Jonathan Ledbetter’s return should help Georgia’s pass rush
Tuesday Kirby Smart announced that defensive end Jonathan Ledbetter’s suspension has been lifted after eight games. Jonathan Ledbetter’s return will give Georgia’s defense another pass rusher.
In the first six games of the season Georgia’s defense has perform fairly well besides the Ole Miss and Tennessee games, but one thing that is missing is a pass rush.
Lorenzo Carter and Davin Bellamy have both struggled to achieve a consistent pass rush and the rest of the front seven specializes at stopping the run more so than rushing the passer.
That should all change beginning this Saturday against Vanderbilt with Ledbetter’s return. He may not get the start at defensive end because John Atkins, Trenton Thompson and DaQuan Hawkins-Muckle have all played well so far. Back-ups Julian Rochester, Micheal Barnett and Tyler Clark have all been serviceable as well.
But Ledbetter is too talented and skilled to just ride the bench all game. 247 Sports rated him as a 4-star prospect, the eighth player in Georgia, 66th player in the nation, and the fifth strong-side defensive end in the 2014 recruiting class.
Even if he doesn’t become a sack machine, he’ll be able to free Carter and Bellamy so they can get to the quarterback. Clark also generated a good pass rush against South Carolina.
Ledbetter was a few spots down the depth chart last year, but he was competing for a starting spot this season before he was arrested in July for underage possession and driving under the influence.
That was his second arrest of the off-season and Smart suspended him with no timetable for when he would return. But according to UGA’s student-athlete handbook, the punishment for a second alcohol related arrest is half of a season. It appears Smart followed the handbook exactly with Ledbetter’s return coming six games into the 12-game regular season.
Georgia is currently 4-2 and 2-2 in the SEC behind Tennessee and Florida. But The Volunteers play Alabama this Saturday and judging by their games against Appalachian State, Virginia Tech and Ohio, they’ll probably struggle against Missouri and South Carolina so an upset is likely.
Georgia can win the SEC East race in Jacksonville against Florida. Georgia gaining the ability to rush the passer now can still make an impact on the teams potential this season.