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Getting Sony Michel the ball will be the key to Georgia’s chances of winning out
By John Hollis
Published:
It’s been a disappointing season, but Georgia can still win out and close the year on a good note.
But the Bulldogs’ ongoing quarterback issues mean that tailback Sony Michel is going to have to be the focus of the offense for the next three games for that to happen.
Offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer will need to continue to get the ball in the hands of Michel, who’s had at least 22 carries in three of the last four games to go with 9 receptions over that span.
Michel, the sophomore who assumed the bulk of the carries following the season-ending knee injury to Nick Chubb against Tennessee on Oct. 10, enjoyed a banner day in last weekend’s 27-3 win over Kentucky, exploding for a career-best 165 yards to help the Dawgs pound out a season-high 300 yards on the ground.
Schottenheimer did a much better job against UK of optimizing Michel’s effectiveness by running the “Wild Dog” formation that created more space for the elusive Michel to work. The threat of speedy freshman receiver Terry Godwin helped freeze Wildcats defenders long enough for Michel to consistently break into the second level or secondary before encountering resistance.
The additional decision to call on tailbacks Keith Marshall and Brendan Douglas up the middle more than Michel served to keep Michel fresh and healthy to enhance his effectiveness.
Michel enters Saturday’s game at Auburn with 718 yards and 5 touchdowns on 126 carries. It speaks volumes of the man-sized shoes he’s being asked to fill that Chubb still leads the Dawgs in rushing with 747 yards and 7 scores despite playing in just six games. Yet nobody else on the Georgia football team is even remotely as capable of such a task.
Michel’s ability to catch the ball out the backfield has proven equally as critical as Georgia’s stable of quarterbacks has yet to show that it can successfully attack opposing defenses vertically.
The Dawgs have been forced to rely on short, high-percentage passes, and Michel has been one of the top targets. He boasts 18 catches for 206 yards and 3 more touchdowns.
His combination of speed, power and all-around skills makes Michel a matchup nightmare every Saturday, so he needs to be offensive priority No. 1 for the remainder of the season.
Georgia has nobody else even close in playmaking ability, so the more Michel touches the ball, the better for the Dawgs.
John Hollis is a contributing writer for Saturday Down South. He covers Georgia and Florida.
