ATLANTA — Georgia will open the SEC Championship Game without its top two receivers and might also be without leading rusher D’Andre Swift.
The No. 4-ranked Bulldogs (11-1) got the 52-7 win over rival Georgia Tech (3-9), but it came at a cost.
Quarterback Jake Fromm was 14-of-29 passing for 254 yards and 4 touchdowns, but it was anything but smooth sailing. It was the fourth straight game Fromm completed less than 50 percent of his passes.
Georgia, however, will have much bigger issues in the SEC Championship Game next Saturday if Swift is not cleared to return from a shoulder injury.
The Bulldogs’ leading rusher left the game at the 9:32 mark, and his status for the 3:30 p.m. game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium next Saturday is unknown.
Fortunately, Georgia coach Kirby Smart did say on Swift after the game that “we think he’ll be fine.”
Freshman George Pickens, the team’s second-leading receiver, compounded the team’s offensive issues by getting ejected for fighting with Georgia Tech cornerback Tre Swilling in the third quarter.
Pickens will be out the first half next Saturday, which means the Bulldogs will be hurting badly at wideout.
Georgia’s receiving corps was already thinned after leading receiver Lawrence Cager suffered a serious ankle injury in Wednesday’s practice.
Cager, who had 7 catches for 132 yards and a touchdown in a 24-17 win over Florida, had been playing through a separated shoulder and rib injures.
The ankle injury Cager suffered on Wednesday could be season ending.
Pickens had been held out of the game in the first half by coach Kirby Smart for a “team issue,” an indication some disciplinary action could have been in play.
Pickens, a 5-star signee in the 2019 class, has had issues controlling his emotions throughout the season.
Georgia has been working to improve the receiving corps after losing the top five pass catchers from last season’s team.
