Welcome back to the Morning Five, a listicle of recent vintage in which we count down five things you need to know to start your Bulldog-loving day.
Today’s five: Five bold predictions about specific players for the upcoming season.
#5 Lawson Luckie will finish the season with more receptions than Ben Yurosek. The transfer portal has certainly changed the college football landscape, and Kirby Smart has been as active in the portal as just about anyone. Stanford transfer Yurosek was a late edition to the UGA tight end room, but the former All-PAC 12 selection has been a big topic of conversation for Bulldog fans.
Don’t get me wrong, Yurosek is going to be a big contributor for the Red and Black this fall. But I think that impact is more likely to be as a tough, physical blocker. Sophomore Lawson Luckie however has flashed pass catching skills that may lead to more snaps flexed out as a receiver, and hence more targets from Carson Beck.
#4 Trevor Etienne will not lead the Bulldogs in rushing. Probably the boldest prediction in the bunch, but hear me out. The starting tailback title is Etienne’s to lose, but by now we should all know that at Georgia it’s a title with little real substance. The Bulldog attack under new running backs coach/run game coordinator Josh Crawford is likely to feature multiple tailbacks every game.
Etienne’s versatility makes him special, and Mike Bobo, in his typical fashion, is likely to scheme up some novel ways to use that versatility. My concern is durability. Etienne broke the 11 carry mark only four times at Florida in 2023. If he misses time or is dinged up it’s entirely possible that sophomore Roderick Robinson, freshman Nate Frazier, or a resurgent Branson Robinson could end up leading the Bulldog rushing attack.
#3 Peyton Woodring will convert a lower percentage of field goals than he did as a true freshman. Woodring got off to a shaky start during his freshman campaign, missing three of his first seven field goal attempts. But he was rock solid from there, ultimately hitting on 21 of 25 kicks in total for an 84% accuracy rate. That’s about the best y oh could ask for from a true freshman in the SEC.
But I expect Georgia will ask more of Woodring as a sophomore. The Dawgs only attempted a single field goal from outside 40 yards in the first five games of the season (and that one, against South Carolina, was a miss). That conservatism makes sense with a true freshman, but I expect Woodring will be called on to take some longer, lower percentage kicks this season. That may drive down his average. That being said, if he can hit consistently from outside 45 yards, which he certainly has the leg for, Woodring could become an absolute weapon.
#2 Georgia will intercept more passes than in 2023. The 2023 Bulldogs intercepted 14 passes, the second highest total for a Georgia team since 2017. Kirby Smart has said many times that his defense isn’t really designed to create interceptions, but he expects to take advantage of bad throws when they occur.
This Bulldog defense is deep at linebacker and, if it can stay healthy up front, could create significantly more chaos in the middle than 2023’s version. Georgia missed Jalen Carter last season, and didn’t have the type of pressure up the middle that he, Jordan Davis, and Devonte Wyatt previously brought. If this veteran Bulldog defensive tackle unit can step up, the secondary should have lots of opportunities for turnovers.
#1 Carson Beck will not win the Heisman Trophy. 50% of this is my own superstitious attempt at a reverse jinx. Because I would love for everyone’s favorite Jacksonvillain (TM) to be recognized as college football’s top player. And while he absolutely may finish the season as the best player in college football, I expect Kirby Smart and Mike Bobo’s dogged commitment to using offensive balance to win football games will forestall the kind of video game numbers needed to take home the Heisman. That being said, I think Beck would be the first to tell you that if he’s standing on a podium next to Kirby Smart and Malaki Starks hoisting a national title trophy in January, he’d be fine with it. Until later…
Go ‘Dawgs!!!