Vanderbilt football vs. Georgia: Score prediction, scouting report

Vanderbilt football faces the last leg of its SEC-opening gauntlet this weekend with a trip to Athens to play Georgia. The Commodores (3-3, 0-2 SEC) are facing three top-10 opponents consecutively for the first time since the AP Poll began in 1936. The No. 2 Bulldogs (6-0, 3-0) may well be the toughest of those opponents as the reigning national champions.

On Saturday (2:30 p.m. CT, SEC Network), Vanderbilt will aim to perform better than last year's historic, 62-0 beatdown.

Here's what to know about the matchup:

THREE SIGNIFICANT STATSHere are three notable Vanderbilt football stats and what they mean

DEFENSIVE QUESTIONSCan it find a way to slow down Georgia?

MAILBAGs Nick Howell on the hot seat?

Georgia has a fearsome defense

Georgia has made its name on a ruthless, stifling defense and even after losing several starters to the NFL in the offseason, the Bulldogs still top the SEC in scoring defense and are second in the conference behind Alabama in total defense and passing efficiency defense.

Even Oregon, a Pac-12 contender, scored just three points on the Bulldogs, and Kent State was the only team to score multiple touchdowns against that defense.

Georgia's offense has stalled at times

Led by veteran quarterback Stetson Bennett, Georgia's offense can be great when it's clicking, but there have been times when the Bulldogs have stalled and settled for field goals, allowing inferior opponents to stick around.

Georgia has scored on 97.2% of its trips inside the red zone this season, but 11 of the 35 scores have been field goals.

Tight ends a big threat

Brock Bowers, a 6-foot-4, 230-pound tight end who was an All-American and the SEC Freshman of the Year in 2021, is arguably the best at his position in the country. He plays a variety of roles in the offense that aren't limited to those of a traditional tight end and leads the team in receiving yards, all-purpose yards, and receiving touchdowns and also has three rushing touchdowns. Georgia's other starter at tight end, Darnell Washington, is no slouch either. A 6-foot-7, 270 pound behemoth, Washington doesn't have as heavy of usage in the passing game but is a big-play threat when he is targeted.

Score prediction

Georgia 48, Vanderbilt 7: Similarly to Georgia's game against Auburn last week, Vanderbilt might be able to keep this one close for a bit, but the Bulldogs simply have far too many weapons.

Aria Gerson covers Vanderbilt athletics for The Tennessean. Contact her at agerson@gannett.com or on Twitter @aria_gerson.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Score prediction: Vanderbilt football scouting report vs. Georgia