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USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
James Morgan

6 things to know about Georgia football’s opponent: UAB

The Georgia Bulldogs (3-0) host the UAB Blazers (1-2) on Sept. 23. The game will be Georgia’s fourth straight home game to start the 2023 college football season.

The Georgia-UAB game starts at 7:30 p.m. ET and will be televised on ESPN2.

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The defending back-to-back national champions are coming off a 24-14 home win over South Carolina. Georgia is 3-0, but still looking for a complete performance.

Georgia has won 21 straight home games entering the UAB game. The Blazers last traveled to Athens, Georgia, in 2021. Georgia starting quarterback Carson Beck actually played a fair amount against the Blazers back in 2021.

What should Georgia football fans know about UAB?

UAB head coach Trent Dilfer may be a familiar face

The Tennessean

UAB Blazers head coach Trent Dilfer does not have a particularly close relationship with Georgia football head coach Kirby Smart.

Dilfer played quarterback in the NFL for 14 seasons from 1994-2007 including winning a Super Bowl with the 2000 Baltimore Ravens.

Following his NFL career, Dilfer served as an NFL analyst with ESPN on “Monday Night Football” for nearly a decade. Dilfer coached at Elite 11 camps. UAB is Dilfer’s first coaching job at the college level.

UAB's results to start the 2023 college football season

Ben Queen-USA TODAY Sports
  • Week 1: UAB 35, North Carolina A&T 6
  • Week 2: Georgia Southern 49, UAB 35
  • Week 3: Louisiana 41, UAB 21

UAB's quarterback has played Georgia before

Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports

UAB Blazers starting quarterback Jacob Zeno has actually played against Georgia before, but it was not in 2021 with UAB. Zeno transferred from Baylor to UAB ahead of the 2022 college football season.

Zeno played with Baylor in the 2020 Sugar Bowl against Georgia. Zeno went 4 of 9 for 23 yards and threw an interception in Baylor’s 26-14 loss to Georgia. Even Stetson Bennett is no longer with Georgia, so Zeno will not face many Georgia players from that game!

Who is UAB's best player?

Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

We consider UAB Blazers safety Keondre Swoopes to be the Blazers’ best player. We also considered Jacob Zeno. Swoopes returned an interception for a touchdown off Georgia Bulldogs quarterback Carson Beck in 2021.

Swoopes has 19 tackle in two games for UAB and four career interceptions.

Georgia's 2021 game against UAB

Online Athens

Georgia dominated UAB 56-7 in Sept. 2021 behind an efficient day from starting quarterback Stetson Bennett. Bennett completed 10 of 12 passes for 288 passing yards and five touchdowns.

UAB scored a pick six off quarterback Carson Beck, so Georgia’s defense technically kept a shutout. Sanford Stadium returned to 92,746 fans for the first time after COVID-19.

Where is UAB? How many students go there?

The Montgomery Advertiser

UAB or the University of Alabama-Birmingham is located in Birmingham, Alabama. UAB has 21,639 students as of 2022.

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