Typical buzz going down for UGA- GaTech week

Annual bragging rights will, of course, be on the line Saturday night at Sanford Stadium during the 103rd rivalry meeting of Georgia vs Georgia Tech, but other than lower-tier bowl positioning, that’s about it after disappointing seasons for both sides. "Winning or losing the game is probably not going to make or break anybody’s season," Johnson said. "Nobody’s going to deem that their season with a success, win or lose, I wouldn’t think, not with the way we’ve played." The Yellow Jackets and Bulldogs opened this season at 16th and 23rd, respectively, in the Associated Press’ Top 25 polls. Eleven games later, neither is receiving votes. Georgia (5-6) needs one more victory to assure its own bowl eligibility, while Georgia Tech (6-5) did so with a sloppy 30-20 victory over Duke this past weekend. The Jackets’ snapped a three-game losing streak with their first victory since quarterback Tevin Washington replaced Josh Nesbitt, who broke his arm Nov. 4. The Bulldogs were off this past weekend and some of their players made a scouting trip to Bobby Dodd Stadium.

UGA coach Mark Richt said the quest to avoid becoming the program’s first team since 1996 to miss a bowl game isn’t as important as this week’s opponent. "It helps motivate a team at this point," Richt said. "I don’t think we’ve had trouble trying to motivate our guys, but when you get to this point where we’re at with no chance for any kind of SEC championship game and that kind of thing, you’re always looking as a coach for things to motivate a team. When you play Georgia Tech, I won’t have to strain very hard at all."