College Football
War Chant
By: JJ Lanier
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
When the clock struck midnight and the year rolled over to 2018, I’m sure there were a lot of people happy to leave 2017 in the rear-view mirror. A certain fan base emanating from Tallahassee, FL would fall under that category.
To proclaim that the 2017 college football season didn’t turn out quite the way the Florida State Seminoles had anticipated is a bit of an understatement.
For a team that started the season with the goal of a National Championship, they finished with a 7-6 record (relying on a makeup game against Louisiana-Monroe and a technicality ruling concerning the number of scholarships awarded by Delaware State just to become bowl eligible) and lost their head coach when Jimbo Fisher pulled a “Lane Kiffin” on his way to Texas A&M.
Like every team heading into the season, there are few things to keep an eye on; in Tallahassee, it starts with the new man in charge.
Willie Taggart, who has changed coaching jobs so much over the past nine years that he had a forwarding address for his forwarding address, was brought in to replace the aforementioned Fisher.
And yes, it’s easy to joke about the number of head coaching jobs he has had during this nine years (four) but to Taggart’s credit they have all been a step up in prominence; Western Kentucky- South Florida- Oregon- Florida State. He is regarded as a very good coach and an excellent recruiter but he has yet to win a bowl game and arrives at FSU with an overall losing record of 47-50.
With all the uncertainty surrounding Taggart, I will say he is just as deserving of this opportunity, if not more so, than other coaches who have been given this chance- here’s looking at you Will Muschamp and Jim McElwain.
It should help things that he’ll have Deondre Francois back under center. I say “should” because after suffering from a season ending injury in the first game last year, you don’t know how Francois will be once he comes back. I imagine the 2016 ACC Rookie of the Year will be more than capable of regaining his prior form but until he’s able to prove it, you would understand if there’s some skepticism.
There’s plenty of talent on this year’s squad, too- something Florida State never seems to be in short supply of- especially on the defensive line and at running back.
However, even though I believe they return four starters on the offensive line, that is their area of weakness; another reason to temper expectations on Francois’ return.
If Francois is healthy and the offensive line is able to help keep him upright, things could be very promising.
However, if neither of those things take place, I do believe this team is more capable of holding things together better than they were last year.
Francois’ injury became a convenient excuse for last year’s troubles, but there’s a team in Athens that may have a different opinion on whether your season is over when it comes to losing your starting quarterback.
Florida State doesn’t necessarily have an easy schedule either, with road games against Miami, NC State, and Notre Dame. But, they do get Clemson at home, which I guess is a plus?
Regardless of the questions entering this season there’s a new era beginning in Tallahassee, and with it comes a renewed sense of optimism.
After last season, what other choice do they have?
Rebuilding Rocky Top
By: TJ Hartnett
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
A new era has begun at the University of Tennessee: the Jeremy Pruitt era. After five years of varying success under Butch Jones (and two games under interim coach Brady Hoe), the Volunteers are hoping to see a resurgence under this new leadership.
Pruitt comes from the winning ways of FSU, UGA and Alabama and has already begun to make his mark, shaking up the way the Vols are going to play football and shaking up the roster as well.
After the chaos of 2017, it seemed like Pruitt was being brought in to lead Tennessee through a rebuilding period but Pruitt, apparently has other plans. With fall camp finally upon us, let’s dive in and look at a preview of things to come for this new head coach and his team as the season’s first kickoff rapidly approaches.
The first thing to watch will be seeing how the team adapts to a new style of offense.
The spread style that Butch Jones implemented worked with Joshua Dobbs but no one else. With a cadre of passers on the roster and more traditional, a pro-type offense could see success. There will also be a heavier reliance on backs for big plays, with the hope that Madre London and Ty Chandler will step up and be big pieces of the puzzle for the Vols.
Preseason should be an intriguing time in Tennessee, as the transition to this new style will be more telling than it was in the spring.
A key piece to the success of the offense will be whoever wins the positional battle for quarterback. Sophomore Will McBride and freshman JT Shrout are competing for the slot but the competition is really between sophomore Jarrett Guarantano, who made six starts in 2017, and senior graduate transfer Keller Chryst, incoming from Stanford.
Guarantano has an arm to be excited about but the offense faltered under his guidance last year.
