Position Battles: What Will Happen At Left Tackle

The 2023 football season is dawning upon the college football world, with fall camp starting for many programs this Wednesday, August 2nd. Kirby Sart and his back-to-back defending national champion team come into camp with many position battles, like quarterback, cornerback, and left tackle.

Broderick Jones, who the Pittsburgh Steelers drafted in the 2023 NFL Draft, held the reigns on the blindside of the offensive line for the past two seasons. Now that he is gone, a new player will be locking down the blindside for whoever the Dawgs' new QB will be. Earnest Greene and Austin Blaske are the two players who will be battling it out for the starting left tackle position.

Blaske is a redshirt junior who has seen playing time at center in the 2021 season and took some reps at tackle in the 2022 season. Blaske can play and start for most programs nationwide but has stayed with Georgia. This year could be the year Blaske gets the starting nod. Standing at 6' 5", the Faulkville, GA native would presumably get the nod due to seniority, but Greene has more than just a chance at beating out Blaske for the spot.

The Los Angeles native stands at 6-foot-4 and was one of the premier interior offensive linemen out of St. John Bosco. Although he was labeled as an interior offensive lineman, he also took reps at left tackle in high school. His high school tape shows he has great tools he can use in the run game, but he had some areas of improvement regarding his pass protection. That's in high school, though, and he will undoubtedly have improved as a player with a year of practice under his belt. Greene is expected to get the start over Blaske, despite Blaske's experience in-game.

With either Greene or Blaske starting at left tackle this fall, a few players will likely see some playing time throughout all positions on the offensive line. Micah Morris and Dylan Fairchild could see some meaningful play this fall. The two redshirt sophomores will likely see time at either guard position. Xavier Truss and Tate Ratledge have been locking down the left and right guard spots, and unless an injury were to happen to either player, the starting spots are theirs. Besides Sedrick Van Pran, many of Georgia's offensive linemen don't play the entire game. Morris and Fairchild will likely back them up.

Greene and Blaske have plenty to prove during this fall camp, and one of them will surely take the starting spot, but they will both see plenty of playing time this season as will freshman five-star Monroe Freeling.

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