Georgia football: 5 quick takeaways from the terrific G-Day game

Georgia football has officially wrapped up spring football after the Black Team beat the Red Team 26-23 during the annual G-Day scrimmage.

The Dawgs took the field in from 68,000 fans to showcase what the defending national champions have up their sleeve.

There were good moments and a few bad ones, but seeing just how many playmakers were beginning to emerge had to be one of the best things.

Despite losing 14 starters after the 2021 season, it appears the Dawgs could have another strong football team in 2022.

These are five takeaways from the Georgia football G-Day scrimmage game.

Head coach Kirby Smart seemed exceptionally pleased with his teams’ competitive nature and grit. Maybe this year’s team will be known for their gritty attitude on the field, and that isn’t a bad thing.

Losing that many starters, it’s hard to predict how the following season will go because every year is different for a college team. This team looked poised, and Saturday showed a ton of growth from all sides of the ball.

All three sides of the ball had strong moments, but what were the big takeaways?

A few things need work, but as a whole, Georgia shows what good recruiting and coaching do for a program. Smart’s culture shined bright on Saturday as these guys were a lot further along than expected.

The head coach said himself there is a long way to go to get where they want to go, but that is the reality after spring ball. No team is perfect after spring practice.

Now they can watch the film, evaluate and figure out the best attack method. Hopefully, those skull sessions will stay in the game plan because they made a tremendous difference in 2021.

After rewatching the G-Day game, here are our five takeaways from what turned out to be a better spring game than initially expected.

Georgia football found its punter from down under

The 2022 Georgia football signee, Brett Thorson, was a pleasant surprise on Saturday as the Australian did a solid job punting the ball.

Thorson averaged 37.5 yards on four punts Saturday afternoon, and while that doesn’t add up to Jake Camarda’s numbers, it’s a great start.

He is still learning and growing as a kicker, plus his 48-yard bomb was pretty impressive. Thorson had excellent hang time on a couple of his punts, which allowed the coverage team to get down the field, and that is something Georgia can benefit from him.

As a mid-year enrollee from Australia, the transition period has to be tough, so for him to be able to start this strong is a great sign.

Not to mention the cultural differences and trying to figure out American college on top of spring ball for the team. Thorson has had a lot thrown at him, so his performance on Saturday was just the start, and it’s going to be exciting to see him kick this fall.

He is someone that we had circled to watch because Georgia needs an elite punter after Camarda left some pretty big expectations for the position. Thorson seems like he will be able to handle those duties.

While his leg isn’t as strong right now, the Australian punter could add some more yardage to his bombs with some more work in the weight room.

Georgia football has the best tight end room in the country

If anyone tries to debate that Georgia football doesn’t have the best tight ends in the country, then walk away because they’re in denial. The Dawgs have four massive weapons in that room — Arik Gilbert, Brock Bowers, Oscar Delp and Darnell Washington.

G-Day featured a heavy dose of tight end receptions even with Bowers and Washington sidelined due to injuries.

Gilbert had his coming-out moment on Saturday, and he looked so happy to be out there on the field. He had three catches for 49 yards and two scores. Both touchdowns were great red zone play calls from offensive coordinator Todd Monken. He did a great job of being in the right place for starting quarterback Stetson Bennett to zip him the ball and score.

When two of the three catches are for scores, Gilbert is doing something right. He had five targets, but the two incomplete catches are easily fixable. Once he figures out the timing a little better and gets a little more comfortable out there, this massive weapon will be another mismatch for every defense in the SEC.

Gilbert is special, but so is mid-year enrollee Oscar Delp. He led the Red team with seven catches for 91 yards and showed what kind of weapon he could be in the future. Delp was aggressive, fought off tackles and showed off his talent.

Anyone who plays Georgia in 2022 and has to cover these two on top of Washington and Bowers — we wish you good luck.

This group is the most talented and versatile one in college football. No debate or argument will convince us otherwise.

Georgia football saw sparks of greatness from mid-year enrollees

While we mentioned Oscar Delp in the previous slide, he wasn’t the only mid-year enrollee impressed during G-Day. There were quite a few 2022 signees who showed up ready to prove themselves on Saturday.

Three mid-year guys led the Black Team defense in tackles, as Daylen Everette and Malaki Starks tallied five total tackles, with JaCorey Thomas recording four tackles. All five of Everettes’ were solo tackles, which is incredibly impressive.

