Terry Godwin - Slotted For Success?

Last season, Terry Godwin was expected to build upon his fairly successful freshman campaign. In fact, he posted virtually the same exact numbers, and failed to reach the end zone (with a reception, as he did have the onside kick score vs. USCjr.).

Reports suggest that he will be assuming the role of slot receiver vacated by the electric Isaiah McKenzie. It's pure conjecture at this point, but there are certain aspects of his game that would seem to lend themselves to this being a more natural and productive fit.

The use of the slot receiver has really made a jump over the last couple decades, particularly in the NFL. Long thought of as a safety blanket, the slot is now an integral weapon for offenses. It's quite common for a team's slot receiver to lead in total receptions, which was unheard of until about 10 years ago.

What makes a good slot receiver?

A lot of people's first instincts are to say that he's smaller and quicker. While quickness is key, stature is becoming less and less important. For example, Larry Fitzgerald had a resurgence of sorts last year with the Cardinals moving over to the slot, and he's a good 6'5".

To me, all receivers need some degree of quickness, but your slot receiver needs to run precise routes, have excellent hands, and perhaps above all, be tough. Most catches are happening at or just beyond the second level, and often in the middle of the field, so you need a guy whose not going to get those alligator arms, as the danger of an interception is augmented when throwing to those areas.

Godwin has shown that, while quick, he doesn't have elite top-end speed, and at 5'11", he's not going to typically "out-physical" a DB either.

What surprised me most, especially since he did not really play WR in high school, are his hands and his toughness. He's had very few, if any, drops in his career, and I love the way he catches everything with his hands out away. He has the ability to snatch balls out of the air. It wouldn't surprise me if some of this comes from playing so much baseball (he got a tryout with the Braves farm system before settling on UGA), where quick and instinctive hand-eye coordination is vital.

I was also surprised at how tough he is, particularly for someone of a relatively slight build. He's tough to bring down, and doesn't mind contact. Again, at his size, he seems to enjoy delivering a blow to opposing DBs if the opportunity to make a guy miss is not there.

In the end, Georgia needs a legitimate deep threat to help loosen up defensive secondaries. So, I'm not expecting Godwin's move to be the be-all, end-all of fixes for the offense. But, I absolutely think he will be a much better fit than his was outside. If Wims, Ridley, and a couple of the incoming freshmen (Holloman, Webb) can provide that outside presence, then look for Godwin to have a career year and possibly lead Georgia in receptions.

Dawgbone May Not Want to Hear This, But Coaching CAN'T Fix Our Kickoff Coverage

OK, maybe "can't fix" is a bit strong, but obviously Georgia's kickoff return coverage in 2016 left fans wanting. The Dawgs finished the season ranked 115th of 128 teams, giving up an average of nearly 24 yds per return.

I was perusing these stats, as well as where certain teams fell, and while I don't want to say I was able to draw some iron-clad conclusions, I found some things very interesting.

First, with respect to some teams with stacked rosters and presumably good coaches, I found it interesting that Alabama ranked 79th, Michigan at 92, and Florida at 110. On the flipside, teams that you wouldn't think would have the depth to support an excellent KO coverage team (of course, they may play a lot of starters) topped the rankings. Bowling Green, for example, led the nation. Purdue, who played a lot of talented teams last year, came in at #5.

So, it's tough to find a correlation between a team's talent and depth, and I submit that these teams aren't lacking in coaching, unless Bowling Green's ST coach(es) is a diamond in the rough, in which case Kirby should hire him tout suite.

Here's what I find even more interesting.

In 2015, Alabama was ranked a more typical 23rd. Michigan and Florida were at a mediocre, but not poor, 50 and 51, respectively.

Bowling Green went from 62nd to #1. Conversely, Georgia Southern went from #1 to #83.

So, did the teams that improved just "figure it out," while the teams that had it figured out simply forgot what the heck they were doing? I can say with a certain degree of certainty that the level of talent neither improved nor dropped off so dramatically as to cause such a great variance in ST performance.

One variable is the kickers themselves, but even here, there doesn't seem to be much correlation. Florida, who, again, was barely better than Georgia at #110, led the nation in kickoff yds/kick, and was 15th in touchbacks. Memphis was 3rd in touchbacks, and 2nd overall in kickoff coverage. So, while I know that most teams would love a guy who can kick it through the back of the end zone every time, there's still no real conclusion to be drawn as far as coverage on non-touchbacks.

