Why Orson Charles could be the key to a SEC Championship?

When people think of the Georgia Bulldogs and their upcoming season many things come to mind. How will Grantham's new defense play? Who will be the starting quarterback? Can King and Ealey both surpass 1000 yards for the season? Will AJ Green be able to stay healthy all year?

If any number of these questions turns positive, it could steer the Bulldogs to Atlanta for a shot at the SEC Championship. The player though that will have the biggest impact and help the team the most as a whole will be Orson Charles. Why, you ask?

Lets take a look at Charles stats from last year first. He finished with 21 catches for 366 yards and 3 TDs in only 3 starts. What was really impressive about these numbers was that he averaged 17.4 yards per catch and the only TE to have a higher average was Leonard Pope with 19.4 yards per catch in 2004. Charles has the ability to stretch the field and make big plays at any time. 

When teams are lining up against the Bulldogs this year they will most likely have to deal with Charles and Aron White both in the lineup. It would not surprise me to see the Bulldogs use a lot of formations that utilize the two of them on the field at the same time to create mismatches. When the Bulldogs use these formations don't be surprised if the defense uses a safety on Charles and a LB on White. This could help to have some one-on-one coverage with our receivers or cause some holes in the zones.

If Charles can establish himself as a serious threat to the defense in terms of the passing game, this could mean huge numbers for Green and King. As I was stating earlier if the defense feels they have to cover Charles with a safety then this can open up the receivers down field and create the matchups that we want. When you have Green one-on-one with any corner in the NCAA, Green is going to win that battle 90% of the time. If the defense decides to let a linebacker run with Charles, the offense should take that all day.

Closing thought ......you have to remember pending Aaron Murray win's the QB competition, the last time these two played a full season together, Charles caught 75 passes for 21 TD's. So they know each other pretty well and should make for a great duo.

Conley Catches Up

Chris Conley had a good day today at Junior Day, he had a chance to chat with a player rom his area and perhaps his next quarterback. Conley grew up in Dallas, GA which is near the town that current Bulldog Richard Samuel grew up in. Samuel and Conley were not childhood friends by any means but it gave them a chance to talk about growing up in that part of Georgia. Conley also had a chance to chat with the guy who one day could be throwing the ball to him in Aaron Murray.

Conley had already met Mark Richt before he came to Athens, but he was able to meet receivers coach Tony Ball and offensive coordinator Mike Bobo. Conley is planning on making a decision before he starts his senior year. He has stated that Georgia is defintely one of the schools he is interested in. He is already planning on visiting Alabama and Georgia Tech.

Why the Bulldogs Should have a Top 15 Offense

The Bulldog have all the makings of what could be a great offensive year in terms of production. Pending that no injuries happen during spring practice the Bulldogs will be returning 10 offensive starters. The main reason though why nobody is really talking about the Bulldogs and how great they can be next year is because the one new starter will be the QB. Joe Cox graduated and left the Bulldogs with three QB's that have not played more then 10 snaps combined in NCAA football. Here is a list of why the Bulldogs should be ranked top 15 nationally by the end of the 2010 season.

1. All 5 OL Return: The Bulldogs entire offensive line has been together for at least two seasons. With Clint Boling at LT and Ben Jones at C the Bulldogs have two outstanding OL to lead this team. If this unit is able to continue the dominance they ended the season with we will have probably of the best offensive lines in the nation next year. The Bulldogs should have no problem going back to the old Dawg Day's of run first pass second.

2. Ealey/King: Washaun Ealey and Caleb King could be the best RB duo in the NCAA next year. There is nothing better than having two great backs to push each other and make the other better. Last season both backs averaged over 5 yards a carry and combined for over 1,100 yards and 8 TD's. Everyone should remember that Richard Samuel was the starter for almost half the season. So we can only imagine what they will do with a whole season.

3. WR/TE Corp: You cannot talk about the Georgia receivers without first talking about AJ Green, he is  arguable the best WR in college football right now. I think he will be extremely important to the Bulldogs but it will be the rest of the bunch that makes the biggest difference. The Bulldogs need Tavarres King or Marlon Borwn to really step up and become a legitimate threat next year to take some of the pressure off Green. If this does not happen you can count seeing two defenders lining up over Green all season. Also having Orson Charles and Aaron White lining up at TE should really help to open the middle up as defenses will have to make sure they account for both. With Charles most teams will have to assign a DB to mark him as he can beat most LB's in man coverage.

4. QB Battle: The QB battle should be interesting. Depending on who wins this battle will determine what type plays we are able to run. If Zach Mettenberger wins out we should see a more pro style offense like we saw when Stafford was at QB. If Aaron Murray or Logan Gray wins out we can see more options, bootlegs and draws as both are more mobile than Mettenberger and offer that aspect of the offense.

Interviews with the three Georgia QB's

The Atlanta Journal Constitution interviewed all three of the UGA QB's on Monday. Here are the links to each one.

Interview with Aaron Murray

Interview with Zach Mettenberger

Interview with Logan Gray

QB Duel Almost Underway

The Bulldogs offense one would think should be one of the better offense's in the SEC next year with 10 starters returning. The only problem with this is that the one starter that graduated was QB Joe Cox. Most Bulldog fans were not sorry to see Cox go. He was anything but consistent last year. With that said their is a pretty good QB duel setting up for this spring between Zach Mettenberger and Aaron Murray. If you ask the coaching staff it is a three way race with Logan Gray also in the mix. I for one would be shocked if Logan Gray is named the starter. If you ask most Georgia fans they are under the impression that Murray is the front runner right now. Murray had this to say about the starting position:

"I view it is it's anyone's job to win right now. I'm looking forward to the spring and it's my goal to get that position. I'm going to try and work as hard as I can, work as hard as the other guys because I know they're going out there trying to do the same, We're all friends, we're not enemies, we hang out, we go out together to eat. There's no hatred, but we're all going out there to win the position."

 Murray in the fans minds will be the starting the QB come the opening game in September. However, most UGA fans should not count out Mettenberger just yet. Mettenberger has the stronger arm of the two but it is his accuracy and footwork that coaches are concerned about. He has been working on his footwork and accuracy since he enrolled in Georgia early last spring and according to the Mettenberger he has improved:

"I've never felt I was an inaccurate passer. People have also said I'm a gunslinger, but that' also inaccurate, I definitely feel I can throw as good and as accurate as anybody. It all goes back to my footwork, but I feel my footwork has gotten just as good as the other guys, if not better."

Whoever wins the battle should feel pretty good about his surrounding cast. The Bulldogs have an offensive line that has been together for two years now and the top receiver in the SEC. Orson Charles some believe good become the best TE in the SEC this year now that Aaron Hernandez of Florida is heading to the NFL. Plus with Washaun Ealey and Caleb King in the backfield, who would not want to be the starting QB.