercepted one of his passes. But the Kentucky defense is not a good one. The Wildcats allow an average of 269.8 yards per game in the air (and a staggering 185.9 yards on the ground). Stafford's main target, Mohamed Massaquoi is hobbling but he will play. The big news is the benching of TE Martrez Milner following his butterfingers display against the Gators. Tripp Chandler will start in his place. Georgia should try to isolate freshman CB Paul Warford, who was beaten for a 75 yard touchdown last weekend.

At the line of scrimmage, Georgia has done a great job protecting the quarterback this year. The line has allowed only 13 sacks, but it performed poorly against UF. When it comes to pressuring the quarterback, Kentucky is not UF. Not even close. One of the reasons the pass defense has struggled is the lack of pressure put on opposing quarterbacks. There is no reason to think that Stafford won't have his opportunities to have a big game.

Kentucky is bad against the run, but the Bulldogs have lacked explosiveness out of the backfield since Thomas Brown was lost for the year with an injury. Kregg Lumpkin and Danny Ware carry the ball now for the Dawgs. While they lack greatness, the advantage still goes to the Bulldogs until Kentucky proves it can stop the running game. UK linebacker Wesley Woodyard leads the way defensively with 71 tackles. The one thing that the Wildcats do well is force turnovers. They are second in the SEC and 14th in the nation with a +8 turnover margin. Free safety Marcus McClinton and defensive lineman Myron Pryor have been great at forcing fumbles. This should concern the Bulldogs considering the frequent fumbles and interceptions that plagued them against UF.

Kentucky's best chance defensively is to take away the big play and force Stafford into mistakes. This is not unrealistic. Georgia's offensive a methodical one, not a quick-strike one. You can expect the Bulldogs to gain a lot of yards, but can the Wildcats stop drives by getting the key interception or fumble recovery?

KENTUCKY OFFENSE VS. GEORGIA DEFENSE:

You may not know it, but the Wildcats have a solid passing game thanks to the production of junior QB Andre Woodson, the SEC's leader in touchdowns. Woodson threw for 284 yards last weekend at MSU, and he averages 240 yards per game. More importantly, he has thrown 18 TDs and only 5 INTs. The Georgia secondary, led by CB Tra Battle, is better than the numbers would indicate. Defensive struggles on this team are often the result of the Bulldogs offense failing to stay on the field. For Kentucky, WR Dicky Lyons Jr. proclaimed that Kentucky is better than Georgia and UK should win this game. Lyons and Keenan Burton are both good receivers, and they are big play threats. Watch out for Lyons in the red zone.

The injury bug has destroyed the Kentucky offensive line. Seven linemen are out for this game, and five are gone for the season. That's great news for Georgia DE Quentin Moses. At this point, I can't say that Moses is a threat. He is a guy who entered the season as one of the best at his position, but has barely made any noise in 2006. Against Florida, Moses did practically nothing. The other defensive end, Charles Johnson, is a lot more likely to create problems for Kentucky. Overall, the Bulldogs hold an advantage at the line of scrimmage because of the injuries to the Kentucky O-line. It should be noted that the Wildcats did not allow any sacks last week, but I would be surprised to see that happen again.

On the ground, the talented freshman Alfonso Smith is likely to start due to injuries at the position. Star tailback Rafael Little is still recovering from arthroscopic surgery. Smith has averaged 4.1 yards per carry, but he'll be in for a challenge against the Bulldogs. The Georgia linebackers are an impressive group. Tony Taylor and Jarvis Jackson are the stars, but Brandon Miller can play too. Jackson is all over the field, and Taylor is a big hitter. Somehow, every member of the secondary is among the top six in tackles on the team. That means that running backs are getting past the linemen and linebackers. The Bulldogs seems too talented to be allowing 104 rushing yards per game, but they are.

Kentucky takes care of the ball and knows how to pass. They'll stick to what they do best and let Woodson try to win this game for them. The key, as always, will be protecting the quarterback. But Kentucky offensively will have one major thing going for them. That's confidence. The Wildcats believe they can beat Georgia and they believe they can move the ball on the Bulldogs defense.

SPECIAL TEAMS:

For Georgia, Thomas Brown was terrific on kickoff returns, but his injury has slowed down the attack. Kickoff returns are not Georgia's specialty, but punt returns are usually pretty good. PR Mikey Henderson is always a threat to go the distance. He has taken two back this year. The kicking game took a hit when kicker Brandon Coutu was lost for the year. Andy Bailey has done a nice job in his place, going 5-6 in FG attempts with a long of 34 yards. Punter Gordon Ely-Kelso averages 41.1 yards per attempt.

Kentucky is second in the SEC in kickoff returns, averaging 25.3 yards per return. The Cats also have the best punt return average in the SEC at 17.4 yards. Keep your eyes on Keenan Burton. He gains 27.3 yards per kickoff return. The placekicker, Lones Seiber, is accurate under 40 yards (3-4), but only 2-4 in kicks 40 yards or longer. The punter is Tim Masthay, and he averages 39.3 yards per punt, with one punt blocked this year.

There is no obvoius advantage on special teams in this game.

PREDICTION:

I don't blame the Wildcats for being confident. This is obviously not last year's Georgia Bulldogs. Kentucky is steadily improving under Coach Rich Brooks, and this is Homecoming, so that never hurts. But I think Georgia wins this game on a big performance from Stafford. Defensively, Kentucky just isn't there yet. It will be close, but the Bulldogs come through.

Georgia 30
Kentucky 20