Georgia Football: Final 2014 Positional Grades for the Bulldogs

The Georgia Bulldogs finished the 2014 regular season with a 9-3 record and second place in the SEC East. It was not the finish they wanted, as they will play Louisville in the Belk Bowl, but there was more good than bad when looking back at the season.

There were players who stepped up on both sides of the ball. And the good thing about it is the Bulldogs won’t lose too many players for next season. So the players who contributed this season along with the newcomers for next year will make them a favorite to win the SEC East.

Here are the final positional grades for the Bulldogs.

Quarterbacks

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Hutson Mason has taken a lot of heat for his play this year, and the interception against Georgia Tech in overtime will not help his legacy.

But had it not been for his steady hand, Georgia would not have had the top-scoring offense in the SEC.

Mason only threw for a shade over 2,000 yards, but he did throw 20 touchdown passes and led the conference with a completion percentage of 67.9.

Brice Ramsey was solid in the backup role, as he completed 66 percent of his passes and threw three touchdowns. Odds are he will take the place of Mason for 2015 and beyond.

Grade: A-

Running Backs

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The running game was by far the strength for the Bulldogs, and the backs have a chance to be better next year.

At the start of the season, Todd Gurley was on pace to be the clear-cut favorite to win the Heisman Trophy, as he led the SEC in rushing yards, touchdowns, yards per game and yards per carry.

But when Gurley got suspended for four games, Nick Chubb came in and finished the regular season second in rushing yards.

Both Gurley and Chubb were the team’s best players, but Sony Michel also was a key contributor along with Brendan Douglas.

There were not too many teams in the country that could run the ball better than the Bulldogs.

Grade: A+

Wide Receivers/Tight Ends

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The only real downfall of the offense was the receivers and tight ends, but nobody is really at fault because the running game was so effective.

Chris Conley did have a solid season, catching seven touchdown passes and tallying 577 yards. Michael Bennett was also a reliable target, as he led the team with 35 receptions and also caught four touchdown passes.

Something that hurt the Bulldogs in the passing game is Malcolm Mitchell and Justin Scott-Wesley could not get healthy until the end of the season. Both players are deep threats who would have stretched the field for Mason.

As for the tight ends, Jeb Blazevich was able to outplay Jay Rome this season. Blazevich racked up 256 yards and two touchdowns. He also caught the longest pass play, which was thrown by Gurley. 

Grade: C+

Offensive Line

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The offensive line has been heavily criticized the last few years because of inconsistent play. That was not the case this season.

John Theus, Greg Pyke, David Andrews, Brandon Kublanow and Kolton Houston all played as one, and it showed with the Bulldogs scoring 500 points this year.

The best of the bunch is Andrews. With him being the center, he makes all the calls and makes any changes on the line if he needs to. Plus, he’s there to help any other linemen who have questions. However, Pyke and Theus were named to the AP All-SEC team because of their consistent play.

The offensive line was the key to the team scoring a lot of points this year. And with most of the personnel coming back next year, the O-line should only be better.

Grade: A

Defensive Line

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The weakest positional group on the team would have to be the defensive line, but that isn’t to say it played bad football.

There were times when the D-line struggled against the run, and it was never able to generate a pass rush. But the way the Bulldogs played defense this year relied a lot on their linebackers to make plays in the backfield.

Despite not having any sacks this season, Ray Drew improved each time he was out on the field and totaled 32 tackles and three blocked kicks. And Mike Thornton was solid at defensive tackle, as he notched 26 tackles and four quarterback hurries.

Grade: C

Linebackers

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The Bulldogs may have one of the better set of linebackers in the conference, and the unit proved it this season.

Ramik Wilson had another strong season with 102 tackles and one sack. Jordan Jenkins had 66 tackles, nine tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks. Leonard Floyd led the team with six sacks and 17 quarterback hurries.

But the best of the bunch and one of the better linebackers in the conference this season was Amarlo Herrera, who had 112 tackles, three sacks, 10 tackles for loss and one interception.

All four linebackers can either get after the quarterback or chase down the running backs. If the defensive line was more consistent this year, the linebackers would have had better stats, and the defense would have been even stronger.

Grade: B+

Secondary

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Believe it or not, the Bulldogs had the No. 1 pass defense in the SEC, and a lot of it had to do with improved play in the secondary.

Damian Swann had to step his game up in order for the secondary to improve. He did that, as he recorded 62 tackles, two sacks and three interceptions.

But the surprise player of the group has to be Quincy Mauger, who led the team with four interceptions and 48 tackles.

Aaron Davis, Dominick Sanders, Corey Moore and Malkom Parrish also played key parts in the secondary’s success. Overall, the secondary had 13 interceptions, which is a vast improvement from the seven it grabbed last year.

It’s clear that defensive coordinator Jeremy Pruitt had a big impact on the secondary this season.

Grade: A-