Georgia Football Undervalued By College Coaches

Georgia football isn’t elite yet, at least not according to the 65 coaches that cast their votes in the USA TODAY Coaches Poll.

The Bulldogs slotted in at No. 5 in the preseason poll, receiving zero first place votes. Reigning national champion Alabama came in at No. 1 and received 63 of the 65 first-place votes, followed respectively by Clemson, Oklahoma, and Ohio State.

Georgia returns Heisman hopeful quarterback JT Daniels, who led the Dawgs to a 4-0 finish to the 2021 season, including a last-second win over Cincinnati in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. He spearheads a Georgia offense keen to take flight in Year 2 under innovative offensive coordinator Todd Monken.

Even after the loss of dynamic wideout George Pickens to an ACL tear during spring practice, Daniels will have a bevy of weapons at his disposal.

The running back room is loaded, with Zamir White, James Cook, Kendall Milton, and Kenny McIntosh teaming to haunt opposing defenses with nightmares of The Four Horsemen of The Georgia-pocalypse.

At wide receiver, the options are no less enticing. Receivers Jermaine Burton, Kearis Jackson, Arian Smith, Dom Blaylock, Adonai Mitchell, and Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint possess the collective explosiveness to be the collegiate version of The Legion of Zoom.  Sprinkle in the prize of Portal Kombat, Freshman All-SEC hybrid tight end-wide receiver Arik Gilbert, and you start to wonder if Georgia will have enough footballs to go around.

And how about Teenage Mutant Ninja Tight End Darnell Washington? The 6’7, 270-pounder is going to be a PROBLEM for defenses up and down Georgia’s schedule. He had his best game of the year in the Dawgs season-ending win over Cincinnati, hauling in three catches for 46 yards.

As loaded as Georgia will be on the offensive side of the football, the Dawgs are equally as stacked on defense.

Everyone’s favorite Swedish Fisherman, Jordan Davis anchors a Dawgs’ D that is solid up the middle, returning Nakobe Dean at MLB and Lewis Cine at S.

The defensive line will have no problem keeping fresh legs, with the ability to rotate up to eight guys, including gamechangers like Jalen Carter, Travon Walker, and Senior Bowl guru Jim Nagy’s favorite, Devonte Wyatt.

Explosive edge rushers Adam Anderson and Nolan Smith will terrorize opposing quarterbacks, and force plenty of ill-advised throws for DBs like Tykee Smith, Derion Kendrick, Kelee Ringo, and Ameer Speed to gobble up.

How about special teams? Is that a hole for Georgia football? With kicker Jack Podlesny and punter Jake Camarda on the preseason watch lists for the Lou Groza Award and the Ray Guy Award, the kicking game will undoubtedly be a stength.

It seems all of that wasn’t enough college coaches voting in the USA TODAY poll. Fortunately, the proof is in the pudding. Georgia gets an opportunity on a national stage to open the season and show everyone just how talented and formidable they are.

Texas A&M, Notre Dame, Iowa State, North Carolina, and Cincinnati rounded out the Top 10.