Saying Georgia is going to be down or bad this year is like saying in 1989 that Metallica's "And Justice For All" wouldn't be good because they didnt have Cliff Burton. That, or James Cameron's 1997 film "Titanic" wouldn't be good because it wasn't an action film like his previous films. Or more accurately, any Patriots team wouldn't be good for a minor player that they lost over the years, including Brady. Or, for this year, that the Colts won't be good because they dont have Marvin Harrison. You get the idea. Sure, the Bulldogs lose Matthew Stafford and Knoshown Moreno, but the pieces are there just like with all the other examples. It doesn't mean that the new version will suck, and in a lot of ways it could be better.
OFFENSE:
All of that doesn't mean that they don't have to replace Stafford and Moreno. The two accounted for nearly 90% of the team's offense. QB Joe Cox is figured to be the replacement. He is a senior, and has only played sparingly throughout his career. There to help him out will be sophomore WR A.J. Green. Green will be the best WR since Hines Ward for the Bulldogs when its all said and done. Unlike Ward, he is 6'4" and is a matchup nightmare for defenses. There will be a running back by committee approach. FIguring into the mix are sophomore Caleb King and sophomore Richard Samuel. King got the majority of the carries last year, but Samuel had a higher average. IT will be interesting to see who emerges from this battle.
The biggest boost the Bulldogs get is the return of LT Trinton Sturdivant, who went down with an injury early last season. The line is young, but already has experience. They return 4/5 starters, and then Sturdivant, yet there are 4 sophomores and 1 junior. With an inexperienced QB and RB in the backfield, they certainly need to dominate. Anything less, and the offense could be in some trouble. Tackle Clint Boling and Center Ben Jones have been getting some preseason love in the All-Conference and All-American honors.
DEFENSE:
Im torn on the defense this year. In general, Georgia has played excellent defense the past 5-6 years. Last year, they were down a bit. THey allowed 41 to Alabama, 49 to Florida, 38 to LSU, 38 to Kentucky, and their worst game, 45 to Georgia Tech. Yet, they looked okay against Michigan State in the Citrus Bowl. Still, they allowed 24.5 pts/game, 59th in the nation. That just isnt UGA Football. There are plenty of stars on this defense, and picking one to be THE star seems foolish. If I had to pick one it would be LB Rennie Curran. The guy totaled 115 tackles, 10 for loss as a sophomore last year. Hes listed as being 5'11" 222 lbs, which doesn't seem possible. DT Geno Atkins is being projected as a 1st round draft choice. The secondary returns two of it's starters, which includes Safety Reshad Jones. While the defense wasn't outstanding last year, it could be this year.
There were a few problems last year with Georiga. The #1 ranking they received was too high obviously. That doesn't mean they weren't good, its just that to some predictions, they didn't live up to expectations. The problems started with the offensive line getting banged up. Then, no one realized that the defense was actually pretty young. But, most people saw that Stafford and Moreno were Heisman contenders, and anointed them the best team. That, and they had a brutal schedule. You can't win a championship if you dont have a good defense, you lose a bunch of linemen to injury, and you're playing a disaster schedule.
The key this year will then be of course, eliminating those problems that they had last year, and addressing the new ones that arise. I see it playing out like this:
THe offensive line will be better if they stay healthy -- you can't bet on injuries, but lets say they stay healthy, then they will improve this area.
The defense will be better. This is the surest thing of the problems they had last year.
Their schedule is still tough, as well see. It doesnt help when you have a young team.
Now for the possible problems facing the new team, we know them already:
Who will replace Stafford/Moreno?
Well, not who, we know who, but will they be effective? That will be the major issue, at least for the first few games. They allegedly have some sure-thing Freshmen at QB is Cox doesn't work out, but I don't think they want to have to get to that. If they end up switching QBs mid-season once theyre in SEC play, theyll look a lot like LSU did last year, and fall off. The running game will stem off of the success of the offensive line. They can't just throw the ball to A.J. Green every play, as much as they may like to.
Every time around draft year, you hear one thing when they are talking about drafting a QB, WR, Linemen, etc. You build your team from the inside to the out. Now, as nice of a player as A.J. Green is at WR, hes really the most expendable. The most important pieces on EVERY football team are the offensive and defensive lines. As Ive already said, I like what Georgia has on both lines. It is possible, and well see what happens, that you can replace Moreno with a back of lesser talent, and Stafford with a QB of lesser talent, and actually improve on offense. Georgia plays a murderer's row again, but by the end of the year they will be one of the stronger teams.
Final:
9/5 @ Oklahoma St. -------- Loss
9/12 South Carolina ------- Win
9/19 @ Arkansas -------- Win
9/26 Arizona St. ------- Win
10/3 LSU ------ Loss
10/10 @ Tennessee -------- Win
10/17 @ Vanderbilt -------- Win
10/31 Florida (in JAX) ------- Loss
11/7 Tennessee Tech ------- Win
10/14 Auburn ------ Win
10/21 Kentucky ------- Win
10/28 @ Georgia Tech ------- Loss
The only easy game on this schedule is the visit from Tenn Tech. I really bet they wish they had that game in September. Its nice to break up the SEC play in November and have an easy week, but when you play S. Carolina, and go to Stillwater and Fayeteville in the first three weeks, well, thats hard. That, and UGA figures to be better than Vanderbilt and Tenn, but traveling to both of those stadiums will not be easy. As far as the first game goes, I still think that the Ok. State -3 is a trap. While UGA does have name recognition over OK. State, anyone can look at the preseason top 25 standings, see that Ok. St. will probably be ranked higher, see the game is in Stillwater, and bet on the Cowboys. THat, and everyone knows that UGA has lost Moreno and Stafford. Who would bet on UGA? Well, that is one reason why I think that UGA can shock the Cowboys Week 1. That, and you know how I dont like the PowderPuff-12 (Big12), and that if Georgia's defense clicks instantly, they will be trouble for the Cowboys. It is just a matter of how quickly they gel. If this game were played in November, I would like the BUlldogs chances a lot more, but even on Week 1, you can't bet against UGA.
8 - 4 (6-2)
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