OK, but what does it all mean, Basil?

I don't want to say that a more complete, talented, and deep roster won't have any effects on Georgia's kickoff coverage, and I applaud Kirby for hiring an assistant away from Auburn to be more of a consultant/adviser.

But, the more I think about it, the more I'm convinced that kickoff coverage is coached pretty much the same way all around, and sometimes, chit happen.

Lorenzo's (Carter) Oil

If you got that reference, then congratulations on being a Susan Sarandon fan.

As I dissect every sentence uttered by Kirby Smart during his post-practice pressers, I often have to remind myself that they'll probably have at most a 50% chance of being a telling prediction of the upcoming season.

On aspect that I found interesting yesterday regards Lorenzo Carter. Carter, you'll recall, was a high 4-star/5-star recruit who many viewed as the next Leonard Floyd. A lengthy, athletic, first-off-the-bus kind of guy who could be a terror off the edge once he matured and gained experience.

While far from bad, Carter's career seems to have been marked by inconsistency, as well as an inability to finish off plays.

I was intrigued to hear Smart talk about Carter as a high-energy guy, a motor, to go along with his freakish size and athleticism.

To me, high energy implies that he doesn't take plays off, doesn't let up until the whistle, etc. Take that, along with his natural ability, and you wonder why he hasn't had more of an impact to this point in his career.

As he supposedly played at around 235-240lbs last year, you might make a case that he was a bit underweight to hold up for 60 minutes against the run, and yet, I would have still expected more sacks and QB pressures.

Kirby made it a point to mention that they are going to try to keep his weight at or above 250lbs. this year, so perhaps that will pay dividends. He's also mentioned himself that the finality of this season with respect to college ball (and no championships to speak of) has really hit him, so perhaps that will be the extra motivation he needs to finally get over the hump.

It will be interesting to follow his play this year, and honestly, I think we'll be able to tell early on if this will be the Lo Carter we've been hoping to see since he arrived in 2014. App State's offense doesn't lend itself to many true sacks, but if he goes off against Notre Dame, look out. If he's sitting at 1/2 a sack and 1 QB pressure after 3 games, then the defense might be in a bit more trouble than we thought.

OK, we've got 'em, now where do we put 'em? Georgia's welcome conundrum

If you followed and/or hated on Mark Richt, particularly during his downfall years, you noticed an alarming trend; two, actually.

First, you saw a woefully undermanned roster in terms of total players on scholarship. The top number of 85 was certainly not reached, and even dropped to around 70 for a time.

Secondly, you saw under-recruited or mis-recruited positions and position groups, necessitating several position changes to provide adequate depth at these positions.

What followed was not only a shortage of talent on the field at certain spots, but also a lack of true competition during spring and fall. Not to suggest anyone was lollygagging by any means, but it's human nature to kind of go through the motions if you know a job is yours.

So, now it's 2017, and after what seemed to be some deft roster management (bringing in another kicker for a 1-yr scholarship, bringing in what many hope to be the next I-Mac, etc), Georgia finds itself with a fair amount of depth at most every spot on the field. Granted, much of it is young and untested, but it's there nonetheless.

Now the questions of who starts and who plays arise, but just as importantly, where do a lot of these guys settle in.

The biggest area for this to me comes in the DB group.

Georgia is clearly going in the direction of taller, lengthier DBs. They go 6ft, 6ft, 6ft, 6-2, 6-2, 6-2, and 6-3 as far as who the Dawgs signed in the last class. Now you've got to figure out who is a true corner, who's at the Star, and who might grow into or be a natural safety. You might even see, depending upon how the 2018 class goes, some redshirts who grow into LBs. LBs can grow into DE's, and so forth.

As confusing as it can get, the beauty is that the Bulldogs are, at present, not going to be required to make these changes based upon need at another position. There won't be much, "We really need some more depth at safety, so who's our biggest CB?" Instead, it will be because, after assessment in practice and eventually games, the staff will be able to make some changes based upon, "This guy's best position is such-and-such."

I'm not suggesting there will never be a roster issue, or a depleted position group, but for now, it's nice knowing we've got the talent and sheer number of bodies to not have to play musical chairs.