Head coach Kirby Smart said that one of the best things about Everette was his ability to tackle well, and it showed on Saturday.

Mykell Williams showed some bursts of greatness. He played on both the Red and Black defense, where he recorded two total tackles. However, Williams was in on a few tackles for loss and got some pressure on the quarterbacks.

Jalon Walker recorded a sack and a tackle for loss for the Black Team, which is exciting to see a young linebacker step up and do something like that.

Offensively, Delp was the biggest mid-year stand out, but De’Nylon Morrissette and CJ Smith got targeted a few times — they weren’t able to pull in the passes, but they were close.

Earnest Greene was someone else that Smart mentioned as being a hard worker in his post-game press conference. He said the true freshman lost weight before getting to campus and got in shape, which allowed him to take snaps with the second and third-string offense line.

Greene had some great moments on Saturday and helped protect Carson Beck as much as possible. He also made some strong blocks on big plays, so he was another guy that excited us.

This group of freshmen is special because a lot of them already have the same mindset that second and third-year players do, which is half the battle. With them coming in ready, it allows the coaches to put them to work right away, and we saw it during G-Day.

Georgia football saw its first-string defense step up

There will likely never be another Georgia football defense like 2021, but the 2022 defense picked up where they left off last season during Saturday’s performance.

Guys stepped up at every position and showed that this group could be another top-rated defense. This group won’t be as good as the 2021 one, but they will be elite in their own way.

The Dawgs’ starting defense played on the Red Team, and that group recorded seven tackles for loss, four sacks, eight pass breakups, a blocked kick, and two interceptions.

Those numbers are what we like to see out of this defense, and it’s what Dawg fans have grown to expect.

Jamon Dumas-Johnson led the defense with seven tackles, five solo ones, and two assists. Nolan Smith recorded two of the four quarterback take-downs, and he looked strong. He will be the vocal leader for the Dawgs in 2022, but Dumas-Johnson fell into the role nicely on Saturday.

He looked comfortable running the defense and playing in Nakobe Dean’s position. Another guy who stood out to us was Trezmen Marshall, who caught one of the picks and recorded two pass breakups. He looked a lot healthier and was ready to step up and be a significant contributor.

Jalen Carter is a cheat code when he is on the field, and while he didn’t have big stats today, he bullied Georgia’s offensive line and had one of the sacks. He looked to be in excellent shape and had tunnel vision. Everyone has high expectations for him and should because he is a monster that will be a massive asset for the Dawgs in 2022.

The secondary saw strong moments from Kelee Ringo and Dan Jackson. Both guys recorded pass breakups on big plays, showing their experience to the younger receivers.

This defense met the expectations, and while there is still room for improvement, what we saw on Saturday was a great start.

Georgia football doesn’t have to worry about QB drama in 2022

The biggest takeaway from the Georgia football G-Day game is the quarterback position and how Stetson Bennett is the starting quarterback.

There will not be any quarterback drama, which feels so refreshing to say. Since head coach Kirby Smart got to Athens, the quarterback situation has always been something under question.

Some fans feel like Smart never picks the right guy, but for the first time in seven seasons, the Dawgs have a starter in the spring, and there won’t need to be any quarterback speculation. Bennett led the team to the 2021 national title and became the first quarterback in 41 years to do that.

The terrible part of it all is he still has to prove himself to part of this fanbase who refuses to accept him. Bennett has done more than enough to earn the starting role, but after G-Day, some wanted Carson Beck to be the starter.

Bennett is QB1 for the Dawgs, and that is how it will be until he leaves after this season or until someone beats him.

The command he has with the offense and his leadership skills are prevalent. He knows how to lead this team, which shows when Bennett is on the field. Bennett was far from perfect on Saturday as he went 15-of-35 for 273 yards, three scores and two interceptions, but he didn’t need to be flawless.

He did his job, and when the Black Team needed to get down the field late in the fourth quarter of the scrimmage, Bennett drove the team down the field and put the kicker in a great spot to make the field goal. That drive is why he will be the starter until further notice.

Georgia football has a long way to go before the football season, but the 2022 squad is already off to a great start. Spring football seems to have been a success despite some departures, and it shows how important recruiting is for success. Can the Dawgs contend again in 2022?

After G-Day, there is a strong possibility, but as Smart said, there’s a long way to go to get where we want to be. That message is the mindset because staying hungry proves to be far more successful than getting complacent.