This week’s report will be a bit shorter than last week's. I just want to win the column, pull the starters by the third paragraph and save the rough draft without any injuries.
Three Observations
3. My God, the freshmen. I like to think I had a good handle on the team going into the first game, but I was about as surprised as a kid playing with what he thought was a black and white striped ‘cat’. Malaki Starks had the most impressive debut since Guns N’ Roses’‘Appetite for Destruction.” Mykel Williams started games earlier than expected and fared well. But Javon Bullard jumping William Poole and Tykee Smith is quite something. No less than three players and coaches have said he’s the toughest kid on the team. That’s saying something. He faces off with Kearis Jackson every day. That’s like whanging two hammers together.
Conversely, the freshman offensive linemen are an area of concern. Earnest Greene, although hurt, looks like the only one who could possibly be a contributor this season. To be fair, it’s a hard lineup to crack. A few redshirts look promising though. I look forward to seeing more of Austin Blaske, Micah Morris, Dylan Fairchild, and Jared Wilson.
2. WRU. Georgia isn’t quite Alabama or Ohio State when it comes to landing top wideouts but the ones the Bulldogs have are pretty badass. When AD Mitchell isn’t throwing haymaker blocks, he’s catching touchdown passes. Ladd McDonkey is still as untouchable as the shelves he can’t reach. Experienced wideouts Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint, Dom Blaylock, and Kearis Jackson all returned from past injuries to play last week. The new talent is evident in Dillon Bell and De’Nylon Morrissette, both of who are ballers and should get a lot of time this week. Freshman CJ Smith is coming off a knee injury which limited his availability in fall camp. He has great speed and might surprise a lot of people once he learns the offense.
Speaking of speedsters, I was told on Tuesday that the prognosis for Arian Smith is much better than expected. I wasn’t sure about that since everyone involved that I spoke to after it happened thought he was done for the year. But I am told Smith is way ahead of schedule. He could be back in a month to six weeks. Some guys just heal faster than others. And considering he took a lot of unwarranted criticism for being fragile, I hope he comes back soon.
All of these receiving options point to a defensive conundrum for the opposing coaches. A strong wide receiver corps takes pressure off the tight ends as the defense has to worry about bubble screens, tunnel screens, deep shots, and back shoulder throws. Thus the tight ends are open in the flats and picking apart the seams. Good luck, Gators.
1. Developing. Smart may have raised an eyebrow or two saying his staff was the best he’s had. I agree but not just based on what we are hearing from recruits, which is often how I rate a coach. Let’s look at a few examples of how they have developed players. Use these the next time a Copenhagen tooth-stained Cletus from Mobile says Georgia can’t coach, but can only recruit.
Kamari Lassiter moves in at cornerback as a sophomore.
Malaki Starks is ready for prime time in his first-ever game.
Bullard, all 5-foot-11 of him, takes over the Star spot.
Poole, who was the Star, can also play cornerback if needed.
Chris Smith. The end.
Sure Cletus’ cousin-girlfriend will chide you about Georgia not having any sacks in the last game. Just explain between her bites of a gas station pickled egg that the Dawgs were more concerned about Bo Nix scrambling so they used a controlled rush once they got ahead.
The O-line is also developing. The new guards are coming along and we finally had a chance to see Mt. Saint Mims get quality playing time.
This week we should see Carson Beck and Brock Vandagriff get some meaningful reps. More development.
Speaking of quarterbacks, that former walk-on has led the Bulldogs to eight touchdowns on his last eight drives going back to the championship game. In his last three games, Stetson Bennett has 905 yards passing, a 72% completion rate, eight touchdowns, and no interceptions. All ranked teams. I’m still fully expecting a few boneheaded plays from him, but that’s a pretty strong example of developing the talent you have on the roster, Bertha Mae.
Two Questions
2. What about the inside linebackers? How long will it take the inside linebackers to mesh with the defensive front and the secondary? We saw how athletic Jamon Dumas-Johnson, Jalon Walker, and Smael Mondon are. There's tons of talent in the group. But they have about as much experience as a chess club freshman at his first homecoming dance. They were out of position throughout the game. Today’s game requires plays to be made in space. Controlling match ups are vital to the defensive scheme. This is a work in progress but if there is one group that showed it has the furthest to go, it was the inside guys. To be fair, there was only one punt so we are being nitpicky. Speaking of, that punt from Brett Thorson was a good one. Loved how the team swarmed him.
1. Does Georgia unleash the running game tomorrow? Against Oregon, offensive coordinator Todd Monken dialed up the stuff he knew would give Dan Lanning trouble. You face a guy every day for two years and you get to know him. There were multiple shifts and formations, all of which played a big part in drubbing the Ducks. Bo Nix tossing interceptions like he was playing Pop-A-Shot also helped. For UGA, the passing game was there and Monken just went back to it like a fat kid does a buffet. Look for more of that this week as Georgia hits some explosive plays, but expect to see the Bulldogs’ power running game. Lots of tosses and jet sweeps are in store as the big hogs up front push around the smaller Samford defenders.
One Prediction
I have no reason to predict this other than he’s due. Kearis Jackson is going to house one of the Samford punts. A while back we asked him what it would mean to him. He looked like a starved dog about to break his chain. This is a contract year for Jackson. He needs to show the NFL he can be a special teams weapon. Here’s hoping he breaks free on Saturday.
P.S. I asked anyone who wants to help out with our site to swing by the website of one of our advertisers. Well, a lot of you did and that helped us immensely. If you were too busy last week, I could still use your help. Drop by Yancey Brothers and click on the Open Positions tab. It would mean a lot to us and maybe one of those listings is of interest.
