What is the best element of the powerful Georgia running game?

If you’d posed that question to Bulldogs fans at different intervals in the last calendar year, I suspect the answer would’ve alternated between Todd Gurley and Nick Chubb.

If our theoretical survey question had reached John Theus’ dad, maybe he would’ve voted for the offensive line. But he’d have been alone.

Bring up the offensive line this summer and the immediate association is the center position vacated by David Andrews.

(Isaiah Wynn caught the attention of the coaches when he arrived in 2014, but botched a few snaps this spring. UGA slid virtual Swiss Army Knife and guard Brandon Kublanow to center late in spring ball, loading him with 1-on-1 attention. One of those players will have the distinction of starting in the middle of this group this fall.)

All of that is burying the lede, to borrow some journalistic jargon. Georgia’s offensive line is filthy, and deserves way more credit and recognition.

The team ran for 6.0 yards per carry and 38 touchdowns last season despite a cautious, conservative passing game and exploitable defense.

It’s easy to dismiss their abilities or fail to give them credit. None of the five starters earned first-team All-SEC honors. Gurley and Chubb combined for 2,458 yards on 7.2 yards per carry, so it’s tempting to heap all of the credit onto the future NFL standouts.

College football analytics remain in a nascent stage. ESPN Stats & Information do some interesting things, and CFBMatrix.com puts out some interesting numbers. But if this were the NFL, Pro Football Focus or Football Outsiders long since would’ve brought to light the outsized ability of this Georgia line, particularly when run-blocking.

You know who else averaged 7.2 yards per carry in 2014? The combination of Sony Michel, Quayvon Hicks and Isaiah McKenzie. Even with a flailing SEC East, no team lines up and runs for better than 7 yards per carry no matter whom the ball-carrier is without an outstanding line.

Greg Pyke and John Theus are All-SEC candidates this year, and Kolton Houston is better than a reliable right tackle. The magic happens, though, when the unit plays together.

Texas A&M held more NFL talent last year. Alabama (Cam Robinson) and Ole Miss (Laremy Tunsil) have future high first-round left tackles. But those groups couldn’t come close to matching the consistency and the brute strength of the UGA line.

It’s also no fluke that Georgia’s combination of 17 sacks allowed and 6 interceptions was third in the SEC behind Arkansas, which rarely passes to a receiver, and Auburn, which ran enough read-option to pull every defensive back toward the line of scrimmage.

It’s also a no-win situation for the line. If the team can’t field a suitable center, that’s all anyone will talk about. If Chubb performs as an All-American, he’ll get the credit. If he gets hurt and the running game doesn’t miss a beat — like last season with Gurley — Michel, Keith Marshall or A.J. Turman will be lauded.

That’s typical for most offensive lines at any level of football, and I doubt the Bulldogs players are going to complain. But in a league known for its burgeoning talent at defensive line, UGA is capable of mauling some very good defensive fronts. (Go back and see what the team did to Mizzou last year if you have spare time.)

If this team meets expectations as a runaway favorite in the SEC East, expect the offensive line to be the silent, unrecognized MVP.