What We Are Hearing
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Georgia is preparing to parade its program in front of a national-TV audience on Saturday. What should viewers and spectators expect?
Not much if folks around the SEC are correct.
“I’m convinced more than ever that these spring games are nothing more than propaganda,” said one SEC coach. “I was talking with another coach the other day. He said their defense wasn’t allowed to do anything to make their offense look bad in any way. Honestly, it might have worked.”
They went on to add that spring games can be as much about building program momentum or momentum for players in particular than anything else.
“You are going to give them easy things to accomplish,” he added. “Its an easier transition into the offseason that way.”
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Georgia’s scrimmage the other day, however, wasn’t in front of fans or TV cameras. It “might” give more insight into the reality of the program right now than what we will see on Saturday. One, and it was only one, person who viewed the scrimmage said it was obvious one player was missing on the defensive side of the ball.
“The big thing you notice when the defense is out there is that Roquan isn’t out there,” the observer noted.
They went on to say that the Bulldogs will be just as good, and could be better, at running the ball in 2018 than they were last fall. That’s a heck of a statement considering Georgia that only three times last season did the Bulldogs fail to gain over 200 yards on the ground.
But one of the players the observer pointed out - Jake Fromm - continues to be steady this spring… perhaps not spectacular, but steady. He, frankly, could be the reason the run game is better... because much of 2017 he was asked to do so little.
“He’s solid nearly all of the time,” they added. “He was one of the two players who played pretty well Saturday.”
The other, according to the observer was true freshman Brenton Cox - more on him later.
Several folks with some knowledge behind the scenes have said that Cox has “flashed” more than a few times this spring.
The bad news with Justin Fields is that the notion of a true “quarterback competition” at UGA right now seems a long way away. The good news is two fold - he’s quite young, and the Bulldogs have never had a player like him in their program before, so its not like he's a plug-and-play guy.
Consider that Fields has been seen working with the running backs this spring.
“And he’s certainly not a running back,” one insider insisted.
But running the ball is part of what his future will be.
The major issue on Saturday was that Fields had too many mistakes - several interceptions - but also a least one delay of game penalty while the offense was in position to score. Now I would argue that’s part of a quarterback getting used to the realities of college football. Perhaps it was just a bad day, and things are being over done. But the way I understand it right now, Fields and Fromm are not in a competition for the starting quarterback job - unsaid or said - right now.
That they are both competing and are at the same position is what’s going on.
Cox, on the other hand, is further along to challenging for playing time or even starting some games at linebacker. For far Cox and Cade Mays seem to be the younger players who are furthest along at this early part in the season.
UGA officials wouldn’t confirm Mark Webb lower-body injury Tuesday night after the Pennsylvania native left practice with an injury. But its well known in the program that he’s hurt. The question is how serious. The Dawgs are quickly running out of DBs.
Early betting odds are starting to spill out across the internet. The Bulldogs, along with Alabama, have an over/under set at 10.5 wins. South Carolina and the Gators are both set at 7 (that, alone signals how much more UGA is favored to win the division than anyone else). Missouri is at 6.5. The Cats are at 6. Betters project that Tennessee (5.5) and Vanderbilt (5) are likely to miss bowl games again this fall.