Georgia Football: Getting Our Swagger Back

First off: The above title is interchangeable.

Call it "Swagger", if you're referring to the old school ways Georgia is going to run the ball down your throat and jam you at the line.

Call it "Swagga" if you're referring to all the new kids on the block who bring a loaded gun of young, raw talent.

Right now, a monster is sleeping in Athens.

It is sleeping in the athletic dorms of East Campus, and lurking in the home locker room of Sanford Stadium. It has been tucked away for almost two years, and finally wants to come back out and play.

So what is this beast?

What is it that has me staying up at night reworking a possible depth chart for next year, grinning foolishly and laughing heavily each time?

It's Aaron Murray. It's Caleb King. It's Washaun Ealy. It's Branden Smith. It's Brandon Boykin. It's Orson Charles. It's Da'Rick Rogers. It's AJ Green. It's all these names and dozens of others. So what shall we name it? How about: Future. 

Pay attention to what's about to take place at Georgia over the next few years. Don't blink, because it's so fast you might miss it. Plain and simple: The Dawgs are STACKED

While this is not an article to bash Joe Cox or blame Willie Martinez, it is safe to say that our boys were mediocre this season. We couldn't run, only a few could catch, and it seems as if tackling was just a "waste of practice team" or something along those lines.

It's all behind us now, and when you check out UGA's roster, you start to notice something: the senior class was small this year. More importantly, it's a senior class we can live without.

This spring will bring speed with it to training camp. It will pack prodigy wide receivers and a dual threat of running backs. It certainly won't forget veteran defenders or linemen, but most of all it will keep safe along the way a redshirt freshman at quarterback.

What excites me most about this group is how hungry they are. Excluding Murray and Rogers, these returning starters are embarrassed at the way they made Mark Richt look this year. They are embarrassed of playing in Shreveport. They are embarrassed about Kentucky and Tennessee, and they sure as hell don't want to talk about LSU or Florida. Revenge is a powerful word, and it's one i'm sure will be tossed around greatly over the next few months.

Remember a time when Georgia won SEC Championships and dated the Sugar Bowl? Remember when a quarterback named DJ Shockley scrambled his way into our hearts? When a rap song could light up our sidelines and make a young man named Knowshon Moreno dance with the best of 'em? When we could run out on a field and piss off Urban Meyer enough to write about it in a book? When we could storm the field in black and make the town feel electric?

That feeling is coming back. Because what we have on our hands after a season and a half of disappointment are the remains of tested players that want it all. The returning players are getting ready for a 2010 season of limitless boundaries. They want to show us what a powerhouse can look like.

The University of Georgia feels young again.