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Oklahoma’s defense looks ready for Georgia. The offense is another story.

Georgia has officially moved on from Arkansas, and its next opponent will arrive in Athens with one side of its team looking considerably more trustworthy than the other.

No. 24 Oklahoma Sooners football survived New Mexico 14-6 Saturday night in Norman, improving to 2-1 before visiting No. 2 Georgia Bulldogs football on Sept. 26. Georgia improved to 3-0 with a 45-17 victory at Arkansas, and the Bulldogs’ official schedule confirms Oklahoma is next, with kickoff set for 3:30 p.m. ET at Sanford Stadium.

Oklahoma got the victory it needed against New Mexico. It did not get the offensive correction it wanted.

The Sooners managed 301 total yards and rushed for only 63 on 30 attempts. Quarterback John Mateer completed 19 of 25 passes for 238 yards and two touchdowns, but he also threw two interceptions. Running back Lloyd Avant led Oklahoma with only 27 rushing yards.

The defense made it survivable.

New Mexico entered the night 2-0 and averaging 54 points. Oklahoma held the Lobos to 185 total yards, 69 rushing yards and two field goals. The Sooners finally shut the door when defensive tackle David Stone stopped Scottre Humphrey on fourth-and-1 at the Oklahoma 17 with 2:58 remaining.

There is nothing fluky about that side of Oklahoma’s team. The Sooners opened the season by holding UTEP to 198 yards in a 51-0 victory, then limited Michigan to 75 yards in the second half of a 17-10 road loss. Three games into the season, Brent Venables again has a defense capable of keeping Oklahoma competitive when almost everything else goes sideways.

The offense is where Georgia should see opportunity.

Mateer produced Oklahoma’s two touchdowns Saturday with a 29-yard pass to Hayden Hansen and a 53-yarder to Isaiah Sategna III. Those explosive plays matter, particularly with Sategna’s speed. But Oklahoma still hasn’t shown it can consistently run the football or sustain drives when an opponent takes away the easy throws. That becomes a much bigger problem against a Georgia defense that held Arkansas to 17 rushing yards Saturday.

Oklahoma also has personnel issues worth following. Veteran receiver Trell Harris is expected to miss extended time after being injured at Michigan, while linebacker and captain Kip Lewis could also miss multiple weeks. Starting left tackle Michael Fasusi, who has been dealing with a shoulder injury, was held out against New Mexico but is expected to have a chance to return against Georgia.

So the Sooners arrive with a fairly clear identity. They are good enough defensively to make Georgia earn points, and Mateer and Sategna give them enough explosiveness to punish mistakes.

What they have not shown is an offense that can function efficiently for four quarters against a good defense. Oklahoma followed its 51-point opener with 10 points at Michigan and 14 against New Mexico.

That is not much margin for error when the next stop is Sanford Stadium.

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