Georgia’s offense came alive down the stretch last season and became one of the biggest reasons why the Bulldogs finished No. 2 in the country. Running back Knowshon Moreno returns as the key figure in the Bulldogs attack, having rushed for 1,334 yards and 14 touchdowns in only six starts last year.Having such a spectacular and dependable running back in the fold is important to the Georgia offense because of how much they utilize the position. “We’re tailback dependent; our tailbacks have to produce for us to do well offensively,” said head coach Mark Richt. “I bet you that close to half of everything we do, that tailback touches the ball.”
Complicating matters, however, is the inexperience behind Moreno. Caleb King is a redshirt freshmen and Richard Samuel, Dontavius Jackson and Carlton Thomas are all true freshmen. The coaches had hoped the young backs could find their way behind a developing offensive line, but thanks to the season-ending injury to left tackle Trinton Sturdivant, that line has been reconstructed. Learning about each other, as well as their assignments, will be top priority for a line that will now start the season with four new starters, including true freshman Cordy Glenn. Still, there are numbers up front. Clint Boling, a starter from a year ago, is expected to join the fray once his two-game suspension is up and freshmen Ben Jones has continued to impress. How the offensive line plays will directly influence what type of game offensive coordinator Mike Bobo calls. “If we’re struggling to execute certain things, we might curtail the offense protection-wise,” Bobo said.
The O-line will also directly affect quarterback Matthew Stafford and the Bulldogs receivers’ ability to make plays. Stafford worked hard on fundamentals over the offseason and was extremely accurate in fall camp. Mohamed Massaquoi, Kenneth Harris and Kris Durham are some of Stafford’s returning receiving targets. Tight end Tripp Chandler has also developed into a weapon. True freshman wide receiver A.J. Green is a very intriguing talent and will be thrown into the fray early on.
ON DEFENSE
As usual, the Bulldogs return some very talented defenders, but heading into fall camp, one of the primary concerns about the Georgia defense was its lack of experience at the reserve safety positions. Since then, Quintin Banks has gone down with a torn MCL and the Bulldogs are depending on a former walk-on, a redshirt freshman, and a bevy of true freshmen to provide depth. Starters Reshad Jones and C.J. Byrd form one of the best combinations in the country, however, and will display speed and physicality when they are on the field. Asher Allen and Prince Miller provide a highly skilled and feisty pair of cornerbacks. Their backups, Ramarcus Brown, Bryan Evans and Vance Cuff would be starters at a lot of schools. “[With the] corners right now, we’re pretty solid with depth and experience,” said defensive coordinator Willie Martinez.
The linebacking corps continues to be a unit that is always filled with talent at Georgia. Dannell Ellerbe and Rennie Curran are the leaders of the group. Ellerbe led the team in tackles a year ago with 99. Curran, a weakside ‘backer, amazingly finished with 53 stops and nine for a loss after starting just five games. Strongside backers Akeem Dent and Darius Dewberry provide versatility and reserves Darryl Gamble and Akeem Hebron offer big-play ability. Reserve middle linebacker Charles White went down in fall camp with an Achilles injury and will miss the 2008 season. Marcus Washington was already out for the year, so the Bulldogs will have to continue to cross-train at the position.
When talking about the Bulldog defensive line this season, it would probably be wise to start on the inside. Defensive tackles Geno Atkins and Jeff Owens are disruptive forces that set the tone and pace for the line as well as for the defense. Atkins led Georgia a year ago in tackles for loss with 14.5 and finished second on the team with 7.5 sacks. The ends are looked at more as a collective unit rather than as individual stars. Justin Houston, Neland Ball, Demarcus Dobbs, Jarius Wynn, Roderick Battle and a few others all have the ability to make big plays.
SPECIAL TEAMS
Questions still abound concerning who will be part of the Bulldogs special-teams units. Mostly new faces will man the placekicking and punt- and kickoff-return roles. Gone are kicker Brandon Coutu and return men Thomas Brown, Mikey Henderson and Thomas Flowers. At placekicker, in comes freshman Blair Walsh, who has been solid in the fall and will likely begin the season as the starter. As for the return game, the coaches will hope to settle on a combination of players to return kicks by game time on Saturday. There is also still the possibility that Moreno may be used to return punts at some point this season.
AROUND THE SEC
The Bulldogs head into the season ranked No. 1 in both the USA Today Coaches’ and AP polls, but they are not the only SEC team coming into 2008 with great expectations. The Florida Gators, Georgia’s Eastern Division rivals, are ranked fifth in both polls and return Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow. Tebow will lead a potentially scary offense that features wide receiver/running back Percy Harvin, running backs Emmanuel Moody and Chris Rainey and a host of other talented skill players. An impressive linebacker corps, led by Brandon Spikes, will try to keep opposing offenses off the field.
Tennessee and South Carolina are the next two teams most likely to throw a monkey wrench into Georgia’s plan to play for the SEC title. Much of the Volunteers’ success will depend on how first-year starting quarterback Jonathan Crompton and new offensive coordinator David Clawson perform in their jobs. Tennessee fans may find out early how the two will fare, as the Volunteers visit UCLA on Monday. South Carolina hopes one quarterback takes the reins of the team and never looks back. As of right now, Tommy Beecher appears to be that guy, but with Steve Spurrier running the team, Beecher’s standing can change at any moment. New defensive coordinator Ellis Johnson looks to improve the Gamecocks’ unit from a year ago. Kentucky will likely take a step back due to the graduation of quarterback Andre Woodson and the dismissal of his replacement Curtis Pulley. They will battle a competitive but undermanned Vanderbilt team for fifth place in the division
LSU, Auburn and Alabama figure to do battle in a wide-open SEC West, which is up for grabs because of the dismissal of LSU quarterback Ryan Perrilloux. Nevertheless, the defending national champion Tigers have plenty of talent elsewhere. It will be interesting to see how Auburn fares using the spread offense. Head coach Tommy Tuberville usually strikes gold when choosing coordinators, so Tony Franklin might be something special. Nick Saban and Alabama are building for the long term, but they may have enough horses to make some noise this year. Mississippi State and Sylvester Croom broke through with eight wins last year, including a bowl victory, while Houston Nutt and quarterback Jevan Snead will lead Ole Miss out of the cellar. Taking the Rebels’ place at the bottom may very well be Arkansas and first-year head coach Bobby Petrino.
Butler can be reached at jbutler@scoreatl.com.
Loading ...
