The Missouri Tigers get their first taste of SEC football action when they play host to the Georgia Bulldogs Saturday evening in Columbia (7:45 p.m. ET, ESPN2).
And they do so as rare home underdogs, a role in which they are just 1-4 ATS since the 2007 season.
Earlier this week, most online sportsbooks tracked by OddsShark.com opened this game with Georgia favored by 3.5 points, with the 'over/under' at 54 or 55. But as of Friday, most betting outlets had dropped the Dawgs to -2.
Overall, the Tigers have performed well lately as a dog, going 6-2-1 ATS, according to the college football stats database at OddsShark.com.
Mizzou, with six starters back on both sides of the ball from a team that went 8-5 last year, opened this season with a 62-10 shellacking of Southeastern Louisiana. The Tigers led 28-0 eight minutes into the game, with the help of two defensive scores, and later added two punt returns for scores to really put the hammer down.
Mizzou outgained the Lions 452-223 in a game that remained off the board and therefore had no point spread.Â
Georgia, meanwhile, with 16 starters back from a team that went 10-4 last year, began this season with a 45-23 victory over Buffalo. The Bulldogs only led 24-16 at halftime, then scored the first 21 points of the second half to pull away.
UGA piled up 485 yards of offense but allowed the Bulls to rush for 199 yards. The Dawgs also came nowhere near covering the point spread as 38-point favorites.
Georgia enters this game ranked No. 7 in this week's USA Today poll and the matchup detail would appear to favor them on paper.
As for a history between these two teams, the Tigers and Bulldogs last met in the 1960 Orange Bowl, won by Georgia 14-0.
The last time Missouri played an SEC team was when it beat Arkansas in the Cotton Bowl five years ago.
Free NCAA Football Pick: Columbia should be rocking for this one, and the Tigers want to make a good first impression in their new conference. But all that buzz can sometimes work against a team. Georgia is probably the better outfit, so we'll go with the Dawgs in this one. (courtesy of PickShark.com)
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