I need to start this column out with a writer’s note. I had every intention of focusing just on Brock Bowers’ return for the Georgia offense. The Bowers Effect. That’s what this was supposed to be about.

The junior All-America tight end came back from an ankle injury in just 26 days. His numbers weren’t eye-popping (3 catches for 34 yards and a touchdown), but his impact was immeasurable. The attention he garnered from the Ole Miss defense, coupled with that of wide receiver Ladd McConkey, opened up the kind of space the Bulldogs have been waiting for all year. Even when he wasn’t catching passes, he was loosening up the Rebels’ defense for guys like Rara Thomas and Dominic Lovett.

That was supposed to be the story here. And then Georgia kept scoring. And scoring. And scoring.

Against the No. 9-ranked team in the country, the Bulldogs won 52-17, solidifying themselves as favorites to three-peat, and the story became much more robust than just Bowers’ impact on the offense.

This is about getting the pieces in place. This is about finally seeing what this team was supposed to be. It’s about returning Amarius Mims to the offensive line, Bowers’ impact in the blocking and receiving games, coupling Bowers with McConkey, and getting the healthiest Kendall Milton you’ve ever seen in red and black.

This, Georgia fans, is what you’ve been waiting for. And, goodness, is it scary.

Let’s go through each of these pieces in turn to dig into the impact.

OL Amarius Mims

We’ve been wondering when we’d see Mims finally get back on the field after he dressed for each of the past 2 games but was held out. He had the same surgery that sidelined Bowers for 2 games, but his took longer to heal. Or longer to allow him to be effective at his role, which involves a lot of push off of the ankle.

On Saturday against Ole Miss, Mims was spectacular. He and his fellow linemen helped pace Georgia’s 300 rushing yards, a 600-total-yard day and nary a single negative-yardage play. Carson Beck remained upright in the pocket all game, and running backs Milton and Daijun Edwards feasted.

On a day when 2 players returned from TightRope surgery, it is absolutely debatable which of them was more impactful. Give Mims a ton of credit.

TE Brock Bowers and WR Ladd McConkey

Let’s talk about these two together because we’ve been dying to see them on the field at the same time all year.

Heading into 2023, the pass catchers looked like the best unit on the team and arguably one of the best nationally. The list of weapons for Beck is long: McConkey, Bowers, Thomas, Lovett, Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint.

But for the first half of the season, all you could do is fantasize about what that full ensemble might look like.

Until Saturday.

Here’s the thing: Bowers and McConkey both have a similar ability to find the soft spaces in their routes and exploit opposing defenders. Without McConkey, Bowers was Beck’s safety valve all year. Without Bowers, McConkey did the same thing. With the two of them on the field together? That just opens things up completely.

Take an early pass to Thomas, for example. Bowers and McConkey line up next to each other on the near side of the field, the defense sells out in their direction and Thomas hauls in an easy catch-and-run for 44 yards to the Ole Miss 13.

It was like that all game. It was a 7-on-7 showcase. Pitch and catch. Open receiver after open receiver. The presence of these two can’t just be measured in statistics, though there are plenty to go around. When you have an offense that features these two, plus Lovett and Thomas, you just flip a coin to see who you concentrate on.

RB Kendall Milton

Edwards deserves all the accolades we can give him. We love Edwards in this column. But let’s be clear: Milton, on paper, is the more talented back. And, finally, Georgia is getting to see what that means in practice.

Milton, who came in as a highly-touted blue chip running back, had the best game of his college career on Saturday: 9 carries for 127 yards and 2 touchdowns. Injuries have plagued him nonstop throughout his 4 years on campus, but in the past 2 or 3 weeks you’ve finally see him play at 100 percent.

There is a different burst about him. A different ability to change direction. A different patience in the back field and ability to hop left or right and hit the right hole.

Earlier this year in a column, I classified Edwards and Milton as “arguably the best running back tandem in the conference.” I questioned myself more than once this past week whether that was hyperbole.

It wasn’t.

Look, I understand what Ole Miss has on defense. Take some of this with a spoonful of salt. But Saturday should tell you that these two backs, along with the now-healthy offensive line and receiving corps, comprise perhaps the most complete offense in the country.

And that’s not hyperbole.