The long wait for the college football season is over as the season kicks off this Labor Day weekend. For the Georgia Bulldogs, they open up the 2025 campaign against a Marshall team that lost a ton of production over the offseason as they lost their head coach to Southern Miss along with a host of other players in the Transfer Portal.
Experts are picking Georgia as heavy favorites in this game. Georgia is undoubtedly the better team, but there are three key things that need to happen for Georgia to call this week one game a "success."
Get the running backs going
Everyone knows that Georgia has a talented backfield as they have the playmakers to make some noise in the ground game. It is crucial that the Bulldogs are able to get these guys going and fast. Though the team has put their complete trust into Gunner Stockton, he cannot win the game on his arm alone. This team needs to prove from the very first drive that they can run the ball.
If Georgia can get guys like Nate Frazier, Cash Jones, and Josh McCray going, that can open up a ton of opportunities downfield for Stockton to put the game away. If Georgia struggles to run the ball however, it could be a very sloppy game.
Offensive line must own the line of scrimmage
In Georgia's two National Championship seasons, they won the battle at the line of scrimmage almost every game. Last year, the Bulldogs struggled heavily in that regard. The offensive line looked non-existant at times against the Fighting Irish and Crimson Tide specifically last year. Despite having an offensive line made up of All-Pro caliber players, they somehow struggled to protect the quarterback. Georgia cannot afford to have Stockton running for his life against Marshall. The offensive line must hold their own in this game for Georgia to find success in controlling this game.
Defense wraps up and tackles efficiently
This defense for Georgia in 2025 could be the fastest one Kirby Smart has ever coached in Athens. With guys like Raylen Wilson at linebacker and Joenel Aguero in the secondary, this team will be able to fly across the field.
However, if they cannot fill the gaps in the line of scrimmage and make sure tackles, it could be a long game for Georgia. Marshall prides themselves in the run game. They will not throw the ball often to begin the game. So as long as Georgia’s defense wraps up and makes clean tackles, they should have no problem getting off the field.