On paper, No. 5 Georgia shouldn’t have a tough time with Mississippi State in Athens, Ga., on Saturday afternoon.
However, with the recent upsets in the Southeastern Conference, Bulldogs coach Kirby Smart knows anything is on the table.
“Nothing shocks me about our league,” Smart said. “Humility is always a week away in this league. It’s hard every week, and I’ve got a feeling it’s not going to stop anytime soon.”
Last Saturday alone, then-No. 1 Alabama fell to Vanderbilt, then-No. 4 Tennessee lost to Arkansas, and then-No. 9 Missouri was blown out by No. 25 Texas A&M. Not falling victim to an upset, Georgia handled Auburn 31-13, improving to 4-1 overall and 2-1 in SEC play.
Trevor Etienne, who has proved to be one of most explosive weapons on Georgia’s offense, carried much of the load against the Tigers.
Etienne rushed for a season-high 88 yards and two touchdowns and made six receptions for 36 yards. After missing the season opener against Clemson, the Florida transfer is being relied on as a leader in his new home.
“I thought (Travis) performed really well Saturday,” Smart said. “He made some things happen with nothing there and then had a couple that I thought maybe should have gotten more on that he’s one step away from breaking one open and using his quickness.
“He’s got really good open-field skills to make people miss, and I think that’s something that we’ve needed around here. He’s a really good receiver out of the backfield. More important than all that, he’s one of our best leaders. He holds people accountable. He’s a good kid, and I appreciate the way he’s come into our team and bought into the culture that we have here.”
Now, Georgia is preparing for Mississippi State (1-4, 0-2), which is led by freshman quarterback Michael Van Buren Jr. After starter Blake Shapen suffered a season-ending shoulder injury in a loss to Florida on Sept. 21, Van Buren was thrown into the gauntlet of conference play.
A game-and-a-half into his college career, Van Buren has thrown for 244 yards and has one score on the ground. Most recently, he completed just 12 of 23 passes in a 35-13 loss at No. 1 Texas on Sept. 28 in his first career start.
“I’ll tell you, he got thrown into the fire quick,” Smart said of Van Buren. “I mean, in the middle of an SEC game to have to go in and play and then turn around the next week and go to Texas. Those were two really tough games, but he’s a tremendous athlete.”
Mississippi State is still searching for the first marquee win of the Jeff Lebby era.
The first-year coach picked up a win over Eastern Kentucky in the season opener, but his team has dropped four straight games, including 41-17 to Toledo on Sept. 14. The road will only get more difficult for Mississippi State against Georgia.
“It’s going to be an incredible challenge for a true freshman quarterback to go play the way we need him to play to give us a chance to win,” Lebby said of Van Buren. “But he’s a young man that is focused on doing just that. … Everybody inside that locker room has confidence in Michael to be able to give us a chance.”
