Kevin Price commentary: Here's what we know about the Georgia, Auburn, Alabama and Georgia Tech football teams
It is less than a week until college football season gets under way. Six days for most teams, including Georgia, Auburn and Alabama -- and just four days until Georgia Tech begins its 2011 campaign.
So what do we know about the four major teams in our area:
Georgia
The Bulldogs are heading into what is probably a make-or-break year for Mark Richt. Whether that is fair or not considering the success he has had in Athens has been debated here before and will continue to be debated, especially if this season takes a turn for the worse.
Georgia has what will likely be its two toughest games to start the season -- in the Georgia Dome against No. 5 Boise State and in Athens against No. 12 South Carolina.
If the Dogs can win one of those games -- and the South Carolina game is by far the most important since it is an SEC game -- the rest of the schedule sets up well for a good run.
An 0-2 start, especially if the Dogs don’t show well, and Richt might have a hard time keeping the hounds at bay.
Auburn
The Tigers are coming off a magical season in which the team won the BCS national championship and quarterback Cam Newton won the Heisman Trophy.
Newton is gone to the NFL, leaving a gaping hole in the Tigers’ offense.
Barrett Trotter finally won the three-way quarterback race to replace Newton. Trotter will not be able to do what Newton did on the field, but that doesn’t mean the Tigers’ offense can’t be prolific.
Offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn’s spread offense is not meant to be a quarterback-centered offense like it was last year with Newton.
Think back to how the offense operated under Chris Todd two years ago. The offense finished the season ranked second in the SEC and 16th in the nation.
Bigger questions for the Tigers are the relative inexperience of the offensive line, where only one player returns with any appreciable experience, and the defensive front seven, where tackle Nick Fairley created so much havoc last season.
Alabama
The Tide is set to make a serious run at its second national championship in three seasons.
Alabama has what should be one of the best defenses in the country. And much like the national title season of 2009, the Tide just needs its quarterback to be efficient and protect the ball.
Coach Nick Saban has not yet named a starter to replace Greg McElroy from last season. AJ McCarron and Phillip Sims are battling for the job. Saban has even gone so far as to stop releasing statistics for those two players from recent scrimmages.
It is hard to know what to make of such a tactic. Could be that both are performing so poorly that Saban doesn’t want to create panic among the Tide faithful. Or it could be that both have played well and Saban is simply trying to cut down on the amount of scrutiny the two will face.
Georgia Tech
Attitude was an issue for the Jackets last season, who took a step backward in coach Paul Johnson’s third season. After a stellar 2009 season, Johnson has said he could tell the players didn’t have the right attitude coming into 2010.
Tech will be looking to Tevin Washington to operate Johnson’s triple-option offense. The time he spent on the field after Josh Nesbitt got hurt last season should be a huge benefit this year.
Defense will be a concern, however, with seven starters gone from 2010.
But with Miami and North Carolina’s programs in turmoil over NCAA rules violations, the ACC’s Coastal Division is open for someone to challenge Virginia Tech.
Georgia Tech could well be that team.
Kevin Price, 706-320-4493
This story was originally published August 28, 2011 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Kevin Price commentary: Here's what we know about the Georgia, Auburn, Alabama and Georgia Tech football teams."