The Georgia Bulldogs begin fall camp this week, the latest step towards a season they hope can get them back over the hump and into the national title game.
A major issue that derailed that pursuit last season was the Bulldogs’ struggles rushing the passer. Georgia finished with the fewest sacks in the SEC (20) and couldn’t bring down Mississippi quarterback Trinidad Chambliss in its upset loss in the Sugar Bowl.
One player in particular looks poised to help in that area this year with a strong fall camp, and that is redshirt freshman edge Chase Linton.
Chase Linton is the key to fixing Georgia's defensive woes
The Bulldogs need more tangible pass rush production in 2026. Hurrying the quarterback and rattling him over the course of the game is important, but so is finishing plays and creating big losses for the offense.
Georgia only got three combined sacks from its two true starting edge rushers Gabe Harris and Quintavius Johnson. Both are solid players who can defend the run very well, and Harris in particular was really turning a corner late in the year before an injury kept him out of the Sugar Bowl.
But they haven’t been disruptive pass rushers, and that’s where Linton could come in.
A four-star 2025 recruit from Atlanta, Linton has a good frame for the position at 6-foot-4, 230 lbs and good length. Out of high school, he received high marks for his effort, bend and athletic traits.
In other words, he profiles as the kind of pass rusher Georgia likes.
"We recruited Chase because of some redeeming qualities," Kirby Smart said via dawgpost.com. “Character, effort, intelligence. He's exemplified those things, and probably been tougher than I expected in terms of the guy likes contact. He likes hard work. He's been a high motor player for us.”
Linton missed most of his freshman season with an early injury but came back to play in the Bulldogs’ final four games. He reportedly impressed for the Bulldogs this spring, and is in a good position to build on that success in camp.
“He runs to the ball really hard, he plays with twitch and he plays bigger than he is,” Smart said. “I've been very pleased with Chase's progress, and we need him to get better to give us some of the pass rush we need."
If Linton can stay healthy and make the rotation early in the season as a third-down pass rusher, it could add an element to Georgia’s pass rush it severely lacked last year. The Bulldogs’ edge rushers had a hard time winning one-on-ones and getting to the quarterback.
Georgia became reliant on blitzing to create pressure, and surrendered valuable swaths of space in coverage as a result.
Linton, along with fellow 2025 recruits Darren Ikinnagbon and Isaiah Gibson, could be key in giving Georgia some four-man pass rush it desperately needs. It may be the difference in giving the Bulldogs the nation’s best defense versus another good one.
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