The names you will know before the end of 2015

Each year, I try to give Georgia fans a few names that they won’t know when the season kicks off, but they will know very well by the time the season is over. Sometimes I am right, and sometimes I am wrong. I’m feeling pretty confident after last season, because gave two names: Sony Michel and Nick Chubb. I liked them both, but I favored Chubb. Like I said, feeling pretty confident.

This year, I’m going to give you four names. Four players that I believe will make a huge impact on the 2015 season and beyond.

1.       Trenton Thompson: Mr. Thompson, you would call him Mr. if you met him on the street, is 6-4 311 pounds and he just turned 19 on July 27^th. Mr. Thompson is going to change Georgia’s defense this season. At one point, he was rated by Rivals as the number one player in the country, but late in the recruiting process, he was bumped to number 2. At the Under Armor All America game, one reporter asked him why he hadn’t smiled all week. Trenton answered that he wasn’t here to smile and make friends; he was here to get his number one ranking back! The moment I heard that, I loved this guy. Last season, Georgia’s defense was number 2 in the nation against the pass, giving up an average of 158.4 yards per game. Georgia had 13 interceptions and sacked the quarterback 24 times. Teams couldn’t pass against Georgia. But they could run, and run they did. Georgia’s rush defense was tied for 75^th in the nation, giving up 175.6 yards per game rushing. Georgia was 10^th out of 14 teams in the SEC in rush defense. In Georgia’s two worst losses of the season, Florida and Tech, Georgia’s rush defense was embarrassing. Florida ran 60 times for 418 yards, while Tech ran 70 times for 399. Georgia gave up 2,169 yards rushing last season and 817, nearly 38%, came in the two games against, arguably, Georgia’s two biggest rivals. Mr. Thompson will help change all of those numbers in 2015. Mr. Thompson will play nose tackle in Georgia’s 3-4 defense, which is, without question, the most important position in a 3-4 defense. The base concept of the 3-4 defense is that one, huge nose-tackle would need to be double teamed by 2 offensive linemen, leaving three linemen to block the other two defensive tackles and a blitzing linebacker coming from one of the four linebacker positions. So, in real terms, a true nose tackle means that there would be a one on one situation between a lineman and Leonard Floyd or Lorenzo Carter. Offensive lineman wouldn’t stand a chance, so teams will have to use tight ends and/or, running backs to help block, thus changing the opposing offense completely. You might not hear the name Trenton Thompson week in and week out on television, but you will read about Mr. Thompson in this blog, and you will know that when Georgia’s defense improves dramatically against the run in 2015, Mr. Thompson will be the primary reason.

2.       Terry Godwin: Wide receiver is one of the most interesting, and least talked about positions heading into the 2015 season. Godwin is a five-star athlete that Georgia was able to keep in state, something that hasn’t happened in previous years. While someone like Mr. Thompson will probably start from day one, Godwin’s role will be a little different. Georgia’s coaches would be crazy to believe that the Dawgs’ top two returning wide receivers, Malcolm Mitchell and Justin Scott-Wesley, can make it through the entire season healthy. Neither player has been healthy in their Georgia career, so odds are that at some point this season, one if not both of these guys are going to be on the bench. Georgia lost Chris Connelly, Michael Bennett, and Jonathan Rumph to graduation, so the returning starters at wide receiver don’t leave you feeling very confidant. Names like Reggie Davis, Kenneth Towns, and Shakenneth Williams are largely unknown to the Bulldog Nation because they haven’t made major contributions in their limited playing time. You will know the name Isaiah McKenzie, but his size and speed make him a perfect fit for a third, or slot receiver, leaving a potentially big hole on the outside of Georgia’s offense. Enter Terry Godwin, and to a lesser extent Michael Chigbu. Godwin will establish himself as Georgia’s top receiver before Georgia plays Florida in Jacksonville, and he will be the best receiver Georgia has had since AJ Greene.

3.       Rashad Roundtree: When Georgia was thriving under Mark Richt in the early to mid 2000’s, there was always a big name safety that would be ready at a moment’s notice to lower the boom on opposing receivers. Names like Thomas Davis, Greg Blue, and Kelin Johnson were often the leaders of the defense. Rashad Roundtree is built in that same mold. 6-1 and 205 pounds, Roundtree was recruited heavily, and chose the Dawgs over defending national champion, Ohio State. Last year, Dominick Sanders showed that freshman have the ability to make a big impact in the secondary under Jeremy Pruitt, and Roundtree will be able to do the same in 2015. I’m not quite sure where he will fit it, free safety, strong safety, nickel corner, but when he is on the field he will make an impact. The secondary is Pruitt’s specialty, and Roundtree just adds more talent to an already loaded position group.

4.       Jake Ganus: While Ganus is a name you might not know yet, but you will know by the end of the season, his story is quite different than the other three names on this list. Mr. Thompson, Rashad Roundtree, and Terry Godwin are all freshman who will have an early impact in their Georgia careers, Ganus is a senior, who will have only one season to make his mark in Athens. Ganus, 6-2, 227 pounds, is a transfer from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He is eligible to play this season because UAB abolished their football program last year, and any former UAB player transferring was ruled to be immediately eligible. Ganus will help bridge a gaping hole in the Georgia defense. Georgia lost their top two leading tacklers from a year ago in Amarlo Herrera and Ramik Wilson, and while they have some talented freshman coming in, like Natrez Patrick and Roqaun Smith, Ganus will provide instant maturity at a position of need, inside linebacker. I think Ganus will start at inside linebacker alongside Tim Kimbrough, who saw a lot of playing time last year. If Ganus can step in and be effective against the run, he could very well help Georgia establish one of the best defenses in the nation. Another interesting angle to keep an eye on is the fact that many people believe that the University of Alabama, and Nick Saban in particular had a hand in UAB shutting down their football program. Poetic justice would be sweet for Georgia fans if Ganus, who should be a senior at UAB, has a big impact against the Tide when they come to Athens on October 3^rd. As successful as Saban has been at Alabama, his actions have backfired in a big way before: remember, he lobbied the refs are in 2013 to get one second put back on the clock so he could attempt a field goal against Auburn. We all know how that story ended. Kick-Six.

From Herschel Walker, to AJ Greene, to Todd Gurley, to Nick Chubb, first year players making an impact is nothing new between the hedges. However, with the amount of talent Georgia has been recruiting over the past two seasons, more and more we will see first year players making a real difference in the direction of Georgia’s season. If these four players have the type of impact they are capable of having, Georgia could find itself in the Dome for the SEC title game on December 5^th.