Rivalry now for Dogs, SEC next
The Southeastern Conference season looms this weekend. So an attention-getter should help prepare Georgia for the league grind.
Continue reading the rest of "Rivalry now for Dogs, SEC next" by Athens Banner-Herald
Georgia's game with backyard rival Georgia Tech should provide the atmosphere, intensity and level of play to equal an SEC matchup, except the result doesn't count in the conference standings.
"It really gets you ready to play a high-caliber team before you go play in the highest-caliber part of the season in conference," said Georgia center Albert Jackson, who is from Earlington, Ky. "The minute I stepped on campus, I came to understand the importance of the Florida and the Georgia Tech rivalry. It's kind of one of those pre-understood things that comes to you when you come here.
"It's kind of like putting on the uniform. It just comes to you and I've really bought into it. It's an amazing atmosphere for both teams to play in," Jackson continued. "It's always fun to compete against the guys from right down the street that you get to see during the summer. It's fun to compete against them with the fans going crazy."
Georgia (7-5) plays 20th-ranked Georgia Tech (11-2) at 7 p.m. today at Stegeman Coliseum. Although the game will be played in Athens, the crowd might not be as pro-Bulldogs as it could be. Classes at Georgia do not begin until Thursday, so many students have not returned from their holiday break.
"The timing of this game is a little unique, I guess," Georgia coach Mark Fox said. "You'd like to play a rivalry game when your students are here and I don't know if many of them are going to be back or not. It's like another league game. It's like a 17th league game."
Georgia and Georgia Tech share the same backyard and the coaches often cross paths on the recruiting trail. Many players on both teams come from the Atlanta area and have a long history together.
"It makes it a little bit sweeter for whoever wins," Georgia forward Trey Thompkins said. "Whoever wins, after the game, they get to talk a little bit more smack for one more year and that's important."
Thompkins is a close friend of Georgia Tech freshman forward Derrick Favors. Thompkins lobbied Favors to come to Georgia before he decided to stay closer to home at Georgia Tech.
"We've known each other since we were about 13 years old," Thompkins said. "He knows my game and I know his game. He's going to give me his best punch and I'm going to give him mine."
Georgia comes off of a flat performance in an 89-61 loss at Missouri on Saturday. The Bulldogs committed 23 turnovers. Thompkins, the team's leading scorer, played just 16 minutes and eventually fouled out with nine points.
"You always want to beat your rival, whether it's in high school or college or anywhere," Georgia guard Dustin Ware said. "The main thing for us is to come back strong from losing to Missouri. We need to bounce back and show that we're ready to compete."
Georgia Tech could be a tough matchup for a team looking to regain its confidence. The Yellow Jackets are off to thei
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