"Perhaps no SEC program has blindsided Mark Richt's Georgia teams more viciously than Tennessee," David Ching writes for ESPN.com's DawgNation blog.
Which is why the No. 5 Bulldogs won't be overlooking the visiting Volunteers this weekend, though the 3-1 Vols are a 14-point underdog.
Ching's preview dredges up painful 2004 and 2007 defeats in which Tennessee helped deprive Georgia of SEC championships. 2009 wasn't so great, either.
"If series history has proven anything, it's that Tennessee -- even when a decided underdog -- has a habit of delivering unsettling losses to unfocused Georgia teams," Ching writes.
Threat or no, third-year Tennessee coach Derek Dooley finds himself under a lot of scrutiny in Knoxville. Dooley, 14-15 overall, and 4-13 in the SEC, could have his job on the line this season, The Macon Telegraph's Seth Emerson reports.
"He knows what the situation is," Dooley's dad, former UGA coach Vince Dooley, told Emerson on Monday. "I can't give him a lot of advice. What I can give him is pretty obvious, in what he needs to do. He needs to get better players."
Georgia's players, meanwhile, are doing all right for themselves. The offense is getting particular praise, with Emerson reporting that Georgia tops the SEC for points scored and yards gained so far this season. The team has put up more than 40 points in four straight games.
Offensive coordinator Mike Bobo, who'd been in the doghouse for a couple of years over accusations of running a plodding offensive scheme, is now getting credit for creativity.
For receiver and Memphis native Marlon Brown, Saturday is an opportunity to play at 100 percent strength against a team that heavily recruited him a few years ago. Brown was booed in Knoxville when he appeared there as a freshman.
“I can’t wait,” Brown said in a Morris News Service report. “I’m really, really excited to play Tennessee. I’m healthy this year."
The Georgia-Tennessee game will be one of the biggies in the SEC this week. Florida, Auburn, Mississippi State and Vanderbilt have the week off.
Will Tennessee surprise Georgia again, or are those days over?
