2011 Georgia Football Predictions


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The Georgia Bulldogs loss to UCF in the Liberty Bowl pushed their season record to 6-7. It was the first time since 1996 that the Bulldogs finished with a losing record. They ended the year just 3-5 in the SEC, but still finished tied for third in the SEC East. A lot of the Bulldogs struggles early had to do with the fact that they were without star wide out A.J. Green for the first four games. Green is headed to the NFL, but there is still plenty of talent back for the Bulldogs to make a big turnaround in 2011.

Here is a look at what Georgia will send to the field on both sides of the ball, plus my prediction on where they will finish the year in the SEC East.

Offense:

Even without Green in the picture the Bulldogs should have no trouble putting up some big numbers in the passing game behind sophomore quarterback Aaron Murray. As a freshman Murray completed 61.1% of his passes for 3,049 yards with 24 touchdowns to just 8 interceptions. His passer rating was higher in his first year than what Matthew Stafford posted in his junior year.  The scary thing is he should be even better with a full season under his belt.

While the Bulldogs rushed for 143 yards a game last year, they lacked a big time playemaker out of the backfield. They lose Washaun Ealey, who led the team with 811 yards and 11 touchdowns, and bring in one of the top freshman running backs in the country in Isaiah Crowell. It isn’t set in stone that Crowell will win the starting job, but I have a hard time believing the Bulldogs won’t turn to the freshman right off the bat.

The development of Murray will be huge for a receiving corps that loss its top two receivers from last year in Green and Kris Durham. They bring back junior wide out Tavarres King and junior tight end Orson Charles. King had 27 catches for 504 yards and 3 scores, while Charles had 26 catches for 422 yards and 2 touchdowns. These two should see their numbers improve this season, but for this unit to really take off they need  juniors Rantavious Wooten and Marion Brown to step in and make plays.

The offensive line was a big disappointment in 2010. While the Bulldogs bring back just two starters in senior center Ben Jones and senior left tackle Cordy Glenn, they believe this unit has the potential to really outperform the unit from a year ago. sophomore Chris Burnette and Kenarious Gates are expected to step in and start at the two guard spots, while senior Justin Anderson takes over at right tackle.

Defense:

The Bulldogs had just five starters back on the defensive side of the ball last year, but allowed just 22.1 points per game. it was the fewest they have allowed since holding opponents to just 20.2 in 2007. While they lose a big time playmaker in linebacker Justin Houston, who led the team with 10 sacks, they return seven starters from last year.

The Bulldogs 3-4 scheme will bring back defensive ends Abby Jones and DeAngelo Tyson, but the buzz is surrounding junior college transfer Jonathan Jenkins, who at 340 pounds was recruited specifically to play nose tackle. If Jenkins can hold down the middle, it should free up the entire defense to make plays behind him.

The Bulldogs will have plenty of new faces at linebacker this season. The only starter back from last year is junior inside linebacker Christian Robinson. It looks as though the Bulldogs will move sophomore safety Alec Ogletree to play alongside Robinson in the middle, while junior Cornelius Washington and sophomore Jarvis Jones take over at the two outside spots. Even with the little experience back, this unit should perform at a very high level if Jenkins is as good as advertised up front.

The Bulldogs held opposing teams to just 181 yards a game through the air, and will have the potential to really shutdown the passing game with all four starters back. The two guys to watch out for are senior corner Brandon Boykin and junior safety Bacarri Rambo.

SEC Prediction: 2nd SEC East – I believe we are going to see the Bulldogs not only turn things around in 2011, but compete for the top spot in the SEC East. I currently have them rated slightly below South Carolina in my preseason ratings, but I wouldn’t be surprised at all to see them win the division.  They avoid both Alabama and LSU out of the SEC West and get the Gamecocks at home on Sept. 10.

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