Dawn of the Dawg
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Georgia Football Awards for the 2017 team

By Alistair Penny

PASADENA, CA - JANUARY 01: Head Coach Kirby Smart of the Georgia Bulldogs is presented the trophy after the Bulldogs beat the Oklahoma Sooners 54-48 in double overtime in the 2018 College Football Playoff Semifinal Game at the Rose Bowl Game presented by Northwestern Mutual at the Rose Bowl on January 1, 2018 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
PASADENA, CA - JANUARY 01: Head Coach Kirby Smart of the Georgia Bulldogs is presented the trophy after the Bulldogs beat the Oklahoma Sooners 54-48 in double overtime in the 2018 College Football Playoff Semifinal Game at the Rose Bowl Game presented by Northwestern Mutual at the Rose Bowl on January 1, 2018 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /
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ATLANTA, GA – JANUARY 08: Head coach Kirby Smart of the Georgia Bulldogs talks to his team during a timeout during the fourth quarter against the Georgia Bulldogs in the CFP National Championship presented by AT
ATLANTA, GA – JANUARY 08: Head coach Kirby Smart of the Georgia Bulldogs talks to his team during a timeout during the fourth quarter against the Georgia Bulldogs in the CFP National Championship presented by AT /

Special Teams Player of the Year

Cameron Nizialek: Senior Punter

It’s probably safe to say that this one came down to two people. But true to my desire of not splitting awards, I decided that I was going to just give it to one of them. Rodrigo Blankenship’s progress in 2017 cannot be understated. He went from being a walk-on who kind of had a job, to one of the best kickers in the SEC. He’s become a cult hero for a lot of us and it’s very much deserved.

But Rodrigo has a couple more years in Athens and I know he’ll be the same guy. Nizialek is a different story and he’s someone who doesn’t get enough credit for what he did. As great as our team was, I don’t think we enjoy this season without him coming in and taking our punt game to a whole new level.

A graduate transfer from Columbia. Nizialek only had 1 season at Georgia, but he did so much for our school. He was the 11th best punter in the country according to Sports Reference last season and averaged 45 yards a punt. Consider that the season before, Marshall Long ranked 108th out of 122 qualified punters and hopefully that emphasizes my point.

That sort of difference changes games. It gives you field position and takes it away from others. It’s why Kirby Smart has banged on about special teams since he got here. Nizialek might end up not being remembered by some UGA fans because his tenure was so short. But he should, because he made a very real contribution to this very good football team.

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