Monday, April 12, 2010

Thoughts on G-Day

Another G-Day has come and gone and now we have over 4 months to wait until we see the Georgia Bulldogs take the football field again. This year's G-Day was definitely better than the 2009 snooze fest, but still lacked in the excitement department. Here are my thoughts on what took place Saturday:

- The weather was absolutely amazing and it felt great to be back in Athens. There was a pretty good crowd on hand, but it was really weird to see the entire North stands empty.

- Talk about vanilla - both offense and defense kept the game plan about as simple as could be. This was most noticeable in the blitzes and in the running game.

- The running game was pretty weak. Outside of Carlton Thomas's 30 yard scamper, I don't think there were any other rushes longer than 10 yards. The defense was not doing anything special, it was just regular up the middle running (often times with walk on fullbacks playing the role of tailback.)

- Washington and Houston looked very comfortable at outside linebackers. These two are going to put up monster years in Grantham's defense.

- Really glad to see Kris Durham back. Expect big things from him, particularly on third downs and in the red zone.

- Expect big things from Rambo, Dowtin, and Vance Cuff this fall.

- Georgia has the best group of tight ends in the SEC, if not the country. White, Charles, Figgins and Lynch would all be starters at most schools in the SEC.

- The QB Competition.
  • Mettenberger was impressive, but he also played against the second team defense all day. His arm is strong and he is definitely improved, but he doesn't move well in the pocket. Some people are ready to anoint him starter but I still think he has a lot of work to do.
  • Murray was off a bit and his numbers were not that good, but I thought he actually made some pretty good plays in the pocket. If he hits AJ in the end zone, how many people would have a totally different opinion of his day? Also, while throwing the interception was bad, the drive up until that point was impressive. I still like his pocket presence better.
  • Logan looked good, but he was also not asked to do too much. He clearly has the weakest arm of the three and is more of a scrambler than a pocket passer. I would like to see him continue to take some snaps at QB simply for his running ability.

Overall, it was a nice game that ultimately means very little for the 2010 Bulldogs. The play of the day was the pass from Mettenberger to Wooten. I still expect Murray to be the starter against Louisiana-Lafayette and as long as he performs well in that game and against South Carolina, the job will be his.

GO DAWGS!!!