Chryst brings a leadership presence to the locker room and, perhaps just as important, a familiarity with the pro-style offense the Vols will be using. Either young man could see the majority of snaps this year.
QB is far from the only position battle the Vols will be hosting during camp this year: tight end will pit incumbent sophomore Eli Wolf (brother of the NFL’s Ethan) against 4-star JUCO transfer Domick Wood-Anderson.
Wood-Anderson came with much fanfare, having been courted by the likes of Nick Saban at Alabama but Wolf comes with experience.
One of the most intriguing differences between the Vols’ squad from last season until now is the number of upper classmen transfer that have showed up on the roster. By bringing in these players it seems clear that Pruitt doesn’t want to settle for a rebuilding season and is ready to win often in 2018.
The dynamic of the locker room is sure to be shaken up compared to where it was in the spring, especially with so many of these transfers being looked at for starting roles. It remains to be seen how the returning players will react to this mass immigration.
Another big change comes in the form of a shift to a 3-4 defense after five years at 4-3.
This might be a tough pill to swallow (just look at the struggles of recent teams who’ve made this change like UGA under Mark Richt or even Tennessee under Derek Dooley).
The defense implemented this change in the spring and looked bad doing it. If Pruitt and Kevin Sherrer plan to stick to it, expect some growing pains in Rocky Top.
The New Trick Dawgs
By: Kipp Branch
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
I know many of you Dawg lifers like me are wondering if last year was a fluke.
Let me ease your mind and tell you all that UGA, under Kirby Smart, will be in position to compete for National Championships for years to come.
Georgia just hauled in the best recruiting class in the nation during the last cycle and has five 5-star recruits committed for the next cycle so the talent pool is as deep as it has ever been in Athens, Georgia with top talent at every position on the two-deep roster.
At QB, Jake Fromm is the starter after that fantastic freshman season last fall that came a blown coverage away from a Natty. Fromm will be a starting NFL QB one day and then you have a once in a generation talent in Justin Fields that UGA will have to figure out ways to get in the game in special packages that will make opposing defensive coordinators binge eat at night trying to keep their jobs.
UGA is running back U. Sony and Chubb are gone but Swift, White and Cook to the rescue. Oh yeah, Georgia still has Holyfield too. This is a nasty sick positional group.
Now that UGA has a head coach that knows how to recruit offensive lineman, the run game looks unstoppable. D’Andre Swift may be in Heisman discussions in October. Wow, I left out Brian Herrien.
Where’s the beef? That used to be the question, but not anymore. Sam Pittman may the best offensive line coach in the business. Andrew Thomas moves to LT, Kendall Baker, Lamont Galliard, Ben Cleveland, and stud recruits coming in like Jamaree Salyer, and Cade Mays make this group a team strength. UGA has recruited this position well and has quality SEC depth in place now.
Terry Godwin leads a talented WR group. Mecole Hardman, Riley Ridley and if transfer Demetris Robinson can get a favorable hardship ruling from the NCAA then this unit will be the best UGA has had in a long time.
Isaac Nauta looks to play a huge role at TE this season. Watch out for newcomer Kearis Jackson.
The Dawgs are going to need more production in the passing game this fall. Yeah, I know that sounds like I’m looking for something to be critical about but better balance makes this offense almost unstoppable.
On defense, UGA lost 6 out of its top 7 tacklers in 2017. Am I worried? No, I am not because talent is ready to step in.
On the defensive line, look for Tyler Clark to have a big season. Notre Dame Transfer Jay Hayes will provide depth. Jonathan Ledbetter will clog the middle. Oh yeah, I almost forgot Julien Rochester.
UGA lost some awesome linebackers from last season. Get ready to hear the name Monty Rice who will step in and be the next all conference LB for UGA. Natrez Patrick has all-American potential on the inside if he can get his head straight. Walter Grant, D’Andre Walker, and newcomers Brenton Cox and Adam Anderson make for a deep and talented unit but very young.
Georgia could be special at DB. Deandre Baker is the best corner in the country. J. R. Reed could make many All-America teams. Richard LeCounte is a potential superstar at safety, William Poole, Tyrique McGee and some talented others provide depth. Watch out for incoming freshman Tyson Campbell at CB.
Mecole Hardman could end of being the best kick returner in the SEC. Rod Blankenship will be the best FG kicker in the conference. Punter will sort itself out in fall camp.
