Clemson Preview

If the first night of games is any indication, we are in for one heck of a season. Everything we thought we knew about South Carolina and Texas A&M changed in the blink of an eye. Last night should be a lesson for Georgia.

Simply being at home should give Georgia an edge in their season opener against Clemson, but South Carolina showed last night that if you don’t come prepared to play, it doesn’t matter where you are playing.

Georgia brings back a team that is full of talent and questions.

Todd Gurley, Michael Bennett, Keith Marshall, Chris Connally, Hutson Mason, David Andrews, Jordan Jenkins, Ray Drew, Leonard Floyd. These are the names that you know.

Lorenzo Carter, Isaiah McKenzie, Sony Michel, and Nick Chubb. These are the names that you will know by this time tomorrow.

Georgia is absolutely stacked with talent on both sides of the ball, and most of the talent is very young. The question that we will answer over the next three months, is whether the talent accumulated by Mark Richt and his coaching staff will produce on the field.

I’ve already said that I think Hutson Mason will be the difference for the Georgia offense, and that starts tomorrow. Mason has experience, but whether or not he can use his experience to make plays remains to be seen. Dylan Thompson was erratic for South Carolina last night, missing high on many occasions. Thompson was missing one thing that Mason will have going for him tomorrow afternoon: Todd Gurley.

Gurley is an absolute beast, and tomorrow will be the beginning of the end for him in a Georgia uniform. I can’t imagine a situation where Gurley would return to Athens next season, so let’s make sure we enjoy him while we can. Mark Richt has made it clear that all five of the running backs, Gurley, Marshall, Douglas, Michel, and Chubb will play tomorrow and while that is exciting, Gurley still needs to be the focus of the offense.

If Todd Gurley doesn’t touch the ball 20 times, then Mark Richt will have some major questions to answer.

If Mason is the most important member of the 2014 Georgia Bulldogs, then Jeremy Pruitt is number two. The new defensive coordinator has made his presence known in Athens. Quickly, Pruitt made it clear that it didn’t matter what happened before he got to Athens, everyone would have to earn their spot. Ray Drew and Ramik Wilson quickly got demoted on the depth chart when Pruitt didn’t feel their performance was up to par.

Pruitt’s background is as a defensive backs coach, which will be the part of the defense that has the most question marks. Georgia lost three potential starters in the secondary since the end of last season. Pruitt has said that his philosophy centers on putting talented players in the right positions to make plays. That is music to my ears. Too many times over the past few years, Georgia’s defensive players were confused and out of position when the ball was snapped.

Alec Ogletree apparently told a member of last year’s team that his new defensive scheme with the St. Louis Rams was much simpler than the scheme he played in at Georgia. Hopefully a simpler approach will mean that Georgia’s defense can go from being absolutely awful to at least average.

Special teams were yet another Achilles heel for last year’s team, so it will be important that those mistakes to be corrected immediately this year. I think the coaching staff has finally recognized that special teams are 1/3 of the game, and that they deserve a lot more attention in practice.

As an eternal optimist, I believe that this season has the potential to be special. Georgia opens at home tomorrow, and then has two weeks to get ready to travel to Columbia for a game that could eliminate the Gamecocks from the SEC East race. Everything has opened up for the Dawgs, now they just have to take advantage of the opportunity.

Tomorrow is going to be a special day in Athens. The city is alive. The coaches and players seem to have a quiet confidence about them. It will be hard for any team to make an impression like A&M did last night, but I think Georgia will play a complete game against the Tigers. The offense will be consistent and effective. The defense will be fast and improved. The special teams will be good, which will be a huge improvement. Georgia will avenge last year’s loss with a solid victory 34-20.

My bold prediction is that Isaiah McKenzie, the freshman wide receiver will score, maybe by running a punt or kick back. He is going to be a fan favorite very quickly.

It is finally here. It’s time to kick off another season. Enjoy it.

Go Dawgs!