Three Observations
3. My God, the freshmen. I like to think I had a good handle on the team going into the first game, but I was about as surprised as a kid playing with what he thought was a black and white striped ‘cat’. Malaki Starks had the most impressive debut since Guns N’ Roses’‘Appetite for Destruction.” Mykel Williams started games earlier than expected and fared well. But Javon Bullard jumping William Poole and Tykee Smith is quite something. No less than three players and coaches have said he’s the toughest kid on the team. That’s saying something. He faces off with Kearis Jackson every day. That’s like whanging two hammers together.
Conversely, the freshman offensive linemen are an area of concern. Earnest Greene, although hurt, looks like the only one who could possibly be a contributor this season. To be fair, it’s a hard lineup to crack. A few redshirts look promising though. I look forward to seeing more of Austin Blaske, Micah Morris, Dylan Fairchild, and Jared Wilson.
2. WRU. Georgia isn’t quite Alabama or Ohio State when it comes to landing top wideouts but the ones the Bulldogs have are pretty badass. When AD Mitchell isn’t throwing haymaker blocks, he’s catching touchdown passes. Ladd McDonkey is still as untouchable as the shelves he can’t reach. Experienced wideouts Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint, Dom Blaylock, and Kearis Jackson all returned from past injuries to play last week. The new talent is evident in Dillon Bell and De’Nylon Morrissette, both of who are ballers and should get a lot of time this week. Freshman CJ Smith is coming off a knee injury which limited his availability in fall camp. He has great speed and might surprise a lot of people once he learns the offense.
Speaking of speedsters, I was told on Tuesday that the prognosis for Arian Smith is much better than expected. I wasn’t sure about that since everyone involved that I spoke to after it happened thought he was done for the year. But I am told Smith is way ahead of schedule. He could be back in a month to six weeks. Some guys just heal faster than others. And considering he took a lot of unwarranted criticism for being fragile, I hope he comes back soon.
All of these receiving options point to a defensive conundrum for the opposing coaches. A strong wide receiver corps takes pressure off the tight ends as the defense has to worry about bubble screens, tunnel screens, deep shots, and back shoulder throws. Thus the tight ends are open in the flats and picking apart the seams. Good luck, Gators.
1. Developing. Smart may have raised an eyebrow or two saying his staff was the best he’s had. I agree but not just based on what we are hearing from recruits, which is often how I rate a coach. Let’s look at a few examples of how they have developed players. Use these the next time a Copenhagen tooth-stained Cletus from Mobile says Georgia can’t coach, but can only recruit.
Kamari Lassiter moves in at cornerback as a sophomore.
Malaki Starks is ready for prime time in his first-ever game.
Bullard, all 5-foot-11 of him, takes over the Star spot.
Poole, who was the Star, can also play cornerback if needed.
Chris Smith. The end.
Sure Cletus’ cousin-girlfriend will chide you about Georgia not having any sacks in the last game. Just explain between her bites of a gas station pickled egg that the Dawgs were more concerned about Bo Nix scrambling so they used a controlled rush once they got ahead.
The O-line is also developing. The new guards are coming along and we finally had a chance to see Mt. Saint Mims get quality playing time.
This week we should see Carson Beck and Brock Vandagriff get some meaningful reps. More development.
Speaking of quarterbacks, that former walk-on has led the Bulldogs to eight touchdowns on his last eight drives going back to the championship game. In his last three games, Stetson Bennett has 905 yards passing, a 72% completion rate, eight touchdowns, and no interceptions. All ranked teams. I’m still fully expecting a few boneheaded plays from him, but that’s a pretty strong example of developing the talent you have on the roster, Bertha Mae.
Two Questions
2. What about the inside linebackers? How long will it take the inside linebackers to mesh with the defensive front and the secondary? We saw how athletic Jamon Dumas-Johnson, Jalon Walker, and Smael Mondon are. There's tons of talent in the group. But they have about as much experience as a chess club freshman at his first homecoming dance. They were out of position throughout the game. Today’s game requires plays to be made in space. Controlling match ups are vital to the defensive scheme. This is a work in progress but if there is one group that showed it has the furthest to go, it was the inside guys. To be fair, there was only one punt so we are being nitpicky. Speaking of, that punt from Brett Thorson was a good one. Loved how the team swarmed him.
1. Does Georgia unleash the running game tomorrow? Against Oregon, offensive coordinator Todd Monken dialed up the stuff he knew would give Dan Lanning trouble. You face a guy every day for two years and you get to know him. There were multiple shifts and formations, all of which played a big part in drubbing the Ducks. Bo Nix tossing interceptions like he was playing Pop-A-Shot also helped. For UGA, the passing game was there and Monken just went back to it like a fat kid does a buffet. Look for more of that this week as Georgia hits some explosive plays, but expect to see the Bulldogs’ power running game. Lots of tosses and jet sweeps are in store as the big hogs up front push around the smaller Samford defenders.
One Prediction
I have no reason to predict this other than he’s due. Kearis Jackson is going to house one of the Samford punts. A while back we asked him what it would mean to him. He looked like a starved dog about to break his chain. This is a contract year for Jackson. He needs to show the NFL he can be a special teams weapon. Here’s hoping he breaks free on Saturday.
P.S. I asked anyone who wants to help out with our site to swing by the website of one of our advertisers. Well, a lot of you did and that helped us immensely. If you were too busy last week, I could still use your help. Drop by Yancey Brothers and click on the Open Positions tab. It would mean a lot to us and maybe one of those listings is of interest.