Road games at LSU, South Carolina and Missouri will be tough. Auburn at home in November will not be easy. Florida and Tennessee are still a year or two away.
Georgia wins the East with an 11-1 record and plays Alabama for the SEC title and playoff berth. This team could go 12-0, but will slip up against someone in the rugged SEC.
Enjoy this ride Dawg fans. You have suffered long enough. In Kirby we trust. Georgia begins the season ranked #4 in the first coach’s poll just released.
Buzzing In Atlanta
By: Kenneth Harrison Jr.
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
I have to start this with full disclosure. I’m from Atlanta and I’m a huge Georgia Tech fan. I grew up going to spring practices and home games. I wish George O’Leary never left the program for Notre Dame.
I’m also not a fan of Paul Johnson, at all. He started well when he got to Atlanta in 2008 because he had the players recruited by Chan Gailey.
Things have gotten progressively worse each year because of poor recruiting. The Yellow Jackets were 3-9 in 2015 and 5-6 last season. It seems like CPJ does just enough to not be fired but he’s not good enough to leave for a job at any other Power 5 school.
Not to sound pessimistic but as long as Johnson is the coach Tech has accepted mediocrity. They have attempted to make a positive change by getting rid of defensive coordinator Ted Roof and replacing him with Nate Woody.
Woody comes from Appalachian State and the scheme he uses is an attacking 3-4 defense. I’m not sure if Tech has the athletes for this so we will see how this goes.
The best player on the team is quarterback TaQuan Marshall. He’s the prototypical option quarterback meaning he runs well but struggles throwing the football. He led the team in rushing with 1,218 yards and 18 touchdowns. He passed for 936 yards, 10 touchdowns and 5 interceptions. He only completed 37.6% of his passes.
Georgia Tech’s 2018 slate is balanced with six home games at Bobby Dodd Stadium and six road contests.
Eight of the Yellow Jackets’ 12 opponents advanced to postseason play in 2017, including all four ACC teams that will visit Bobby Dodd Stadium — College Football Playoff participant and ACC champion Clemson, Quick Lane Bowl champion Duke, ACC Coastal Division champion Miami and Military Bowl participant Virginia.
Game 1 is September 1st against FCS opponent Alcorn State. This is an easy 50-point blowout win.
The next week is on the road at South Florida. USF was 10-2 last year so the Bulls have some talent. They lost 25 seniors from the 2017 team so they have lost talent and leadership. The Yellow Jackets will get the W.
Game 3 is also on the road at Pitt. GA Tech beat them 35-17 in 2017 and I expect a similar result.
They return home to face Clemson who will be ranked in the top five. The Tigers have drastically superior talent. Clemson will obliterate Tech.
Bowling Green comes to town September 29th. This will be a rebound win.
Friday October 5th is at Louisville. I’m not sure if the Cardinals can replace superstar Lamar Jackson so I anticipate them struggling on offense. Yellow Jackets should win.
They return home the following week to face Duke. The Blue Devils have had Tech’s number recently. This is a tossup.
After a bye week the Jackets travel to Blacksburg for a Thursday night game. VA Tech will win the game.
Game 9 is at North Carolina. UNC is coming off a 3-9 season so they may not be very good in 2018. This should be another win for the Yellow Jackets.
November 10th is home against Miami. The Hurricanes have also dominated Tech since CPJ has been head coach. Canes will win.
Virginia travels to Atlanta after that and Tech should win.
The finale is in Athens against a much more talented UGA team. Jake Fromm will be better in his second season and Georgia gets an easy win.
I think Georgia Tech will win 7-8 games and return to a bowl game.
Coastal Buzz
By: JJ Lanier
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
No matter the level of sports you play and no matter what conference or division you play in, you’re going to always have one group that is more dominant than the other; beside the whole “sports camaraderie” thing it’s kind of the purpose of playing, right?
When it comes to ACC Football, the more dominant division, historically, has been the Atlantic. The Coastal Division, which Georgia Tech won in four of the first seven seasons after Paul Johnson was brought in, has played the role of the NBA’s Eastern Conference.
Basically, the Coastal has been the little brother that keeps swinging at the older brother (Atlantic) but is always kept at arm’s length, just far enough to never really land blows.
