The Georgia Bulldogs are legitimately one of the top three teams in the country, but what has changed for them in terms of their 2022 prospects is that the Tennessee Volunteers have become a legitimate challenger to them in the SEC East.
By Matt Zemek
Follow @14powerscom
That game against the Vols is just around the corner, which makes it easy for Georgia to overlook Florida, even though this game in Jacksonville is after an idle week and will contain a typically festive atmosphere on the banks of the St. John’s River at the game formerly known as the World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party.
Georgia-Florida is a big deal to fans, but with the Gators struggling, there is still the temptation for UGA to think about the Vols. That’s not a typical scenario, but it is this year’s scenario. Assuming Georgia doesn’t overlook Florida, here are the three other central game keys for the Dawgs against the Gators:
1 – Stetson Bennett
With the Tennessee game coming up soon, Bennett needs to use this Florida game as a springboard and a message. He needs to send a statement to himself and the Vols that he is ready to score points in bunches if need be. Tennessee’s high-octane offense will challenge Georgia’s defense, but if Bennett shows that he can light up the scoreboard against Florida, the Vols will feel a little more game pressure when they take on the Dawgs. Bennett can set up the rest of the season if he can play his best in this game. Florida and Tennessee would both take notice.
2 – Reclaim the 2021 standard
Georgia’s defense has been very good this year, but not as good as last year. It felt like an enormous and somewhat improbable achievement to score a touchdown on the 2021 UGA defense at any point in any game. Georgia created that same identity in the first three games of this season against Oregon, Samford, and South Carolina, but then the Dawgs lost that elite level of performance. This would be a great game in which to get it back, just before the Tennessee game. Great teams usually get better as the season goes along. This is a “ramp up” moment for the Georgia defense in 2022.
3 – Corners on an island
If the Georgia cornerbacks can hold up in pass coverage on an island, that frees up the UGA linebackers to provide run support and possibly spy on Anthony Richardson as a runner. The corners doing their job in pass coverage will enable the rest of the Georgia defense to tend to various tasks and deliver the complete performance this team needs to be national champions once again.
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