Pointing out the obvious but important.

Over on scout there is a summary of an interview with Richt. The last item on the list will probably have the biggest impact on the team.

8. Richt likes where the starting OL (Ben Jones, Cordy Glenn, Kenarious Gates, Chris Burnette and Bean Anderson) is at this point in August.

“I like it a lot,” he said. “We’ve been very fortunate to have Cordy, Gates, Ben Jones, Burnette and Bean get just about every single rep together…We’ve had those five guys together the whole camp, which is great.”

If those five make it through summer camp and the first two games healthy The Dawgs have a great chance at being 2-0 after the toughest part of their schedule. With facing two of the best defensive fronts Georgia will face all season, and possibly two of the best in the country, the importance of the five starters taking every snap in practice together is huge. For those two games it will not only be a matter of can each of them win their individual battles but can they work together as a unit. Any Georgia fan can tell you that the line is due a bit of luck when it comes to the health of the line.

Where's the beef?

Last year the biggest test for Boise State's offensive line was Virginia Tech. Most people assume Virginia Tech, being in an automatic qualifier conference that they would have the size advantage and be able to out physical Boise on the line of scrimmage. Comparing weights though Boise's offensive line was only 7 lbs lighter per player than Virginia Tech's. Boise's 4 down linemen on defense were actually bigger by around 13 lbs each. Combine the two and Boise was actually bigger across the lines than Virginia Tech was last year by 15 lbs. One of the perceived advantages for Virginia Tech was actually very slightly tilted in Boise State's favor.

That however will not be the case this year. Georgia's offensive line weighs in at 1647 lbs combined to Boise's 1479. A difference of almost 34 lbs per player. On defense Boise's front four are a combined 1125 lbs to UGA's 1234 (if you include the biggest linebacker as the "4th" lineman for a difference of around 27 lbs per player. In fact compared to last years Virginia Tech defensive line Georgia has 3 linebackers that are bigger than one of Virginia Tech's defensive end's and all 3 of Georgia's true linemen are bigger than Virginia Tech's biggest lineman.

Now will this weight advantage actually play a role in the game? It may or may not but there is no doubt that last year Boise did not face a team with the bulk on the line's that UGA will throw at them. Georgia's coaches will need to come up with a gameplan that will take advantage of the size advantage. They will also need to keep the game close early on so that they can be stubborn with their running game to help wear down the smaller Boise State defensive line. The final thing I like about this matchup is that even with 4 down linemen Virginia Tech was over matched with size, where as Georgia with only 3 will have the much bigger team than Virginia Tech did and still have 4 linebackers on the field which should also give them more athletes on the field than Virginia Tech threw at Boise.

Production replacement - offensive line

Offensive line is one of the hardest positions to discuss in terms of production. There are few numbers available that really tell the story of how good a line/linemen performs. By the eye test though I know that last years line did not get the job done. It was most obvious in the 4th quarter of close games and in short yardage situations. Like Mark Richt said when asked about not going for it on 4th and goal from the one against UCF in the bowl game. The team should have got it done on 3rd and one and it wouldn't have been an issue.

Last years team had tons of experience returning and even talked about Sturdivant being a "luxury" if he was able to play. Well he was able to play every game and the line still did not live up to expectations. A veteran line simply didn't get it done. Gates had his redshirt taken off of him and he played well the second half of the season. This year Sturdivant is out and Josh Davis and Clint Boling have graduated. That leaves only Cordy Glenn and Ben Jones as regular starters back from last year and Glenn will be moving from guard to tackle.

Ben Jones is a 4 year starter at center and that is a big help for any inexperienced line as he will be mainly responsible for any adjustment calls on the field. Glenn has the experience and build that moving to tackle shouldn't be an issue. Gates should more than hold his own as he has had a year to get bigger and stronger to go along with now having some playing experience. Justin Anderson is back on offense after spending time on the defensive line. He has experience playing and even starting on the OL but it has been awhile. If he can adjust to the move he should be ok at right tackle. Chris Burnette has played a lot of games but not a lot of snaps and not had to be counted on as a starter. His progress at right guard will go a long way to determining how good the starting line is.

The biggest problem with this years line is going to be depth. There are a lot of bodies but very little experience should one of the starters go down. Last year Gates surprised to fill in at guard despite not being offered by UGA until the last minute. Will there be one of the young guys who can step up and fill that role this year? Can Friend get more out of the line than Searels did the last few year? I believe that this years team will be improved over last years, how great of an improvement will rely heavily on how well the line performs. My projection is that I am honestly not sure. With how last years line performed I don't think it will take much to be improved but there is not really a lot for me to go on with this group.

Possible Cause for UGA's slide the last few years.

I was reading an article in the Athens paper about Clint Boling possibly being the highest draft pick among UGA offensive linemen since George Foster went 20th overall in 2003. Since then Georgia has had only three offensive linemen drafted total. In seven years, three linemen drafted. I have long believed that the biggest difference between where Georgia has been the last few years and Florida, Alabama and even last year with Auburn and when LSU has been at the top has been on the line. But still this number was somewhat shocking to me.
Georgia has had the skill players to be able to compete with anyone in the country. With players like Stafford, Green, Moreno and many others the talent is there. In order for Georgia to get back to the top of the SEC and back as a perennial top 10 team Richt is going to have to put the same emphasis on recruiting offensive limemen as he did on recruiting the state of Georgia this past year. Then once they are on campus the coaches have to develop them and have them all ready to play. The team cannot continue to allow an injury or two on the line to cost them the season.