This bodes well for Johnson and the Yellow Jackets, who after a seventh, fifth, and third place finish in the Coastal over the past three years and a new extension for the aforementioned head coach, need to see continued improvement as they try to regain that early success.
At first glance, Georgia Tech’s schedule seems fairly daunting, however I think it’s more than manageable. Like most college football teams, the difference between a successful season for the Jackets and one that ends in everyone eating away their pain at the Varsity, will come down to handful of games.
I know it’s dangerous to assume, but let’s roll the dice and assume they defeat Alcorn St., USF, Pittsburgh, Bowling Green, and Virginia. And that they lose to Clemson and Georgia. This leaves them with a 5-2 record, with 5 games up in the air; all five of which happen to be in row.
The first of the five is against Louisville, at Louisville. With Lamar Jackson in the NFL and the Cardinals matador style defense, I like Tech’s chances. This is one I would not be surprised to see them leave with a win.
The next opponent is Duke, at home. Now, before David Cutcliffe arrived this would be more of a guaranteed win than the Alcorn St. game, but Duke has played Tech well over the last few years, winning in Atlanta two years ago.
After the Blue Devils come to town and a bye week, there are back to back road games against Virginia Tech and North Carolina. Truth be told, the season could come down to these two games.
As tough as the Hokies are at home, the Yellow Jackets have always played them tough since Johnson’s arrival and have won three of the last four. A win won’t be easy but it won’t be stunning either.
There’s absolutely no telling which Carolina team will show up this season but the games always seem to be close, a common thread with Georgia Tech and I would expect nothing different when they meet in November.
This stretch of five games concludes back in Atlanta, against Miami. The Hurricanes have looked good since Richt’s return and I know the expectations are high in Coral Gables. I almost included this game in the loss column but with it being at home and the potential for a first-place division title on the line, I just couldn’t bring myself to do it. I don’t think they will win, I’m just not convinced a Georgia Tech loss is a sure thing.
So, there you have it; a Coastal Division title, right in their grasp.
Of course, now that I’ve said all this, you realize Alcorn State is going to win that first game, don’t you?
Flying Back To Old Heights
By: Mike Anthony
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The comparison is often made that good teams – like wild animals – can be most dangerous when backed into a corner. There is obviously some truth to that for the saying to have become cliche, but there is more than one law to both nature and sports.
Sometimes, the most danger stems from guard being let down with a known threat that has become so commonplace that people have taken it for granted.
For nearly its entire modern existence, the Georgia Southern football program has been a powerhouse.
In just their second season of Division I-AA (now Football Championship Subdivision) competition, the Eagles claimed a national title. One year later, they became the first team ever to win consecutive championships at that level.
The next quarter century saw Georgia Southern rise as the unquestioned dynasty atop its level of competition, with ‘bad years’ being more commonly recognized as early playoff exits than losing records.
And when the time finally came to move up to the Football Bowl Subdivision, it was like a refresher course in GS Football history.
The Eagles’ first season in FBS resulted in a 9-3 record with two very-near upsets against ACC opponents. And it would have ended with a bowl if not for a useless NCAA bylaw that kept them out of consideration.
2015 brought about another stellar season and a game against Georgia that went into overtime and has kept the Bulldogs from releasing any comment on future dates for what had been a renewing rivalry series.
That season culminated in the first-ever bowl for Georgia Southern – a date with Bowling Green in the Go Daddy Bowl. The Eagles thoroughly disassembled the Mid-American Conference champs in that game and seemed poised to become an immediate player in the perennial ‘G5’ discussion.
But a funny thing happened on the way to more Georgia Southern dominance.
The 2016 season seemed to be set up for even more success than the previous year’s bowl-winner. Newly-hired head coach Tyson Summers got off to a 3-0 start in his tenure, but then the wheels fell off.
And then those wheels careened off of a cliff… And then the truck itself slammed into a mountain… and then the remains of that truck also fell off of the cliff.
The 2016 campaign ended with a 5-7 record and no return to a bowl. The next season began with a losing streak that nearly doubled the previous school record and Summers had been relieved before the Eagles saw their first win.
But the good thing about a program that can barely comprehend such a bad run of results is that it doesn’t take much to build up optimism for the next go-round.
