Georgia Bulldogs Football: Analyzing the Upcoming 2011 Season

The seat of Mark Richt's throne is getting mighty warm in Athens, Georgia. The 2010 season was one that will have Bulldog fans cringing for decades. However, there is plenty of talent returning this season, including star quarterback Aaron Murray, and the Bulldogs have high expectations for 2011. Will they maneuver the complicated early part of the schedule and become a contender in the SEC East once again? 

Ah, the wonders of the 2010 season in Athens, Georgia. Disaster set in from the beginning, a 1-4 start, including a devastating loss to the downtrodden Colorado Buffaloes, and many were beginning to wonder how Richt managed to keep his clipboard and headset. As the season progressed, it appeared Georgia was ready to turn its season around and produce, at the least, a mediocre season in the eyes of their fans.

However, a horrible season-ending loss to Central Florida in the Liberty Bowl had fans up in arms. Thankfully, the Bulldogs salvaged a solid recruiting class and have the skills of Murray to look forward to in 2011.

Richt is working on a very short leash this season, so improvement will be the name of the game. The Bulldogs are blessed with a generous SEC schedule, if there is such a thing, and return several talented skill position players to help reestablish their program as prominent figure in the football landscape. Leading the way will be Murray, one of the best young quarterbacks in the country, and he has the arm and the mind to lead them in the right direction.

Looking over the Georgia roster, there is an eerie feeling that they could be heading toward a situation similar to the Auburn Tigers of 2010. The expectations are minimized, the program still possesses plenty of talent and they are bringing in a haul of a recruiting class. Couple all those factors with the manageable schedule that exists for the Bulldogs, and the possibilities are endless.

We will find out early in the season just how legitimate this team truly will be in 2011. The Bulldogs will open up with a “neutral” field game against the dreaded Boise State Broncos and immediately welcome to Athens the SEC East favorites, the South Carolina Gamecocks.

Richt and company better man up, and man up quickly.

Quarterbacks

As mentioned earlier, the Georgia Bulldogs are blessed with one of the country’s most talented quarterbacks. The 6'1", 211-pound Murray possesses all the qualities needed in an elite level quarterback at the collegiate level. He will be attacking defenses without his most dynamic playmaker, A.J. Green, who has moved onto the NFL; but Murray still should show improvement through the offseason maturation process and the year of experience he gained in 2010. Murray may lack height, but he makes up for it with a cannon for an arm and a toughness rarely seen at the quarterback position.

Huston Mason will be manning the backup quarterback position. He garnered some playing time a year ago and has the talent needed to step in if an emergency involving Murray comes into play. Mason was the 2009 Gatorade Player of the Year, and he showed the skills needed to sling the rock during his high school career. If Mason is unable to lock down the job, another talented freshman is waiting in the wings. Christian LeMay is a gunslinger who would be in competition for several starting jobs around the country. LeMay was the 2009 Gatorade Player of the Year, and while he is positioned behind two quality quarterbacks, he is too talented of a player to not provide Mason with stiff competition for the No. 2 job.

As long as Murray stays healthy, the Georgia passing game should thrive and be one of the most competent groups in the entire conference. As stated earlier, Murray is one of, if not the best, gunslinger in the entire conference and one of the best young players in the country.

Running Backs

The Bulldogs were expected to have one of the most quality backfields in the entire country heading into the 2011 season. Caleb King, Washaun Ealey and Isiah Crowell were going to be a trio that would punish oppositions throughout the game and provide a dominant ground attack for Richt and company. However, things changed quickly this summer, as King was an academic casualty and Ealey decided it was in his best interest to transfer, leaving young Isiah as the man in charge.

Crowell was widely considered one of the most talented running backs in the country at the high school level and the screams of, “He’s the next Herschel,” have begun to rattle from the Bulldog faithful. The 6-foot, 210-pound freshman has all the skills needed to be an immediate impact player, and he is a minuscule hole away from taking any play directly to the house. If Crowell isn’t ready, who will be the running back to lead the charge at the beginning of the season?

Carlton Thomas, a 5'7", 163-pound back, is not your normal workhorse-style tailback, but he is capable of doing a variety of things on the offensive side of the ball as a threat catching the ball out of the backfield. Thomas has a chance to start the season as the lead tailback and will try to cash in on the opportunity that is being presented to him.

Behind Thomas, there are a couple of options to provide depth for the running back corps. Richard Samuel and Bruce Figgins are both capable of being quality spot backs and will provide a nice amount of depth in a backfield that was thought to be devastated by departures.

Receivers

The loss of Green is an immediate issue for the Bulldog receiving corps. Green was one of the most talented receivers in school history, a threat to score every time he was targeted. While his numbers were not off the charts last season (57 receptions, 848 yards), the offense was a completely different animal when Green was in the game. He commanded so much of the defenses attention that many other options opened up from a play-calling perspective.

Tavarres King is the man poised to slide into Green’s position as the go-to target. The 6'1", 192-pound receiver proved that he was capable of being a go-to receiver during Green’s absence and showed big-play ability, averaging over 18 yards a reception in 2010.

Rantavious Wooten, Marlon Brown and Michael Bennett will round out a talented receiving corps, but they will have to show improvement or they will be pushed heavily by two talented incoming freshmen. Malcom Mitchell and Chris Conley enter the fold as part of the 2011 recruiting class and are talented enough to make a splash if given an opportunity. Mitchell, in particular, has tremendous speed and hands and could easily factor into the three-man rotation.

Orson Charles, one of the SEC’s best tight ends, will continue to provide a nice outlet for Murray from his position. The 6'3", 241-pounder has tremendous speed for a tight end and causes mismatches all over the field with his size, athleticism and aforementioned speed.

