Michigan State @ Georgia preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 1, 2009 ) Michigan State 12, Georgia 24

OUTBACK BOWL STORYLINES:

1. This is not the bowl game that either of these schools wanted. Both Georgia (SEC) and Michigan State (Big Ten) missed out on a trip to a BCS Bowl with losses in their respective conference championship games.

2. The Outback Bowl will mark the college finale for the most successful class in Spartans history, led by quarterback Kirk Cousins and wide receiver B.J. Cunningham. The two have hooked up for 12 touchdowns this season and will have plenty of pro scouts watching to see how they perform against SEC-level speed.

3. Georgia coach Mark Richt will be looking to cap a season of redemption with a victory. The embattled coach had plenty of fans calling for his job when the Bulldogs started out with back-to-back losses. Ten straight wins and the SEC East title has quieted those calls.

4. Michigan State has lost five straight bowl games, including a 24-12 setback against Georgia in the 2009 Capital One Bowl. The Spartans were trounced by Alabama, 49-7, in the Capital One Bowl last January. Georgia will be playing in its 10th straight bowl game and looking to bounce back after a 10-6 loss to Central Florida in the Liberty Bowl last season.

TV: 1 p.m. ET, ABC. LINE: Georgia -3.5.

ABOUT MICHIGAN STATE (10-3, 7-1 Big Ten): The one thing Cousins and company have yet to accomplish is a bowl win. Michigan State suffered a heartbreaker in the Big Ten Championship Game, dropping a 42-39 decision to Wisconsin after surrendering a fourth-quarter lead. The Spartans are strongest on defense, leading the Big Ten in rushing defense, total defense and sacks while holding opponents to an average of 17.5 points. Junior defensive tackle Jerel Worthy became the first Spartans defensive lineman to be named first-team All-American since 1966.

ABOUT GEORGIA (10-3, 7-1 SEC): The Bulldogs use a balanced attack to run up an average of 32.2 points. Sophomore quarterback Aaron Murray has 33 touchdowns and 12 interceptions but is coming off one of his worst performances of the season, when he completed 16-of-40 passes for 163 yards and a pair of interceptions in the 42-10 loss to Louisiana State in the SEC Championship Game. Freshman running back Isaiah Crowell should be healthy for the Outback Bowl, taking some heat off Murray.

PREDICTION: Georgia 28, Michigan State 21. The SEC has dominated the Big Ten in bowl games recently, including a 3-0 mark last season. The Bulldogs will continue the conference reign.