Georgia Football Fall Camp

Week 1 of fall camp is in the books. And despite having extremely limited access to what's been going down on the practice field in Athens, we have learned a few things from the first week.

QB Battle

There's going to be a legitimate quarterback battle in Athens the remainder of fall camp. Jamie Newman battled through a minor foot injury but is back to work based on photos and video footage that was released. JT Daniels and Newman have been rotating, with D'Wan Mathis continuing to flash as he has throughout the offseason.

Though, at some point, the Georgia coaching staff is going to need to begin to favor at least one of the quarterbacks in order to build a semblance of continuity in the huddle.

“We have a lot of talent. All of our quarterbacks are great leaders and they’re all stepping up to the plate. Each person is different and it doesn’t take too much adjustment. We just have to do what we do as an offensive line and just keep them off their backs.” - Warren Ericson

If you read through the media speak, you'll notice that Ericson admitted each QB is different, and though he stated that it doesn't take too much adjustment, there are still some changes with each player. Not only cadence, timing, and ability, but that alters what Todd Monken chooses to do with the offensive game-planning.

Defense is Rolling Deep

Georgia had over 40 players with at least 100 snaps on the defensive side of the football a year ago, and according to what we have seen and heard from camp this fall, it's going to be a lot of the same in 2020. According to Azeez Ojulari there is no one starting group, which goes along with Kirby Smart and Dan Lanning's M.O. as coordinators.

What Georgia will do is have situational starters. What does that mean? It means they will have packages with starters. So, when the opposition goes empty, you'll see a response from the Georgia defense. On third and long, you'll see a pass rush specialist package similar to a year ago. Rushing situations you'll see a proper response from Georgia's defense.

Bottom line, Georgia has a plethora of talent at a multitude of positions, all with a special skill set of their own. For example, Tyrique Stevenson may be the most disruptive football player at the STAR position, but Mark Webb has shown over his career that he is one of the best run defenders at that position. So, you'll see UGA play them accordingly.

Wide Receivers Are Getting Loose

Todd Monken's offense has been a bit misconstrued this offseason. Some call it an "Air Raid" offense, some call it a spread offense. What it actually is is an explosive offense. It's about taking what the defense is giving, and taking shots when allowed.

In 2019, the Cleveland Browns were ranked 8th overall in explosive pass rate. In 2018, Tampa Bay ranked 4th in explosive pass rate. And from what we are hearing, the wide receivers at Georgia are beginning to fully understand the system, playing fast, and making huge plays downfield during practice. Something that was an Achilles heel for Georgia a year ago.

Clips released from the Georgia Football twitter account this week showed big plays downfield to Jermaine Burton, George Pickens, and even Matt Landers.

Everyone is relatively healthy

South Carolina has already had their first season-ending injury during camp, and although Kelee Ringo is out from labrum surgery, that was from a pre-existing injury. From what we know, everyone made it through the first week of fall camp injury-free for the most part.

Newman suffered a minor foot injury but is back. Monty Rice is fighting through a foot injury as well according to Kirby Smart but has been seen at practice. Dominick Blaylock and JT Daniels are not completely cleared according to Smart but have been participants in practice.

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