Who has the edge? Kentucky vs. Georgia
By Paul Jordan
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It seems like it was just yesterday that Kentucky knocked off South Carolina, but it’s already time to turn our focus to a rebounding Georgia. The Bulldogs started off the year with a win against UL-Lafayette, but then went cold losing four straight. With their last two wins being blowouts against Tennessee and Vanderbilt, the Bulldogs will look to extend their streak and possibly salvage their season against Kentucky. A win against Georgia will give an adrenaline boost to a Kentucky a surging Kentucky team and all but ensure a fifth bowl season.
QUARTERBACK
Georgia will bring in redshirt freshman Aaron Murray to start against Kentucky. Murray was one of the most highly touted players in the 2009 class and was often compared to USC starter Matt Barkley. He’s averaging an impressive 236 yards per game this year and has thrown 12 touchdowns to 3 interceptions. Kentucky will rely on Mike Hartline, who’s used his final year to pull a complete turnaround as a signal caller. Hartline is averaging 25 yards per game and has thrown 13 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. Murray will be a fine quarterback for years to come for the Bulldogs, but Hartline is on a hot streak right now and there’s no one outside of Cameron Newton I’d pick over him in the SEC.
The Edge: KENTUCKY
RUNNING BACK
Locke’s status for the game is up in the air right now and it’s unclear if he’ll be a factor or not. Sophomore Donald Russell will likely get the start in his place and has proven he can also be a factor in the passing game after a 7 catch (for 70 yards) performance against SC. Georgia runner Caleb King will be suspended for the game, leaving Washaun Ealey to carry the load for the Bulldogs. He’s rushed for 369 yards on the season, but hasn’t contributed much in the passing game. I’m going to give the edge to Georgia here, but only because they have their starting tailback and the headliner of their 1-2 punch. If Kentucky has a healthy Locke though, this one swings back to the Cats.
The Edge: GEORGIA
WIDE RECEIVERS/ TIGHT END
The Bulldogs will feature a pretty impressive group here, including Tavarres King, Kris Durham and A.J. Green at receiver and Orson Charles at tight end. They have combined for 1198 yards and 9 touchdowns on the season. Charles proved to be extremely pesky for the Cats last year as he snuck out into the flats and broke long gains off of short passes. The Wildcats will feature Randall Cobb, Chris Matthews and LaRod King at receiver and Jordan Aumiller at tight end. The Kentucky group has accounted for 1317 yards through the air and 15 touchdowns this year. Despite having a guy that is arguably the best receiver in football (Green), the Kentucky receivers are better as a whole and the Wildcats take this one. Just an FYI, Cobb has scored 25% more total touchdowns (12) than the top four receivers for Georgia combined (9).
The Edge: KENTUCKY
OFFENSIVE LINE
Despite starting a physically imposing group of beasts, the offensive line has been somewhat of a weak spot for the Bulldogs. Led by tackles Clint Boling and the oft injured Trinton Sturdivant, the unit has tallied 2767 yards on the season, but has given up 14 sacks on the year and has allowed opponents to stop the Bulldog runners behind the line of scrimmage far too often. The Wildcats will bring in a group of linemen that was predicted to be a weak link before the season, but has actually been impressive. They’ve allowed the offense to rack up 3005 yards on the season and have only allowed 6 sacks on the year. The Wildcats production is hard to argue with and they get the edge here.
The Edge: KENTUCKY
DEFENSIVE LINE
Georgia is making the switch from a more conventional 4-3 defensive alignment to a 3-4 look. The nose tackle DeAngelo Tyson hasn’t really been a stat machine, but the nose in a 3-man front seldom is. End DeMarcus Dobbs has had a decent year so far and has recorded 16 total tackles and 2.5 sacks on the season. Kentucky’s 4-man front has struggled to get to the quarterback this year and defensive tackles have accounted for the lion’s share of the sacks. Defensive end Taylor Wyndham has seen an influx of time on the field while DeQuin Evans has been battling the injury bug. This one comes down to scheme. The Georgia defense relies on their defensive line to hold up blockers and fill running lanes to free up the linebackers to make most of the plays. The Kentucky defensive needs the ends to apply pressure on the quarterback and the defensive tackles to fill up the middle of the line. Georgia’s players have done a better job at their assignments and opponents have only gained 724 rushing yards on the bulldogs this year.
The Edge: GEORGIA
LINEBACKERS
The Bulldogs start 4 linebackers in their defense, and Akeem Dent and Justin Houston have been the headliners of the group so far. Dent has 62 total tackles on the year including 4.5 TFL, 2.5 sacks and a fumble recovery. Houston has been a stat-sheet stuffer so far and has 35 total tackles on the y
ear with 11 of those being behind the line of scrimmage and 6.5 of them being sacks. The unit has been a liability in pass coverage though and they’ve struggled when opponents have abandoned the run and attacked them through the air, forcing Georgia to switch to a nickel alignment. Kentucky standout Danny Trevathan has been a one-man wrecking crew and has recorded 70 total tackles (with 9 TFL) by himself. The supporting cast hasn’t been as solid for Kentucky, but junior Ronnie Sneed has started to catch on and has played better recently. This position is going to come down to the production of multiple guys for Georgia against the one-man show for Kentucky. As good as Trevathan is, the Bulldogs have too much talent across the board.
The Edge: GEORGIA
DEFENSIVE BACKS
Georgia will bring in a starting defensive backfield of Shawn Williams and Bacarri Rambo at safety and Sanders Commings and Brandon Boykin at the two corners. Rambo has been a force against the run with 44 total tackles on the year, and the speedy Boykin might be one of the best cornerbacks in the SEC. Kentucky will likely start four juniors with Winston Guy and Mychal Bailey at the two safety spots and Randall Burden and Anthony Mosley on the corners. Due to the poor play of Trevathan’s supporting cast at linebacker, Bailey and Guy have been forced to support the run quite a bit this year and have combined for 84 total tackles. Sophomore Martavius Neloms may get the nod at corner if he can show he’s recovered from the concussion he sustained against South Carolina. This one is actually going to come out to a draw as the two units have almost identical statistics. Georgia has given up 1307 total passing yards and 8 touchdowns to opponents this year. Kentucky has given up 1301 total passing yards and 8 touchdowns to opponents this year. Just too close to call.
The Edge: PUSH
SPECIAL TEAMS
I’ll take Randall Cob over just about any return man in the nation and that includes the Georgia trio of Logan Gray, Brandon Boykin and Branden Smith. Georgia’s Blair Walsh has been the more reliable kicker going 13-15, and has been 4-5 on field goals of 40 yards or more. Georgia and Kentucky have almost identical punting statistics with both punters averaging 45 yards per kick. The place where Georgia really sets themselves apart is in kick and punt coverage. The Bulldogs’ opponents are averaging 18.5 yards per kick return and 5 yards per punt return. The Wildcats are allowing 23.9 yards per kick return and 13.4 yards per punt return.
The Edge: GEORGIA
COACHING
Joker is coming off of a big win against a top ten team and Georgia’s Mark Richt is coming off a big win humiliating Vanderbilt. Richt’s seat is warming up this season, and fans are beginning to wonder what the problem with their team is despite Richt’s extended background of winning (72% at Georgia). Honestly, Joker shouldn’t have much of a chance here as a first year head coach, but I can’t figure out how Richt can get so much talent every year and still hasn’t really made much of a splash since 2007’s BCS bowl team. Joker has had far better results when you consider the talent pool and doing more with less is what management is all about.
The Edge: KENTUCKY
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