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2015 marks the 10-year anniversary of Georgia’s last SEC championship. The Bulldogs keep churning out solid seasons under Mark Richt, but have cooled a bit since winning two conference titles and three division crowns in his first five years.
But there’s good reason to believe the Dawgs will be on top again come December. In fact, we’ve got 10 of them right here. Let’s count ’em down.
10. Soft start
For a team that’s widely considered the favorite to win the East this season, the Bulldogs have some question marks— most notably at quarterback. That’s where a pretty forgiving September schedule can be helpful. Even against South Carolina, which is no gimme, Georgia should be a substantial favorite in each of its first four games. By the time Alabama comes to Athens on Oct. 3, the Bulldogs will have had ample opportunity to solve any remaining issues.
9. The SEC East
These things tend to be cyclical, but for some time now, the balance of power has been in the conference’s western half. The Bulldogs don’t catch any breaks in scheduling, as they’ll have to face Auburn and Alabama in cross-over games. But Vanderbilt, Kentucky and South Carolina looks like an easier slate this season than Arkansas, Texas A&M and Mississippi State.
8. The SEC West
Unilke the last two times the Bulldogs advanced to the SEC title game, there is no consensus powerhouse in the West this season. Certainly one could emerge, but at this point, it’s difficult to imagine any team the Bulldogs might see in Atlanta being quite as good as 2011 LSU or 2012 Alabama.
7. Strength in numbers
It’s never ideal to be this deep into fall camp and still not have a clear picture of who your starting quarterback will be, but whomever finally emerges as the leader for Georgia this season should be sharpened by the competition. Richt has been exceedingly guarded about the competition, but all three candidates (Brice Ramsey, Faton Bauta and Greyson Lambert) have their strengths. Between the three of them, the Bulldogs should be able to find a signal-caller capable of managing a talented offense.
6. Brian Schottenheimer
Opinions on his predecessor varied dramatically, but Georgia fans should be able to agree that landing Schottenheimer as offensive coordinator is a pretty good get. He’s coached NFL quarterbacks since 2001 and has run NFL offenses for nearly 10 years. His run-centric philosophies should jibe with Georgia’s returning talent, and the young quarterbacks should benefit from his tutelage.
5. Jeremy Pruitt
Pruitt make a nice impression in his first year with the Bulldogs, improving Georgia’s scoring defense by nearly 10 points per game over the previous season. Led by an impressive group of linebackers who are well-suited to Pruitt’s attacking style, the Bulldogs could be even better in 2015.
4. Mark Richt
Perhaps a controversial pick here. When you’ve been at one place as long as Richt has, you’ve given yourself myriad opportunities to mess something up. And college football fans are not especially noted for our forgiving natures when it comes to somebody screwing up our Saturday. And therein lies the point. Though some Georgia fans have soured on Richt or doubt his ability to win big, he doesn’t mess up often. It’s practically impossible to ham-fist your way to 136 wins and a 9-5 bowl record in 14 years as a head coach, so, yeah, he’s pretty good at his job. Good enough to win two SEC titles, and good enough to win a third this season.
3. Offensive line
Todd Gurley was awesome. Nick Chubb, too. But no running back is THAT good on their own, and the Bulldogs’ offensive line deserves all the credit it has received, if not more. Four starters are back from the unit that led the way to a conference-best marks in rushing yards per game (258), yards per carry (6.0) and rushing touchdowns (38) in 2014.
2. Linebackers
The outside linebackers could be the scariest collection of edge rushers in the country this season, but they’re far from one-dimensional. Junior Leonard Floyd, who is showing up on multiple All-America teams this preseason, has worked outside, inside and at Georgia’s star position during camp. That flexibility should allow Georgia to get all of its best players on the field at once, and could pose nightmares for opposing offenses when Pruitt decides to dial up the pressure.
1. Running backs
You probably guessed this was coming. Georgia’s running backs are among the best in the country, led, obviously, by Chubb. What makes them especially dangerous is how well they complement one another. With Chubb as a bruiser, Sony Michel as a threat to score from anywhere on the field, and a healthy Keith Marshall capable of starting for half the teams in the conference, Schottenheimer walks into a situation with plenty of firepower out of the backfield.
Brent Holloway is a contributing writer for Saturday Down South. He covers Georgia, LSU and Mississippi State.
