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FACTS & STATS: Site: Sanford Stadium (86,117) -- Athens, Georgia. Television: FSN. Home Record: Mississippi State 1-1, Georgia 1-1. Away Record: Mississippi State 1-1, Georgia 1-0. Neutral Record: Mississippi State 0-0, Georgia 0-1. Conference Record: Mississippi State 0-2, Georgia 1-1. Series Record: Georgia leads, 16-6.

GAME NOTES: Two packs of SEC Bulldogs will do battle at Sanford Stadium in Athens this weekend, as Georgia entertains Mississippi State.

Since beating up on Memphis in the season opener, Mississippi State has clearly struggled. The team dropped back-to-back league affairs to Auburn and LSU before needing overtime to sneak past Louisiana Tech at home last week by a 26-20 final. Head coach Dan Mullen is fully aware that an 0-3 start to conference play would be impossible to overcome, so a victory this weekend is vital.

As for the other Bulldogs, Georgia got off to an 0-2 start, but the two losses came against outstanding opponents in Boise State and South Carolina. Fortunately for Mark Richt, his team has bounced back with two straight wins to even its overall record. Last week's win over Ole Miss on the road by a 27-13 final evened the Dawgs' SEC record at 1-1.

Georgia owns a 16-6 series advantage over Mississippi State, but MSU won last season's matchup by a 24-12 final.

Mississippi State put up huge offensive numbers in the season opener, but the club hasn't been nearly as explosive since. The Bulldogs, who are averaging 31.2 ppg and 427.2 total ypg, pick up over 200 ypg both on the ground and through the air. Vick Ballard is the offense's best player, as the tailback has run for 407 yards and five touchdowns while averaging 7.0 ypc. As for quarterback Chris Relf, he has completed 58 percent of his passes for 657 yards with four touchdowns and three interceptions.

Opponents are posting 23.5 ppg and 359.8 total ypg against a Mississippi State defense that can best be described as mediocre. The Bulldogs have come up with eight takeaways, including five interceptions, but they have yielded nine touchdowns to opposing offenses.

Last week against Louisiana Tech, Relf threw a 17-yard touchdown pass in overtime to claim the victory. Touchdowns were hard to come by for the MSU offense, as an 11-yard scoring scamper by Ballard in the second quarter marked the only time that the unit reached paydirt all afternoon. The only other regulation touchdown by Mississippi State came on an 82-yard punt return by Chad Bumphis.

MSU certainly could have played better defensively against Louisiana Tech, which finished with 359 total yards despite seemingly being outclassed in regard to overall team skill. To the credit of coach Mullen's team, however, it did notch three key takeaways.

Switching focus to Georgia, it continues to own Ole Miss, as last week's triumph over Ole Miss was the ninth straight for the program over the Rebels. Sophomore quarterback Aaron Murray continues to shine, as he threw a pair of touchdowns against the Rebels and finished with 268 yards through the air. Highly regarded freshman tailback Isaiah Crowell proved to be a workhorse, carrying the ball 30 times for 147 yards in the victory.

Sure, the Georgia offense played well in that win, but the team's defense was even better. The Bulldogs limited the Rebels to 183 total yards, including 34 rushing yards on 26 carries. The pass defense was tremendous as well, as Ole Miss was only able to completed 12-of-30 attempts.

Georgia is racking up 37.2 ppg this season while gaining 438.5 total ypg. Murray has been tremendous, connecting on 63.6 percent of his throws for 940 yards and 11 touchdowns against three interceptions. Malcolm Mitchell paces a balanced group of receivers with 252 yards on 17 catches, while Crowell has run for 411 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

The Bulldogs are permitting 23.2 ppg and 270.0 total ypg, having yielded five rushing touchdowns and five passing scores. Georgia is allowing 3.7 yards per rushing attempt and a mere 9.2 yards per pass completion. It is certainly worth noting that the team has notched six interceptions to date, four of which have come from secondary standout Bacarri Rambo.

Give a narrow edge to Georgia in this game based solely on the home field advantage. Coach Richt's team can run and throw effectively, so a better offensive effort can be expected than what we saw last season when these two teams met.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Georgia 27, Mississippi State 20