Georgia football: 3 things I liked, 3 things I didn’t like from the first half of the season
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Doesn’t it feel like the season just started?
It feels like just yesterday Georgia was putting it to Oregon in the season opener and analysts around the country were typing side-eye emojis beside the score as if to say, “Are you guys seeing this?”
Also, Week 6 is in the books and half of the regular season is behind us. Georgia is back at No. 1 for now, and it has 1 more game against Vanderbilt on Saturday before a bye week and a 4-week gauntlet that will decide whether it has a shot at defending its national title in the postseason or not.
Before we get to that, however, let’s take a look back. Here are 3 things I liked and 3 things I didn’t from the Bulldogs’ first half of the season:
What I liked: Malaki Starks in coverage
It’s hard to call the emergence of the freshman defensive back a “surprise” exactly. He was a top-rated recruit, and Georgia fans and coaches alike came into the season with high expectations.
What he’s been able to do in the 1st half of the season, though, is beyond what we expected. He’s not just a true freshman contributor, he’s arguably the best defensive back on a unit that features a potential first-round pick in next year’s draft.
Through 6 games, Starks has 2 interceptions and 4 pass breakups. He’s 2nd on the team with 25 tackles. He very nearly had his 3rd interception of the season against Auburn on a ball that he barely failed to haul in.
He’s been fun to watch, and he’s made a strong unit even better.
What I didn’t like: Red zone passing
The Bulldogs’ aerial attack looks prolific on paper. Stetson Bennett might set a single-season record for passing yards. He’s completing nearly 70 percent of his passes. Georgia is scoring nearly 40 points per game.
It all seems great at 1st glance.
But I don’t think you’ll find a Georgia fan out there who is satisfied with where the offense has been. Something is off, and 1 thing seems to be the team’s ability to pass inside the red zone.
The Bulldogs had success scoring on the ground inside the 20 against Auburn on Saturday, which is a positive. But just 5 passing touchdowns from your starting quarterback through 6 games and none in the past 3 has to raise some alarm.
A year ago, Georgia passers completed nearly 60 percent of their passes in the red zone. They had 20 touchdowns to just 2 interceptions and a passer rating of 214.7, by far the best of any section on the field. This year is a different story: 51.4-percent completion, 5 touchdowns and a 125.9 rating, the worst of any section on the field.
No one is saying that you must pass for touchdowns. As long as you’re scoring, it doesn’t much matter. But the Bulldogs seem to be incapable of passing into the end zone inside the 20 at the moment, and that poses a problem as Georgia gets set for some more difficult opponents in the 2nd half.
What I liked: Brock Bowers and Darnell Washington tight end combo
Who doesn’t like this tight end combination?
Bowers is the best at the position in the country, and most teams would take Washington as their starter, as well.
It’s really becoming a great balance. Bowers can do it all. He can line up at tight end or move to the slot. He’ll split out wide or he might line up as a running back in the backfield. On 3 carries so far this season he’s scored 3 touchdowns.
Bowers is leading the team with 378 receiving yards at an incredible 17.2 yards per catch.
On the other hand, Washington has become a reliable blocker — despite a couple of personal-foul penalties against Auburn — and is a great emergency valve in the passing game. He lacks Bowers’ speed but is a load to bring down.
Washington has notched career highs in receptions and yards, though he’s yet to catch a pass in the end zone, a place he seems uniquely equipped to have success.
It just feels like there’s still more potential to be tapped out of these 2 guys in the offense.
What I didn’t like: Downfield threats without A.D. Mitchell
Georgia is a different offense without Mitchell. Simple as that.
I don’t know that any of us knew just what kind of an impact he has in Bennett’s ability to get the ball downfield. But it’s clear that players like Ladd McConkey and even Bowers have a harder time finding space without the sophomore receiver on the field.
The sooner Bennett can get a healthy version of Mitchell back — perhaps this week against Vanderbilt or maybe 2 weeks after that against Florida — the better off this offense will be.
What I liked: Kenny McIntosh out of the backfield
The senior running back leads the team in receptions with 26 and has 250 yards through the air, 51 more than he has rushing the ball.
In the first couple of weeks of the season, this facet of the Bulldogs’ offense was one of the best new wrinkles for Todd Monken and company. Bennett routinely gave McIntosh the ball in space, and he regularly broke off big plays, like the 38-yarder he had in the opener against Oregon.
Where the team lacked a little consistency in the traditional running game in the first 4 or 5 games of the season, it made up for with these short passes to McIntosh. It was an extension of the running game, and it was helping add to Bennett’s record-breaking passing pace.
However …
What I didn’t like: McIntosh out of the backfield
It’s been overused.
And it has been nowhere near as successful in the past couple of weeks as it was to open the season. Just take a look at McIntosh’s numbers in the first 2 games:
- Week 1 vs. Oregon: 9 receptions for 117 yards
- Week 2 vs. Samford: 5 receptions for 61 yards
And the past two?
- Week 5 vs. Missouri: 1 reception for 10 yards
- Week 6 vs. Auburn: 4 receptions for 13 yards
That’s not to say it’s not still a great feature. McIntosh is a great weapon.
But I think the offense needs to pick and choose its spots a little better to get more bang for its buck.