Chad Lunsford was named the interim head coach midway through 2017. And while Georgia Southern won just two of the six games during that stint, a change in mood and culture was palpable and led to Lunsford being named the official head coach before the season concluded.
Some firings and hirings took place, while other members of the existing staff remained.
The first ‘early signing day’ of the new NCAA recruiting rules saw GS fall behind Sun Belt rivals, but the staff made more hires, ramped up the recruiting efforts, and by February ended up with the top-rated recruiting class in the conference.
The ultimate judgment on whether or not the Eagles have turned things around won’t come until the fall, but it’s hard to argue that Georgia Southern hasn’t had a great offseason that is quickly erasing a disastrous 2017.
No Walk In The Dawg Park
By: Kipp Branch
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
It is never too early to talk UGA football. Here is a look at the Dawgs’ schedule from worst to best in 2018.
12. Austin Peay: The Governors roll into Athens on September 1st and roll out about three hours later with a beat down and big fat paycheck.
11. UMass: The Minutemen arrive in Athens in mid-November and will get hammered within minutes.
10. Middle Tennessee State: The Blue Raiders come to Athens in mid-September and depending on the outcome in Columbia, South Carolina the previous week will determine how badly they get pummeled.
9. Vanderbilt: Vandy won the last time they came to Athens in 2016, but that will not happen in 2018. Vandy will be scrappy but in the end get beat something like 41-17.
8. Tennessee: The Vols come to Athens where they won with a Hail Mary in 2016. Butch Jones left a huge mess in Knoxville and Jeremy Pruitt is there to clean it up. It may take 2-3 years to get the Vols back in contention if they give Pruitt enough time in Knoxville to do it. 41-0 at home last season really eats at the Vol nation.
7. Georgia Tech: The Jackets have won the last two times they have visited the Classic City, but that will not happen in 2018. UGA is too deep and talented for Tech in 2018. Did you ever think Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate would land here?
6. Missouri: The Dawgs travel to COMO on 9/22 with a young secondary and will face a Tiger team with Drew Lock, who throws the deep ball better than anyone in the country. Dawgs better be ready for this one. This game worries me.
5. Kentucky: Georgia travels to Lexington on 11/3 and I already know it will be a night game even before it is announced. This is sandwich game between Florida and Auburn and UGA better be ready. A loss to Kentucky would be disaster for UGA because UGA just flat out owns Kentucky in football.
4. LSU: A trip to Red Stick is never easy. The Dawgs will be coming off a Vandy win and LSU will be in the third leg of a four-game stretch with three of the Tigers biggest rivals. Ole Miss, @ Florida, UGA and then Mississippi State, who beat LSU 37-7 in Starkville in 2017.
UGA is catching the Tigers at a good time, but it will still be a toss-up game. Who will LSU’s QB be?
3. South Carolina: This game has been moved back to early September and let me go ahead and warn you that this will be a war.
Columbia, South Carolina may be the hottest place on the planet early in football season. This will be a great game to attend because the sights around Williams Brice stadium will be easy on the eyes because Carolina girls are sweet southern pearls just as the song says. Will Muschamp is building quietly a quality program in Columbia.
2. Florida @ Jax: With Dan Mullen arriving in Gainesville, promising a better offense and a more heated rivalry after saying of the Bulldogs winning the East in 2017, “Even a blind squirrel finds a nut every once in a while.” As Granny Hawkins said in Outlaw Josey Wales that big talk’s worth doodly-squat Dan.
This game will be more heated than in the past with 4th place Dan running things in Gainesville. 42-7 in 2017 could have been 63-7 it was that one-sided. I Have never seen a Florida team lay down like that Gator squad did that day.
1. Auburn: The DSOR (Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry) was played twice in 2017 with UGA winning the SEC Title 28-7 over AU. This game has all of a sudden become very heated with UGA taking 10 of the last 13 contests. This one in Athens on November 10th should be a classic.
UGA’s conference schedule is tough with trips to LSU, Missouri, Kentucky, South Carolina, and UF in Jax.
Dawgs need to win four of the five contests to get back to Atlanta and play for another SEC Title. Hey Bama, see you in Atlanta.
2018 Sting
By: Kenneth Harrison Jr.
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Georgia Tech is coming off another subpar season after 2017. They finished the year under .500 and missed a bowl game for the second time in three years.
