2021 UGA Football: Week Six

 UGA Instant Analysis 

Week 6:  W @Auburn; 6-0

Full disclosure: my parents took their granddaughter to Disneyland this weekend so my attention to the game was limited. It was a blast. The trip greatly decreased the frustration of what seemed like a much tougher and closer game than it should be. Considering it was Georgia’s first true road game in front of an opposing crowd in over a year (I don’t count Vanderbilt), and no other team at the top looked completely dominant, I’ll take it.

I have to practice what I preach, so maybe I was wrong about Auburn. I thought they would be awful this season. They still aren’t great but certainly shouldn’t finish last in the SEC West. So credit to Coach Harsin and his staff, other than his OC who I can never give credit to, and to the players who gave Georgia a heck of a fight. 

I’m going to simplify this week and only highlight significant notes and concerns. Since I’m a “bad news first” person I’ll start with concerns: 

Georgia has a lot of injuries building. It’s not a surprise after a few SEC games in a row, and certainly this is where recruiting proves itself, but Chris Smith, Jamaree Salyer, the receivers, and a pretty good quarterback all add up. Another concern is third and fourth down efficiency on both sides. Auburn converted two early 4th-and-1s, and converted way too many 3rd downs. Offensively Georgia struggled to convert on their end too. Luckily the Dawgs’ defense held their own on later 4th downs and came up big when they needed to maintain momentum. My last key concern is something brought up in last week’s analysis; Georgia’s defense benefits greatly from a deep bench, especially up front. However, to keep the depth out of the game, offenses can run hurry up and as long as they don’t sub, Coach Lanning might not get to either. Certainly an offense must have success to do it, which Auburn had more than any opponent so far this season, and a good coordinator (not Mike Bobo) makes it even tougher by running plays to their sideline. Think about how hard it is for a new defensive line to run from their sideline to the far hash in only a few seconds to get in position against a hurry up offense. So when Auburn did have success, you could see the Georgia front a little more tired than they are used to. It wasn’t horrible at all, and the numbers showed they still played a great game, but maybe a better offense that has consistent success could keep our big bodies on the field and tired. 

On to the good stuff — Ladd. McConkey. This kid is fun. If you remember Clemson had Adam Humphries and Hunter Renfrow for what felt like 20 years, but they were smaller kids who just got open and knew how to play ball. McConkey is going to get compared to them a lot in the future and those are not good comparisons. Georgia’s young weapon is much more physical and much faster. Especially in this time of limited receiver availability, this kid stepped up and proved to be an asset. Imagine what he can do if some of the other guys get healthy and he only has to run 20 routes instead of 40. His effort against Auburn sealed the game, after a few drives of slow, methodical ground pound, Coach Monken pulled out the 9 route to Ladd for the nail in the coffin. The other key highlight relates to Todd Monken as well; while I prefer not to see our (apparently) only healthy QB pull the ball and run, Georgia’s OC called Stetson’s number in the perfect way and at the perfect times. There’s alot I don’t love about Bennett, but his option as a runner is a significant piece of the puzzle, and it looks like Monken is prepared to use the skill set as needed. Makes me wonder what this offense is capable of with a guy like Justin Herbert or Josh Allen — and I honestly believe there’s a kid on the roster with that ability. I don’t question Monken or Coach Smart because they see the players every day and and they’re at practice and they run film, so I trust them the same way I trusted the decision to play Fromm over Fields, I just hope it’s the right choice and gotta think a big part of that decision is the stability and strength of the defense. 

Georgia went on the road to a hostile environment and snatched the soul out of 90,000 people, so no Bulldawg fan should be upset. It could be prettier, and if that’s what you want don’t watch next week because I envision a tough and nasty competition with a quality Kentucky team. But overall it was another solid week of Georgia football and Kirby Smart has this squad humming in the right ways, on and off the field, and it’s a beautiful thing to see.

Some notes from around the league, and unlike the folks who get paid for this work I refuse to take shots at Coach Saban and Alabama while he still dominates the sport (and frankly history) of college football, but man I don’t remember a season with so many good football teams. The level of competition raised significantly from the last few seasons, and make no mistake full off seasons and extended scholarships made huge impacts on many teams. There are about 15 really good teams, and probably another 30 good ones, and it’s great for the game to have so much parity. But from a Georgia perspective, the Bulldawgs MUST take advantage of the position they are in and seize the opportunity. 

A second GameDay game comes to town Saturday and Coach Smart looks to solidify his team’s reservation for Atlanta. 

Go Dawgs