Georgia-Notre Dame game time, TV info, players to watch and what's at stake

Here is your primer for Saturday's game between No. 15 Georgia and No. 24 Notre Dame.

Kickoff time: 7:30 p.m.

TV: NBC (Mike Tirico, Doug Flutie, Kathryn Tappen)

Local radio: Macon -- 106.3 FM; Columbus -- 1460 AM/100.1 FM; Athens -- 960 AM/106.1 FM; Atlanta -- 750 AM/95.5 FM (Scott Howard, Eric Zeier, Chuck Dowdle)

Sirius/XM: 129/129

Weather: It should be a beautiful day to tailgate, with it expected to be sunny and in the mid-60s. Once the sun begins to set, however, the temperature will drop down to the mid 50s. If you're making the trip, bring a sweatshirt to the game.

Betting line: Notre Dame -4.5

Georgia coaches: Head coach Kirby Smart, offensive coordinator Jim Chaney, defensive coordinator Mel Tucker, special teams coordinator Shane Beamer.

Notre Dame coaches: Head coach Brian Kelly, offensive coordinator Chip Long, defensive coordinator Mike Elko, special teams coordinator Brian Polian.

Series history: Somehow, these two teams have only played once before. Georgia is 1-0 against Notre Dame.

Last meeting: Georgia defeated Notre Dame 17-10 in the 1981 Sugar Bowl, which punctuated the Bulldogs' 1980 national championship season. To read what transpired before, during and after the game, CLICK HERE.

Georgia's season thus far: The Bulldogs (1-0) were impressive against Appalachian State, especially on defense. In a 31-10 win, the first team shut out the Mountaineers, a team that figures to score plenty of points on its Sun Belt opponents. But on its third offensive possession, Georgia lost sophomore quarterback Jacob Eason to a knee injury for the near future. True freshman quarterback Jake Fromm filled in nicely and will get his first career start against Notre Dame.

Notre Dame's season thus far: The Fighting Irish (1-0) are looking to get back to national relevance after a 4-8 season. They certainly got off to a good start last week by defeating Temple 49-16. The biggest takeaway was the fact the defense held the Owls to only 88 rushing yards through four quarters. Sophomore quarterback Brandon Wimbush will make his second career start after accounting for 290 total yards in the opener.

Georgia’s key offensive players: RB Nick Chubb, RB Sony Michel, WR Javon Wims, QB Jake Fromm

Georgia’s key defensive players: DL Trent Thompson, ILB Roquan Smith, OLB Lorenzo Carter, OLB Davin Bellamy

Notre Dame’s key offensive players: QB Brandon Wimbush, LT Mike McGlinchey, LG Quenton Nelson, RB Josh Adams

Notre Dame’s key defensive players: LB Nyles Morgan, LB Drue Tranquill, DB Julian Love, DL Jay Hayes

The key for Georgia: Georgia's defense must find a way to contain Wimbush in the pocket. He's most dangerous in the passing game when he can extend the play and take off if need be. He will also try and execute the read-option with Adams, with the Bulldogs needing to hone in on stopping that for minimum gains. On top of all that, the Bulldogs must figure out a way to get penetration against a tough Notre Dame front that features two potential NFL first-round picks in McGlinchey and Nelson.

The key for Notre Dame: Given that Georgia is starting a true freshman at quarterback, Notre Dame will want to force Fromm to do more than the coaching staff would prefer for him to do. To do that, the Irish will hope to stop a Georgia rushing attack that racked up 221 yards against Appalachian State. Chubb and Michel will look to establish the run game early against a Notre Dame team that averaged 182.4 rushing yards per game a year ago.

What a win means for Georgia: A win would certainly boost Georgia's morale and confidence. It would also keep the Bulldogs undefeated against a Notre Dame program they somehow have only seen once before. It would also mean Fromm probably had a pretty good game, which would be great news for Georgia moving forward.

What a win means for Notre Dame: While Kelly said this is not a "validation game," it's hard to see why that is the case from an outside perspective. While Notre Dame beat LSU in the 2014 Music City Bowl, the Fighting Irish were blown out by Alabama in its last high-profile game against an SEC opponent. Who knows if Georgia will be of that caliber by the end of the season? But for the time being, this is a good chance for Notre Dame to make its case that it is still nationally relevant.

This story was originally published September 8, 2017 at 8:32 AM with the headline "Georgia-Notre Dame game time, TV info, players to watch and what's at stake."