What the Peach Bowl taught us about what to expect for Georgia’s 2021 season
It’s never too early to look ahead to next season.
As the confetti fell following Georgia’s 24-21 victory over Cincinnati in the Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl, lessons about the 2021 campaign were already beginning to reveal themselves. Here are five things the Peach Bowl revealed about next season for the Bulldogs (8-2):
JT Daniels is the man for the QB job
Daniels proved this since taking over the starting quarterback job against Mississippi State. But against one of the nation’s best defenses in Cincinnati, he cemented his position as Georgia’s 2021 starter.
He connected on 26-of-38 passes for 392 yards with one touchdown and one interception in the Peach Bowl. With the game on the line down the stretch, he calmly led the Bulldogs down the field for the game-winning field goal.
After the game, Daniels said he feels like he’s been a Bulldog for years. In reality, he arrived on campus in June and went through an offseason wrecked by COVID-19.
Now, Daniels prepares for an offseason where he will be the unquestioned starter. He will be able to focus on learning Todd Monken’s offense and developing chemistry with all of his receivers.
The thought of that should have Georgia fans excited about the possibilities for this offense in 2021.
“We speak the same language, especially in terms of football,” Daniels said of Monken. “At this point there are times where I’ll get the formation signaled in, I will know exactly what he’s calling. The more I learn about him, the way he calls the game, the more time we spend together, it just grows and gets better, and we have a better understanding.”
Georgia will have some serious pass-catching talent next season
Speaking of Georgia’s receivers, Daniels will have a ton of quality targets to throw to next season. Of the seven Georgia receivers who caught a pass Friday, all but Demetris Robertson will be back next year. That number doesn’t count Dominick Blaylock, who missed the 2020 season with a torn ACL.
Superstar sophomore George Pickens, who caught seven passes for 135 yards and a touchdown, leads the returning group. There are also redshirt sophomore Kearis Jackson and freshmen Jermaine Burton and Arian Smith.
Perhaps the most intriguing returner, however, is freshman tight end Darnell Washington. The 6-foot-7, 260-pound Washington really came on toward the end of the season, hauling in five passes for 107 yards in the final two games.
“As he’s progressed and we’ve gotten more and more comfortable at quarterback, obviously we tried to get him involved a little bit more at Missouri as the game progressed,” Monken said on Dec. 29. “I do think he’s got an unbelievable upside.”
With all that talent, plus Daniels slinging the ball around, Georgia’s passing game will be one to be feared next season.
UGA offensive line needs to find right combination
The biggest question marks for Georgia heading into next season, at least on offense, reside on the offensive line.
Starters Trey Hill, Ben Cleveland and Justin Shaffer will be gone, barring any of them taking advantage of the free year of eligibility granted by the NCAA. Starting left tackle Jamaree Salyer could also leave early for the NFL, which would leave right tackle Warren McClendon as the only returning starter.
Redshirt sophomore Warren Ericson took over for Hill at center when the latter went down with injury, so he seems to be a logical choice to at least enter spring as the starter there. He could also receive a challenge from freshman Sedrick Van Pran.
Similarly, redshirt freshman Xavier Truss has an inside track to start at tackle after starting for Salyer there against Cincinnati. Freshmen Broderick Jones and Tate Ratledge, along with redshirt sophomore Owen Condon, will battle for that spot as well.
That leaves a handful of other Bulldogs battling for the two guard spots. Those positions will be particularly critical for a team that still wants to run the football first.
The running game didn’t have lots of success against Cincinnati, registering just 45 yards on 24 carries. For Georgia to get to where it wants to go next season, the Bulldogs will need to regain that road-grading ability they’ve had in recent seasons.
The front seven will rebuild, but remain fierce
The area that will be most hit by departures might be the defensive front seven.
Inside linebacker Monty Rice will be gone, as will outside linebackers Azeez Ojulari (the team’s sack leader) and Jermaine Johnson. Barring any seniors opting to return, the defensive line will lose Julian Rochester, Devonte Wyatt, Malik Herring and perhaps gargantuan nose tackle Jordan Davis.
That said, the Bulldogs showed they have plenty of talent to remain strong up front.
Sophomore Nakobe Dean and junior Quay Walker will take over at inside linebacker. They tied for the team lead with seven tackles against Cincinnati, flashing that blazing speed that has become a trademark of Georgia linebackers.
Junior Adam Anderson had a couple of sacks in the Peach Bowl, capping off a breakout season. He will return on the outside, as will junior Robert Beal, sophomore Nolan Smith and freshman M.J. Sherman.
The defensive line returns breakout freshman Jalen Carter, as well as sophomore Travon Walker. There are also several other intriguing freshmen who will be in line for more playing time, highlighted by Nazir Stackhouse and Warren Brinson.
Those stepping into bigger roles will need to continue to grow and develop. If they do, the Bulldogs will be stout up front once again in 2021.
Georgia secondary is talented, but needs to shore up pass defense
The back end of Georgia’s defense provided a good look late in 2020 at how the unit will look next season.
Junior Christopher Smith and sophomore Lewis Cine have handled safety duties since the injury to starting safety Richard LeCounte. They held down the back end again against Cincinnati, with Cine flying downhill to snuff out the run and Smith recording a pass break-up.
Tyson Campbell held down one corner spot, although there’s a decent chance he leaves for the NFL. Sophomore Tyrique Stevenson started on the other side and had an up-and-down game, although he made what Smart called the play of the game to break up a late third-down Bearcat pass that allowed Georgia to get the ball back one more time.
The most intriguing spot is the STAR position. With Stevenson playing outside and senior Mark Webb not playing, junior Latavious Brini got the nod. He finished third on the team with five tackles, with two of those coming in the backfield after blowing through blocks and making big tackles on attempted screens.
There is plenty of quality young talent waiting in the wings to push for playing time. Namely, a quartet of freshmen in Major Burns, Kelee Ringo, Jalen Kimber and Daran Branch will be nipping at the heels of the older players to get on the field.
Whoever plays, the Bulldogs will need to shore up their pass defense. In their two losses this season, they were shredded through the air by Alabama and Florida. Even against Cincinnati, Georgia had its struggles stopping the pass.
The talent is there. Now it just has to show itself on the field for the Georgia defense to return to its totally dominant form.
This story was originally published January 2, 2021 at 5:00 AM with the headline "What the Peach Bowl taught us about what to expect for Georgia’s 2021 season."