ATHENS, Ga. -- Mark Richt made headlines last week when he talked about his desire to play backup quarterback Joe Cox more frequently.
Another player who falls into that category is backup middle linebacker Marcus Washington.
"Every once in a while you'll look back and say we should have played so-and-so more than we did and Marcus was one of those guys," said Richt, Georgia's head coach. "He should have played more last year. We need to make sure he gets in the game because he's a very good football player."
He has shown that this preseason, when his play has impressed his coaches -- who told the junior he's had his best fall camp yet -- and left Richt saying complimentary things about him after practice.
"Anytime a good thing comes from the head ballcoach, you know you're doing something right," Washington said, "so you've got to put your head down and keep swinging and keep doing what you're doing."
There was a time not so long ago when Washington questioned whether he'd be receiving those kinds of compliments again.
Washington appeared in 11 games last year, but recorded only four tackles in intermittent mop-up duty behind then-senior Jarvis Jackson. Then a season-ending torn knee ligament suffered last November kept Washington out of spring practice and left him wondering whether he'd ever play at the same level again.
He had to take things easy when the knee would get sore in the early part of fall camp, but said it continues to improve. He also had to overcome the inevitable tentativeness that comes with trying to play at full-speed after suffering such a knee injury.
"After a couple times of contact where we could go full pads and I got chop (blocked) a couple times, I'd get up and go, 'Oh OK, it's not that bad.' Football is part mental, just like it is physical," he said.
Washington remains a backup at middle linebacker, although he seems to have fought off true freshman Charles White for second-team duties behind Dannell Ellerbe.
He has finally gotten his weight under control -- he's at 240 pounds right now and wants to level off at 235 after letting it fluctuate in his first two seasons -- and has gained the confidence of his position coach.
"Marcus has emerged. He's rehabbed his knee to the point where I think he looks really good," linebackers coach John Jancek said. "His body weight is down and he knows the defense. He looks like he's feeling more comfortable than he ever has, so those are all positive signs that he's ready to play."
Bobby's world
Logan Gray isn't Bobby Reid, but he's the closest thing Georgia's got as the Bulldogs prepare to face Oklahoma State in the season opener.
Gray, a true freshman from Columbia, Mo., is quarterback of Georgia's scout team and will try to simulate Reid, Oklahoma State's multi-skilled quarterback, in practice.
Reid passed for nearly 2,300 yards and ran for 500 more while operating the Cowboys' spread offense last season. Gray shares many of the same physical attributes -- as evidenced by ESPN.com calling him the "ultimate spread-offense quarterback" in its recruiting evaluation last year.
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