Bones to Pick: Key questions Georgia must answer to achieve its goals in 2025
By Sam Ranson
Published:
Georgia hasn’t won a national championship since… 2022? [Crowd gasps] So what’s ailing the Bulldogs?
That question’s obviously a bit tongue-in-cheek. The real ones — those who were there for the Mark Richt days, the Jim Donnan days, and before — know that a 2-year title drought ain’t nothin’ more than a skeeter bite on a warm summer night. But Georgia fans are a bit anxious entering 2025… not because they’re entitled, but because they know that the iron is hot. Nick Saban’s gone, Florida and Auburn remain down — though both may be stirring — and Kirby Smart has continued to recruit at an uber-elite level that has kept the Bulldogs in a dominant position from a talent standpoint. Georgia fans are smart enough to know that that type of roster ain’t a God-given right.
So they want to see their Dawgs cash it in while the gettin’s good. Kirby could win 5 in 10 years and forever cement his alma mater as a bona fide blueblood in the sport… but the (ever so slight!) downward slide has to end this season. Georgia must maintain its position as top dawgs in the SEC, which in turn keeps it in pole position to add to that top shelf of its trophy case.
To achieve their goals in 2025, Kirby and those Hairy Dawgs must adequately answer a number of key questions. Let’s walk through them.
The Big Uglies
Elite, cohesive offensive line play was a hallmark of Georgia’s national championship teams in 2021 and 2022. The Bulldogs most definitely did not enjoy elite, cohesive offensive line play last season. Injuries played a part in that, but so did blown assignments and an inability to consistently move defensive linemen off the ball like they did in recent years — the Dawgs averaged under 130 yards per game on the ground in 2024, a far cry from the 200-plus-yard rushing attacks of seasons prior.
That dominance on the ground had allowed Kirby’s best teams to dictate terms. You always got the feeling that they were in control (except, perhaps, against Alabama…). You certainly did not get that feeling last season, and here’s what concerns me most about that O-line group from last season: they were plenty talented. Departing starters Jared Wilson, Tate Ratledge, and Dylan Fairchild were all high draft choices. So what gives? Was it coaching? I had to go back and check to see when former offensive line coach Matt Luke departed and was replaced by Stacy Searels, and I should give Searels some credit here: Georgia’s O-line was elite under his charge in ’22 and ’23, but that was with talent recruited prior to his arrival, and Kirby Smart’s not one to give a lot of credit for past accomplishments. Georgia’s fourth-year offensive line coach needs to reverse a negative trend this season or else potentially face a difficult conversation at the end of the year. Searels’ guys need to communicate, they need to understand their assignments, and they need to bring that nastiness to the Georgia run game that was a hallmark of those national title teams in ’21 and ’22. This — far and away — is my most pressing question for the Dawgs as we enter the 2025 season.
The Receivers
Forget dynamic playmaking… can Georgia’s receivers consistently receive the ball in 2025? The Dawgs led the country in drops last year with 36 — including a key drop on a dime of a deep ball from Gunner Stockton in the Bulldogs’ playoff loss to Notre Dame — and the problem seemed to compound upon itself as the season progressed. The room lost its confidence, and in turn lost the confidence of its quarterback and its play caller (which isn’t to let OC Mike Bobo off the hook for some pretty unimaginative game plans — the Kentucky game comes to mind). Georgia’s wide receivers were neither dependable nor explosive in 2024.
Enter transfers Zachariah Branch and Noah Thomas, who join returning contributors Dillon Bell and Colbie Young and an exciting freshman crop of receivers. There’s serious talent here, and a useful mix of skillsets: Branch, a 5-star prep recruit who wasn’t fully unlocked during his 2 seasons at USC, is a compact slot type who can catch a tunnel screen and take it to the house; Thomas, who led Texas A&M in receiving yards last season on nearly 15 yards per catch, is a high-cut, 6-5 strider on the outside; and Bell, who struggled with inconsistency last season, is a thickly-built, versatile weapon who would likely be viewed as a potential No. 1 on less talented rosters. Among the freshmen, Talyn Taylor has turned heads in camp and may earn the opportunity to contribute early.
Bottom line: Kirby acknowledged a problem here and devoted significant resources to replenishing this room with high-end talent. At receiver, it obviously starts with running crisp routes and yes, catching the damn ball, but if this group can do those things, it’s my belief that the big plays will come.
The Alpha Dawgs
My third and final bone to pick is not the play of Gunner Stockton, and it’s not the play-calling of Mike Bobo, because if the offensive line and wide receivers play to their potential, it’s going to make those 2 guys’ jobs a whole hell of a lot easier.
No, my final question is this: who’s going to step up as those platinum playmakers for Georgia’s defense? Who’s going to set the tone? Kirby’s best teams have been littered with alpha-dawg studs on the defensive side of the ball. Last year’s defense (with the exception, perhaps, of Jalon Walker) lacked that type of game-breaking ability. Is sophomore safety KJ Bolden prepared to take that step from impressive freshman to All-American and, just as importantly, team leader? Will it be thumping linebacker CJ Allen? Stud defensive linemen Christen Miller? Ball-hawking corner Daylen Everette? Or will it be an emerging guy like super-freak linebacker Chris Cole, or even 5-star true freshman defensive lineman Elijah Griffin? There are legitimate candidates here, but for Georgia to reach its past heights, a handful of these guys must not be merely good. They must be elite. They must strike fear into the hearts of opposing coaches and players. You can bet Kirby and defensive coordinator Glenn Schumann are delivering that message every single day.
Bottom Line
Georgia enters 2025 with more obvious uncertainties than they’ve faced in several years. The portal has robbed — if you’re feeling sympathetic — programs like Georgia of the ability to stack and retain 5-star players throughout their 3-deep. But despite 2 straight disappointing postseasons, the Dawgs enter 2025 with the third or fourth best odds — depending on the book (they’re +700 on BetMGM) — to win the national championship.
Translation? Vegas still rates this roster very highly. The teams with better odds? They either haven’t done it in decades (Texas and Penn State) or they’re replacing a boatload of talent lost to the draft (Ohio State). If Georgia’s offensive line even comes close to returning to its ’21-’22 level, if its receivers catch the damn ball and serve as assets, not liabilities, to the offense, and if the next crop of stud defenders rises to the occasion, I do not think quarterback Gunner Stockton needs to be elite to lead the Bulldogs to the Playoff and a legitimate shot at another national title. He just needs to be good, and I think he’s well capable of that.
