4 x 4 Preview: Georgia
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By Matt Smith
SouthernPigskin.com
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Georgia has represented the SEC East in Atlanta each of the past two seasons.
4 Household Names
1. QB Aaron Murray (Sr.) – While a 28-13 record as a starter can only be considered mediocre by Georgia’s lofty standards, Murray should close his career as the SEC’s all-time passing leader. Murray was prone to turnovers early in his career, but he cut his interception totals by a third from 2011 to 2012. Any questions about his ability to succeed in big games were squelched a year ago with wins over Florida and Nebraska and a near-miss against Alabama.
2. RB Todd Gurley (So.) – After he went through spring practice in 2012, Georgia knew it had something special in Gurley, who wasn’t even the highest-rated running back the Bulldogs signed a year ago (that was Keith Marshall). Almost 1,400 yards and 17 touchdowns later, Gurley is now an All-American candidate heading into his sophomore season. He’ll be running behind an offensive line that returns all five starters from 2012
3. WR Malcolm Mitchell (Jr.) – A two-way player in 2012, Mitchell has settled in on offense and should be Murray’s top target this season. He won’t light up any stat sheets, however, as Georgia likes to spread the ball around. 10 different Bulldogs had double-digit receptions last season, and eight are back this year. With an offseason fully devoted to offense, expect a much improved Mitchell in 2013.
4. TE Arthur Lynch (Sr.) – Georgia has had a nice run of tight ends in the Mark Richt era, with Lynch poised to join predecessor Orson Charles as a Mackey Award finalist in his final season in Athens. A big target at 6’5” and close to 260 pounds, Lynch can also stretch the field as well as any tight end in the country. He averaged 18 yards per catch last season, second-highest on the team. The continued development of sophomore Jay Rome should allow the Bulldogs to use frequent two-tight end sets and open more space for Lynch.
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4 Relative Unknowns Who Will Become Household Names
1. WR Jonathan Rumph (Jr.) – A junior college transfer who participated in spring practice, Rumph will battle classmate Chris Conley for the third wide receiver spot behind Mitchell and Michael Bennett. Conley is more proven, catching six touchdowns in 2012, but Rumph is the more athletic of the two. At 6’5”, he’ll provide Murray with a large catch radius and should be an asset in the red zone. He won’t simply be handed playing time, but appeared to be a quick learner during a productive spring.
2. LB Jordan Jenkins (So.) – Jenkins came on late in the 2012 season, finishing with 31 tackles and five sacks in mostly a reserve role behind Michael Gilliard and first-round NFL Draft pick Jarvis Jones. He won’t have to match Jones’ 14.5 sacks of a year ago, but getting to double digits is imperative for the success of a Bulldogs defense that will have eight new starters this season but loves to bring pressure under the direction of coordinator Todd Grantham.
3. LB/S Josh Harvey-Clemons (So.) – His season debut won’t come until Week 2 because of a failed drug test, but Harvey-Clemons will still be one of the most critical players on the Georgia defense. At 6’5” and 207 pounds, he’s a bit of a tweener physically, and has practiced with both the linebackers and safeties. He may be the best pure athlete on the roster, so he’ll have a home somewhere in the starting lineup.
4. S Tray Matthews (Fr.) – Another early enrollee, Matthews is basically a lock to start the season opener at Clemson, especially with Harvey-Clemons suspended. He has nowhere near the size of Harvey-Clemons but does have great range. He’ll be a freshman in name only, which is a good thing for Georgia with Clemson, South Carolina and LSU all on the schedule before the calendar flips to October.
4 Must-See Games
1. Aug. 31 at Clemson – What a fun game to kick off the season. No neutral sites. No droves of luxury boxes. Just good ol’ southern football in Death Valley, as the longtime rivals meet for the first time in a decade. Expect plenty of points from two of the best quarterbacks in the country in Murray and Tajh Boyd. Georgia can only hope this one goes better than its last visit to the Palmetto State – a 35-7 destruction by South Carolina last year in Columbia.
2. Sept. 7 vs. South Carolina – Georgia-South Carolina has become your father’s Tennessee-Florida, an early season showdown that sets the tone for the SEC East race. The Gamecocks have won the last three meetings, but it was the Bulldogs who rallied to win division titles in both 2011 and 2012. Those titles were aided by friendly non-division schedules, something that South Carolina, not Georgia, has this season. If Georgia is to three-peat in the SEC East and get back to Atlanta, it can’t lose this game.
3. Sept. 28 vs. LSU – Much like South Carolina, Georgia’s last meeting with LSU was a disaster, as the Tigers ran off 42 straight points in the 2011 SEC Championship Game after spotting the Bulldogs an early 10-0 lead. LSU’s defense is even less experienced than Georgia’s, so expect both teams to try to control the line of scrimmage with their potent rushing attacks. The Bulldogs have the luxury of a bye week and a game with North Texas in the two weeks leading up to the Tigers’ visit.
4. Nov. 2 vs. Florida (Jacksonville) – Florida owned the Cocktail Party for two decades, winning 18 of 21 meetings between 1990 and 2010. However, Georgia has won two in a row for the first time since Vince Dooley’s last season and Ray Goff’s first season. The Bulldogs can’t count on six Gators turnovers again this season, including one as Florida was about to score the potential game-tying touchdown. Each team has two weeks to prepare, so there will be plenty of time for hype leading into this one.
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4 Bold Predictions
1. Lynch will lead Georgia in touchdown receptions and win the Mackey Award. Conley leads all returnees with six touchdowns, but Lynch will assume more of the nine scores a year ago by the departed Tavarres King. Lynch showed late in 2012 just how productive he can be, catching three passes in each of the final five games, including a 26-yard reception that gave Georgia a chance to defeat Alabama on which it ultimately couldn’t capitalize. Charles finished second for the Mackey Award in 2011. Lynch will do him one better come December.
2. Murray will end his career No. 8 on the NCAA career passing list. He won’t reach the 3,893 yards of a year ago, but Murray will blow past fellow Bulldog David Greene’s SEC record of 11,528 yards to close his career with over 13,500 yards. By season’s end, Murray will trail only Oklahoma’s Landry Jones and Texas Tech’s Graham Harrell among quarterbacks who played in major conferences.
3. Georgia’s SEC East reign will end. Despite losing both of its big division games, the Bulldogs will share the division crown. Of course, the head-to-head losses to South Carolina and Florida will not bode well for any tiebreakers. Georgia won’t get its shot at revenge against Alabama, but a 10-2 season with this schedule would provide little to complain about – even in Athens.
4. Georgia will play Baylor in the Cotton Bowl. An SEC East team hasn’t appeared in this historic game since 2005, but a matchup of two of the best offenses in the country will be too appealing to pass up. The Bears, who benefit from getting both Oklahoma and Texas home, will finish in a tie for second in the wide-open Big 12. The teams have met four times, the most recent in 1989, with the Bulldogs winning all four. You won’t find a nicer pair of coaches than Richt and Art Briles.
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