The annual rivalry between the No. 17 Florida Gators and No. 3 Georgia Bulldogs moves indoors to Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta for Week 9 of the college football season, with kickoff set for 3:30 p.m. ET. Jacksonville's traditional venue is under renovation, shifting the "World's Biggest Outdoor Cocktail Party" to a neutral dome. Georgia enters as an 11.5-point favorite with an over/under of 56.5 points, and the Bulldogs are -455 on the money line.
Georgia has dominated the series recently, winning the last five meetings by 14 or more points. The Bulldogs aim to rebound from a 27-24 home loss to Auburn, while Florida arrives after a 27-24 road upset of Texas. Both teams rank in the top 10 nationally in scoring offense, with Georgia averaging 39.7 points per game and Florida 37.5.
Quarterback Gunner Stockton leads Georgia's attack with 1,570 passing yards and 16 touchdowns. Florida's quarterback situation remains unclear; Aaron Philo is dealing with a shoulder issue and Tramell Jones Jr. has also practiced, but coach Jon Sumrall has not named a starter. Running back Jadan Baugh has emerged as Florida's primary weapon, rushing for 763 yards and 13 touchdowns.
Defensively, Georgia has held opponents to 20 points or fewer in all but one game this season. Florida's defense stabilized against Texas, limiting the Longhorns to 24 points after allowing 38 and 45 to South Carolina and Missouri respectively.
The SportsLine Projection Model, which simulates each FBS game 10,000 times, projects a combined 51 points and favors the Under 56.5, hitting in 63% of simulations. The model also indicates one side of the spread covers nearly 60% of the time. SportsLine's model enters Week 9 on a 68-59 run on top-rated college football picks, returning nearly $400 for $100 players.
