SEC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
2023 SEC Championship Game
Georgia (V) vs. Alabama (H)
Saturday, Dec. 2, 2023 4 p.m. ET (3 p.m. CT)
Atlanta, Ga. Mercedes-Benz Stadium (75,000)
CBS Sports
THE TEAMS:
Georgia (12-0, 8-0 SEC) is the Eastern Division Champion and the visiting team. Alabama (11-1, 8-0 SEC) is the Western Division Champion and the home team.
NATIONAL RANKINGS:
Georgia comes into the game as the No. 1-ranked team in the nation in the Associated Press, USA Today Coaches and College Football Playoff polls. Alabama is the No. 8-ranked team in the nation by the Associated Press, USA Today Coaches and College Football Playoff polls. This is the 13th consecutive season the SEC Championship Game has featured a Top15 matchup and sixth consecutive featuring an undefeated, No. 1-ranked team in the nation. This is the sixth time in seven years since the game moved to Mercedes-Benz Stadium to host a Top-10 matchup.
SEC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME:
Only once since 2006 (2014) has the winner of the SEC Championship Game failed to advance to the national championship game. The 2023 SEC Championship Game will mark only the second time in history, and first since 2009, that both teams are undefeated in SEC play. The game, which started in 1992, is in its 32nd year. It was a result of conference expansion, which saw Arkansas and South Carolina become the first members added in SEC history. Nearly two million fans have witnessed the pageantry of the game first-hand, with now 29 sellouts in its history, including the last 27 consecutive contests. (Only 1993 and 1995 were not). The first two games were played at Legion Field in Birmingham and the game was played at the Georgia Dome from 1994-2016. This will mark the seventh SEC Championship Game played at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
SEC CHAMPIONS:
Alabama will be vying for its 30th SEC Championship and second in the last three seasons. Georgia is aiming for its 15th SEC Championship and second consecutive.
TELEVISION:
CBS Sports will televise the game nationally for the 22nd straight year (BRAD NESSLER, Play-by-Play; GARY DANIELSON, Analyst; JENNY DELL, Sidelines; CRAIG SILVER, Producer). CBS has aired the game nationally since 2001. ABC Sports televised the game from 1992-2000.
TV RATINGS:
The SEC Championship has been the most watched conference championship nationally for 14 of the past 15 seasons, including 12 in a row from 2008-2019. The only year it was not #1 was 2020 when the SEC did not have a traditional schedule due to the pandemic. The 2022 SEC Championship Game was seen by nearly 11 million viewers. The 2021 SEC Championship attracted over 15 million viewers, the most watched championship game in college football since 2018. The 2018 SEC Championship Game was the most-watched and highest-rated regular-season college football game on any network in seven years with a 10.1/23 rating/share and 17.5 million viewers. It also marked the second most-watched SEC Championship ever in 26 years since the game debuted in 1992. The 2009 SEC Championship Game earned an 11.8 rating and a 24 share, marking the highest-rated SEC Championship Game in history.
RADIO:
Managed by Learfield IMG College, the SEC Radio Network will broadcast the game on a syndicated basis to the 11-state SEC region and around the nation via satellite radio on SiriusXM. (SEC Radio Network: DAVE NEAL, Play-by-Play; COLE CUBELIC, Analyst; STEPHEN HARTZELL, Sidelines). The National/Learfield IMG broadcast is available on Sirius 158/XM 191. The Georgia broadcast is available on channel 84 on both Sirius and XM, while the Alabama broadcast is available on Sirius 209/XM 190.
SERIES:
Alabama and Georgia will meet for the 73rd time in series history and the fourth time in the Southeastern Conference Championship Game. The Crimson Tide owns a 42-26-4 all-time advantage, including a 3-0 mark in the SEC Championship. The two teams last met in the 2022 College Football Playoff National Championship Game with the Bulldogs coming out on top, 33-18. Alabama head coach Nick Saban is 9-3 all-time against UGA, including a 7-2 mark leading the Tide. Georgia head coach Kirby Smart is 1-4 for his career against UA.
IN THE SEC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME:
This is the fourth time Alabama and Georgia have squared off in the SEC Championship Game. Alabama won 32-28 in 2012, 35-28 in 2018 and 41-24 in 2022. The two teams last met in the CFP National Championship Game in January 2022 when Georgia won 33-18. Alabama had won the seven previous meetings dating back to 2008. … Five of the previous seven meetings between Alabama and Georgia have come in either the SEC Championship Game or the CFP National Championship Game. … This is the 10th consecutive SEC Championship Game to involve Alabama and/or Georgia.
