Georgia Football seems to be stirring up some concern out west

Georgia Football is living rent-free in the heads of Alabama fans.

With Alabama winning the last five meetings, you’d think it would be the Crimson Tide in the head of Georgia football fans, but apparently it’s the other way around.

Some very loud shots have been fired at Georgia football from our neighbors to the west. A writer on an Alabama site has had the Bulldogs in his sites lately, taking aim at Kirby Smart and Georgia’s football program.

First, it was stated that high school recruits should not trust Kirby Smart. There are musings of Smart of lying to recruits, promising them starting roles or playing time, and then going back on those promises. If there is anyone that would know about that sort of thing it would be someone that follows Alabama football, as Nick Saban did that exact thing back in 2016.

In an interview with the New York Post, ex-Alabama quarterbacks Blake Barnett and Cooper Bateman reveal that they believed they were going to be the primary quarterbacks in 2016. They were told by Saban that Jalen Hurts was only going to go into the game in certain packages. That season Hurts took 461 dropbacks, Barnett took 24, and Bateman took 14.

Barnett eventually transferred to South Florida while Bateman transferred to Utah.

And how many times has Saban offered more scholarships than he had available, leading to some “lesser” recruits having to scramble for another school at the last minute?

Then there was yet another shot at Smart and Georgia in a recent article:

"However, something got lost in communication between Kirby Smart and Newman. Smart landed transfer JT Daniels almost immediately after signing Newman, leaving the senior QB with few options. He’s not the only quarterback to choose Georgia and inevitably regretted the decision. He decided to opt-out of this college football season and prepare for the NFL Draft."

First of all, Daniels transferred to Georgia in May, five months after Newman transferred to Georgia. Smart was looking to have an experienced quarterback in his stable to back up Newman. He was also looking to 2021 as Newman is a grad transfer and won’t have any eligibility in 2021. Right now Georgia is looking at having just one quarterback on the roster in 2021 with game experience.

This destroys the narrative that Smart lies to quarterbacks to get them on the roster. Instead, it proves that Smart is a master at roster management and is always looking beyond just the current season.

From there, it seems Bama Nation is taking aim at Georgia’s running game, offensive line, and even George Pickens.

When it comes to Georgia football’s running game, yes D’Andre Swift is now in Detroit, but that doesn’t mean that Georgia’s running back room is empty. The Bulldogs still boast one of the best running back rooms in the nation led by former five-star Zamir White, who carried the ball 78 times last year for 408 yards and three touchdowns.

White isn’t the only dynamic running back on Georgia football’s roster. Kenny McIntosh, Georgia’s most explosive running back from last season, will look to get even more touches this season. McIntosh averaged seven yards per carry last year.

Georgia also has James Cook and five-star freshman Kendall Milton in the fold.

Georgia’s offensive line is not as inexperienced as a lot of people seem to think. In fact, plenty of Georgia offensive linemen have gotten playing experience since being on campus.

• Trey Hill has played 1287 snaps
• Ben Cleveland has played 1044 snaps
• Jamaree Salyer has played 360 snaps
• Justin Shaffer has played 356 snaps
• Warren Ericson has played 148 snaps

These guys have playing experience, they just weren’t all starters.

Speaking of game experience, questioning Pickens’ ability to stay eligible is laughable. Pickens played in all 14 of Georgia’s games last season and also played the most snaps of any Georgia receiver, including Lawrence Cager.

In fact, the only time Pickens missed in 2019 was a suspension after getting in a fight in Georgia’s game against rival Georgia Tech. Pickens learned from this mistake and has become even more focused, so much so he was named 2020 Sugar Bowl MVP. Pickens’ eligibility should not be in question, neither is his impact.

This article started with the headline “Georgia is all bark and no bite in 2020” but it failed to mention anything about the actual bite of Georgia’s team, their No. 3 defense from a year ago. That defense is returning 10 of 11 starters.

That fact was conveniently left out because Georgia’s No. 3 defense was the one thing Georgia has over Alabama, as the Crimson Tide defense was ranked No. 10, taking yet another step backward in its fourth year without Smart at the helm of it.

All of this points to one thing. Alabama fans are worried. They seen Georgia’s program on the upswing, while games they were used seeing the Crimson Tide win have begun to slip away. They’re clinging to the past, while Georgia marches forward.

On October 17, the Dawgs and Tide will line up against each other in Tuscaloosa for only the third time in the last 20 years. The last two meetings in T-Town were epic battles won by the Bulldogs. Alabama fans are apparently deathly afraid of the third ending in a similar fashion.