Even though this unit must replace one of the best in school history, they still have quality talent and will be receiving passes from a much more experienced quarterback, which could lead to more production across the board.

Offensive Line

Last season much was expected out of a talented offensive line. Injuries, inconsistent play and several other factors led to a terrible year for the boys up front. The running game struggled, Murray received an exponential amount of hits and the group was a large disappointment throughout the campaign; however, there is hope for a brighter future with new line coach Will Friend at the helm.

A mountain of a man will anchor the line from the left side. Standing 6'5" and 348 pounds, Cordy Glenn possesses all the tools needed to be a quality offensive lineman. He has the hand strength and feet needed to protect Murray’s backside and provide a large, opposing force for defensive linemen to maneuver.

Ben Jones, Chris Burnette, Kenarious Gates and A.J. Harmon should round out the starting front for the Bulldogs. They provide plenty of size up front, but they must develop a killer instinct from the moment the ball is snapped if UGA wants to improve on the disappointments of 2010.

Defensive Line

While the Georgia defense was the epitome of inconsistency last season, they still showed moments of potential and were much more consistent than their counterparts on the offensive side of the ball. Heading into the 2011 campaign, there is a ton of untapped potential on the Bulldogs defense and they are poised to make great strides throughout the season, starting with the boys on the front line.

The strength of the Bulldog defensive line appears to be on the interior with Kwame Geathers and John Jenkins. An incoming JUCO transfer, Jenkins is as talented as any interior tackle in the country and the comparisons to Terrence Cody will come early and often. The 6'4", 350-pound monster will provide opposing offenses with an immovable force and Jenkins will be an immediate upgrade against the run.

Michael Thornton will also see some time at the tackle position, and while he is undersized at 6'1", 287 pounds, he will provide a quicker, more athletic option for the Bulldogs defense.

Abry Jones, Garrison Smith, Derrick Loft and DeAngelo Tyson will rotate at the end of positions and attempt to provide pressure off the edge and alleviate some of the problems against the run. The 3-4 defense of the Bulldogs struggled at times to stop the run, and their is hope that the line will become much more consistent in 2011.

Linebackers

Replacing Justin Houston is an area of immediate concern for the linebacker corps, but there appears to be enough talent to offset the loss, at least somewhat. Houston was constantly in the backfield, recording 10 sacks and 18.5 tackles for loss, and he was a stalwart for the Bulldog defense.

Jarvis Jones, a transfer from USC, has been handed the reigns to the defense and is expected to attempt to replace the lost production of Houston. The coaching staff are expecting an immediate impact from the talented Jones, who has the ability to completely dominate from his position. He will enter the year completely healthy and has a chance to be an All-SEC caliber linebacker. Jones will be joined by Christian Robinson, Cornelius Washington and Alexander Ogletree in the starting unit.

Robinson, a 6'2", 226-pound senior, started 11 games in 2010 and is a heady player that seems to always make the right decisions. What he lacks in size, he makes up for with hard work and a heart the size of a lion. Washington, at 6'4", 260 pounds, is the polar opposite compared to Robinson, but he has shown an ability to get to the quarterback and make game-changing plays when called upon. Ogletree, who has moved over from the safety position, brings a lot of speed to the position and has the ability to be a disruptive playmaker at the point of attack.

Chase Vasser, Michael Gilliard, Reuben Faloughi and Jeremy Sulek will provide depth at the position and form a nice rotation for a solid group of linebackers.

Replacing Houston will be a problem, but the talent is on to have a quality set of sure tacklers and provide enough disruptive pressure on the quarterback to cause problems for opposing offenses.

Defensive Backs

The UGA secondary was phenomenal in 2010, but it did struggle at times with giving up the big play. They did produce a quality amount of turnovers, coming up with 16 interceptions, and they allowed just one passing touchdown in 10 of their games. It is tough to expect a team to improve upon those numbers, but the entire secondary returns and the Bulldogs will have one of the best in the SEC.

Brandon Boykin and Sanders Cummings return to man the cornerback positions and provide stout coverage on both sides of the field. Boykin is a tremendous athlete who is able to make plays on the ball with amazing closing speed and a tremendous leaping ability that makes up for his size of 5'10", 183 pounds, which was a concern about him coming into his collegiate career. Cummings provides a nice fire to Boykin’s ice, and at 6'2", 217 pounds, he has the ability to cover opposing teams' larger receivers.

Bacarri Rambo returns to headline the back half of the secondary. A 6', 218-pound safety, Rambo is a ball-hawking safety that gets his hand on the ball and forces turnovers. Rambo has the ability to be an All-SEC caliber player and will be the most dominant player in the secondary. He will most likely be joined in the back half by Shawn Williams, who started three games a year ago and has speed to burn in the secondary.

Considering all the returning talent on this unit, the Bulldogs should once again have a dominant secondary to work with in 2011.

Final Synopsis

With a ton of returning talent, a couple of stars in the making on the offensive side of the ball and a potentially dominant defense, Georgia is bound to contend, right?  Well, that would normally be the case, but with Mark Richt at the helm, it’s like a box of chocolates.

Georgia must start fast out of the gate and win at least one of their first two games against Boise State and the Gamecocks. If they start 0-2, the masses in Athens will begin rounding up the money needed to send Richt on his way.

That appears to be a very likely scenario. Georgia will struggle to beat either of the aforementioned teams, but their schedule will settle down following that opening haymaker and rebound nicely, if they are mentally tougher than the 2010 version. With an experienced Murray at the helm that should be the case, at least Richt will be praying that is the case.

Last Year’s Record: 6-7

Projected 2011 Record: 9-3