For whatever reason Tech gave Paul Johnson a two-year contract extension in January. Maybe the program has accepted mediocrity or they may really feel CPJ is a genius.
Georgia Tech athletic director Todd Stansbury noted that, despite the strength of Tech’s schedule – Tech played two of the four teams in the College Football Playoff (Clemson and Georgia) as well as 10-win Miami and nine-win Virginia Tech – “you could look at it and say we’re three plays away from playing for another ACC championship,” he said.
Stansbury referenced Tech’s last-minute losses to Tennessee, Miami and Virginia. Had the outcomes against Miami and Virginia been reversed, the Jackets would have played Clemson for the ACC title. Instead, along with the heartbreaking loss to Tennessee, the Jackets finished 5-6.
One of the lone bright spots for the Yellow Jackets in 2017 was quarterback TaQuan Marshall. He led the team in rushing with 1,218 yards and 18 touchdowns. He passed for 936 yards, 10 touchdowns and 5 interceptions. He only completed 37.6% of his passes. He needs to work on his accuracy but Paul Johnson also needs to develop an intermediate passing game.
Tech ranked 33rd in total defense, allowing 354.3 yards per game. That ranking is misleading because they had one game cancelled. If they played a full 12 game schedule, they would have been ranked lower.
Ted Roof was finally let go as defensive coordinator and replaced by Nate Woody. Woody is a 27-year coaching veteran and he turned Appalachian State into one of the best units in college football.
After installing an attacking 3-4 scheme, Woody oversaw the transformation of an App State defense that ranked eighth in the nine-team NCAA Division I FCS Southern Conference in total defense the season prior to his arrival (2012) into a unit that led the Sun Belt Conference in total defense three times and ranked among the top 30 in NCAA Division I FBS each of the past four campaigns (2014-17).
Hopefully the defense will drastically improve in 2018. They have been the weak link of the team for most of Johnson’s tenure.
The schedule for the upcoming season seems favorable. The first game is September 1st against FCS Alcorn State. That will be an easy win.
The next game is at USF. The Bulls were 10-2 last year so I expect them to still be pretty good in 2018. I’m going to give the edge to Georgia Tech but this should be a tough game.
Week 3 is on the road at Pitt. The Yellow Jackets beat the Panthers 35-17 last season. I expect the same results this season.
The schedule gets significantly harder when Clemson comes to town. The Tigers will win by 20-plus points.
GT plays at home against Bowling Green the following week. This will be the last tune up game before the schedule gets more difficult.
They travel to Louisville for a Friday night game. Since Lamar Jackson departed, the Cardinals will have a new starting QB. For that reason, I give the edge to Tech.
The next three games are Duke, at Virginia Tech and at UNC. The only win should be against Carolina.
They close out the season against Miami, Virginia and at Georgia. The Hurricanes and Bulldogs will beat Georgia Tech. The UVA game should be a win for the Yellow Jackets.
They should be able to rebound and win 6-7 games and appear in a bowl.
New Dawgs, Old Tricks
By: JJ Lanier
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
It’s been a good start to the Kirby Smart regime. I’d be lying if I said I saw his early success coming this soon, but I have a feeling Georgia fans won’t mind me being a little off with my prediction.
While I understand the excitement, and if you’re a UGA fan you have every right to be, I would caution getting too overzealous. If you’re experiencing a bit of Deja vu, it’s because you’ve seen this movie before.
Kirby Smart and Mark Richt will be forever linked for the obvious reason that Smart succeeded Richt, after the latter was relieved of his head coaching duties. However, it’s some of the similarities concerning each coaches’ first couple years in Athens that I want to talk about; their records in particular.
For one, they both arrived as first-time head coaches. Sure, that’s not necessarily life changing or anything, but neither had any other head coaching experience prior to UGA, which does play a part when assessing their early years.
And going by the first two years for each at Georgia, those seasons are almost identical.
Smart finished his inaugural season 8-5, ending up just outside the Top 25. Richt finished 8-4, ranked 25th at season’s end.
Kirby then followed that up with a second season consisting of a 13-2 record, the school’s first conference championship in over a decade, a berth in the playoffs, and a number two ranking in the final polls. That’s a sophomore slump anyone would sign up for.
