BULLDOG BEAT: New-look Dawgs wax Ragin’ Cajuns

In an opener that featured quite a few unknowns for the Bulldogs, Mark Richt’s squad looked very sharp in dismissing Louisiana-Lafayette 55-7.

Here are some of the things that stood out today in Athens:-Aaron Murray is fearless. He did not show the freshman jitters that so many new starts and, more especially, new QBs suffer from in their first start.

The redshirt freshman from Tampa finished 17-26 for 160 yards and three passing TDs. He also ran for another. Murray displayed moxie under pressure, evading the pass rush and completing long passes and scrambling for extra yards. His 16-yard touchdown run just before the half basically shut the door on any hopes the Cajuns had of getting back in the game.

-Another first-time starter, safety Jakar Hamilton, had a pick-six in the fourth quarter. “The Hitman” looks like he is right on track to become UGA’s next great safety. One thing Georgia has missed the past few seasons was the lack of a playmaker in the secondary. After watching Terreal Bierria, Jermaine Phillips, Sean Jones and Greg Blue between the hedges, Bulldog fans had grown accustomed to hard-hitting, opportunistic safeties. With Baccarri Rambo at the other safety positon, the Dawgs look like they have two more studs.

-Caleb King showed glimpses of what Georgia fans are looking for from their starting tailback when he scored the first touchdown, a 20-yard, tackle-breaking burst up the middle. Washaun Ealey’s recent lapse in judgment gave King a window to get most of the carries this week. He took full advantage. After being over-looked by many coming into this season, King could be UGA’s main man in the backfield. While Ealey does not possess the “home-run hitting” ability that teams look for in tailbacks, King does.

It will be interesting to see if King can hold onto the starter’s role and the majority of the carries after Ealey returns from suspension next week.

-The debut of Todd Grantham’s 3-4 defense was an unmitigated success. The unit caused turnovers and harassed the opposing quarterback all day. It had to be refreshing for the Bulldog Nation to see those two things happen again. In recent years, Georgia’s defense had struggled mightily to cause turnovers. That was not the case at all today as the Dawgs caused three turnovers and committed just one.

After being 119th in America last season in turnover ratio, the Bulldogs’ No. 1 offseason goal was to get better in that area. If they keep this up, 2010 will be a much more successful year than 2009.

-In recent years, boneheaded plays by Bulldogs had become expected. Today, there were a few. In the second quarter, the defense gave up a 60-yard touchdown pass in which the secondary somehow got their wires crossed. ULL’s Ladarius Green was wide open down the right sideline and QB Chris Masson hit him for a touchdown.

Also, UGA WRs Kris Durham and Logan Gray dropped passes that would have been big plays. Gray was wide open in the end zone and would have had a touchdown while Durham was open over the middle and Murray tried to hit him after scrambling.

-UGA’s lone scholarship backup QB (Logan Gray is officially a full-time WR) Hutson Mason showed promise on Sat to the relief of Georgia fans everywhere. On his first-ever college pass, Mason hit Gray down the middle for a 26-yard touchdown.