What about Mark Rich’s second season? How about a 13-1 record, a conference championship for the first time in 20 years, a third-place finish in the season ending polls, and a Sugar Bowl win. Had the college playoffs actually existed during the 2002 season, Georgia would have been one of those four teams, without a doubt.
I know it’s purely coincidental, but to have two first time head coaches with almost identical seasons to start their career at the same school, is still pretty interesting.
I do have to say that Smart has done a better job on the recruiting trail, specifically with local talent. Richt did a good job with Top 10 recruiting classes those first few years, but I don’t remember him ever having a number one class, like Smart has for this upcoming season.
I know this may come across as me antagonizing the UGA fan base- like I’ve been sitting around all day, drinking beer with Skip Bayless and Danny Kanell, scheming of ways to get under your skin- but I promise it’s not like that at all. Even though it’s been 12 years since I lived in Georgia, I was a resident there long enough and remain friends with enough people, to know expectations are at an all-time high.
I’m not trying to knock Smart, or anything he has accomplished; bringing him in was obviously the right call. Bulldog fans have every reason to be excited and should be. This is the greatest amount of promise their team has had since, well, Mark Richt’s first two years.
I will say this though; if you’re a Georgia fan, finishing this upcoming season at 11-3, with a SEC East Division title, to go along with a loss in the SEC Championship game, may not be the outcome you’re looking for, for one particular reason.
As different as Smart and Richt may be in certain areas, so far, they’ve been pretty similar in the one area that counts.
Dawg Watch
By: Kipp Branch
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
So, you have the Georgia Bulldogs coming three points shy of a national title in 2017 and trying to maintain the momentum of the unexpected title run. The Dawgs are now the hunted instead of the hunter moving forward in year three of the Kirby Smart regime in The Classic City.
Here are 5 Dawgs to watch in 2018:
Deandre Baker: The senior cornerback, when set up against SEC opponents last season, allowed a passer rating of 38.7. That was the second-lowest rating allowed by an SEC cornerback. In his junior season with the Bulldogs, Baker was targeted 42 times and allowed 18 receptions for 209 yards. Baker played in 15 games and also recorded 44 total tackles, 3 interceptions and 9 pass deflections.
When Baker decided to return for his senior season Georgia DC Mel Tucker’s job got a little easier because Baker will shut down one side of the field while UGA gets the other defensive backs some valuable snaps early to get ready for the SEC slate.
Look for Baker to contend for All-American honors and be contender for the Jim Thorpe Award, given annually to the top defensive back in college football.
Richard LeCounte III: The five-star Liberty County product is being counted on to step into a leadership role on the Bulldog defense that lost Roquan Smith to the Chicago Bears.
Kirby Smart has been speaking directly and indirectly to LeCounte through the media about stepping up to being the player the coaching staff envisions him being. Expect a huge year out of LeCounte as he responds to his head coach and the mental side of the game catches up to his fantastic athletic ability.
Monty Rice: How do you replace the best linebacker in UGA football history? Well Monty Rice had 14 tackles in the G-Day game in April and has the confidence of his head coach, who had this to say about Rice after the game: “He’s a great kid, man, He’s one of those that when the lights come on and he gets the chance to play in front of somebody, he flashes more. He just loves the game. He loves contact. He likes to hit.”
That’s all I needed to hear about Rice who will lead this young linebacker group in the fall. Rice will have three years to make his mark in Athens.
Terry Godwin: The former five-star recruit from Hogansville came back for his senior season. Godwin has been the second leading receiver on the team for each of his three seasons and has shown flashes of the lofty recruiting ranking at times during his UGA career.
Godwin is the man and needs to play like the man at WR in 2018. Godwin leads a talented position group that returns two other starters in Riley Ridley, and Mecole Hardman. UGA is loaded at every position on offense.
Justin Fields: The top rated QB in the last recruiting cycle looked the part in the G-Day game. He played better than Jake Fromm in the contest and brings a skill set to the offense that UGA has not seen since DJ Shockley which is the ability to make plays with his feet.
Plug in Tim Tebow’s freshman highlight tape at Florida and you will see how Fields will be used in Athens this year. Justin Fields will have an impact on this football team in the fall in red zone situations. This kid is special.
Kirby is building a monster in Athens, Georgia. Who else can’t wait for September to arrive?
