Tag: Florida Gators Football

SportingNews releases preseason CFB top-25: Where is Georgia football?

Where is Georgia football in SportingNews’ preseason college football top-25 rankings?

This week, SportingNews released its preseason college football top-25 for the 2020 season.

Whether or not there will even be a 2020 season is uncertain right now. ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit actually said that he would be “shocked” if we had an NFL or college season at the rate things are going in regards to the coronavirus pandemic.

With no spring practices or scrimmages, it makes it that much tougher to assemble these preseason rankings.

Related: USA TODAY releases preseason CFB top 25: Where is Georgia?

But those who are still taking it upon themselves to create a top-25 are doing us all a favor, making the offseason slightly more entertaining.

In SportingNews’ preseason top-25, created by Bill Bender, the site had the Georgia Bulldogs ranked fourth in America.

Bender’s top-five is as follows:

  1. Clemson
  2. Ohio State
  3. Alabama
  4. Georgia
  5. LSU

Notable mentions include: #10 Florida, #11 Auburn, #17 Texas A&M and #23 Kentucky.

On Georgia, Bender wrote:

Jake Fromm is gone, as well as the vast majority of Georgia’s offensive line. The Bulldogs did pick up graduate transfer quarterback Jamie Newman from Wake Forest, and he will work with new offensive coordinator Todd Monken. Georgia also hired Alabama strength coach Scott Cochran. Kirby Smart has built with a string of top-five recruiting classes. Zamir White and James Cook will keep the ground game going, and George Pickens could emerge as the best receiver in the FBS. Rising redshirt-sophomore linebacker Azeez Ojulari could make the jump to All-American. The road trip to Alabama on Sept. 19 is the next chance to win the big game.

Georgia will look to cap its season with a fourth consecutive trip to Atlanta for the SEC Championship Game. That will not be as easy as in years past – not that it was ever easy. Before November, Georgia visits Alabama, hosts Auburn and will play a Florida team in Jacksonville that’s received a ton of offseason hype.

We’ll know just how far this Bulldog squad is capable of going by November 1.

ESPN’s Booger McFarland names elite SEC coaches

ESPN’s Booger McFarland talks which SEC coaches are in elite status. Did Georgia football HC Kirby Smart make the cut?

While on the Paul Finebaum show, ESPN analyst Booger McFarland was asked about the job that Dan Mullen is doing at Florida.

In response, he said that Mullen deserves to be considered as one of the league’s elite coaches and then went on to name other SEC coaches who he’d put in that top-tier.

McFarland included Nick Saban, Kirby Smart, Ed Orgeron and Mullen as the coaches who are at the top of the conference at the moment.

“I think if I had to rank the top four right now,” McFarland said, “I would go Saban, and in some order, you can sway me in this order — it would be Saban, it would be Kirby, it would be Ed and it will be Dan Mullen, and I think there’s a line of delineation right there and then there’s a second-tier.”

Sorry Gus Malzahn and Auburn, Booger does not think you’ve done enough to be included in that top-tier of coaches. Three 8-5 seasons, one 7-6 year and one at 9-4 just will not cut it.

Also left off the list is former national championship winning coach Jimbo Fisher (Texas A&M) and Kentucky’s Mark Stoops, who has recently turned the Wildcats program into a headache for some of the league’s top contenders.

Georgia football target Kamar Wilcoxson de-commits from Florida

For a second time, Kamar Wilcoxson has taken a step back from his commitment to Florida.

For a second time, Kamar Wilcoxson has taken a step back from his commitment to Florida. The four-star athlete, a projected defensive back, originally pledged to the Gators in 2018 before de-committing in April 2019 only to re-commit three months later.

Wilcoxson is ranked the 12th overall ATH in the 2021 recruiting cycle and the state of Florida’s 31st-ranked prospect as per 247Sports.

Just this week, the Sunshine State standout told Sports Illustrated he was “solid in [his] commitment” to Dan Mullen, Todd Grantham and company. He’s since entertained Alabama and Ohio State fans’ tweets before officially announcing his intention to back off of Florida.

Though Ohio State is the current favorite to secure Wilcoxson’s services, the IMG Academy transfer originally from Lilburn, Georgia has been extended a scholarship offer from Kirby Smart’s Georgia Bulldogs. It’s one of the high schooler’s 30 total D1 offers.

The first of many came from a coach presently employed by Smart. Georgia faithful may be interested in knowing that current Dawgs’ secondary coach Charlton Warren held the same position in Gainesville at the time Wilcoxson initially committed to Florida.

With rapport in Athens and plenty of time before both December’s early signing period and February’s National Signing Day, expect Wilcoxson to make at a few trips to northeast Georgia.

USA TODAY Sports releases preseason CFB top-25: Where is Georgia football?

Where did Georgia football ranks in USA TODAY’s preseason CFB top-25?

Kirby Smart and the Georgia football program will once again head into the next season with hopes of bringing the national championship back home to Athens, Georgia.

Via elite recruiting of both high school prospects and collegiate transfer students, the Dawgs have positioned themselves well to be in this position every year.

Even with the departure of a Jake Fromm, D’Andre Swift, Lawrence Cager, practically its entire offensive line, a few defensive leaders and one of the greatest kickers in school history, Georgia still should find itself sitting in the top-five come next fall.

With coronavirus causing so much uncertainty in the world of sports, whether or not there will even be a 2020 college football season is a mystery right now. However, that did not stop USA TODAY Sports from releasing its post-spring preseason top-25 for the 2020 season.

Paul Myerberg went ahead and compiled his rankings, with Georgia sitting at No. 3 in America.

Here is the top-five:

1. Clemson

2. Ohio State

3. Georgia

4. Oregon

5. Alabama

A few notable mentions include: #7 Florida, #9 LSU, #12 Auburn, #13 Texas A&M.

On Georgia, Myerberg wrote:

Georgia takes a big step forward in the post-spring rankings after cementing its quarterback position with Wake Forest transfer Jamie Newman. If replacing Jake Fromm’s experience and reliability may be difficult, Newman’s arm and athleticism should provide a different look to an offense run by a new coordinator in Todd Monken.

Georgia will look to cap off its season with a fourth consecutive trip to Atlanta for the SEC Championship Game. That won’t be as easy as in years past – not that it was ever easy. All before November, Georgia visits Alabama, hosts Auburn and will play a Florida team in Jacksonville that’s received a ton of offseason hype.

We’ll know how elite this Bulldog squad is by November 1st.

Georgia football makes top-five for 4-star WR

Georgia football made the top-five for 4-star WR Marcus Burke

Marcus Burke, a 4-star wide receiver out of Jacksonville, Florida, has released his top-five schools.

Burke, a junior at Trinity Christian Academy in the class of 2021, included Georgia, Florida, Miami, Georgia Tech and Penn State in his top-five.

Right now, 247Sports sees Burke winding up in Gainesville, with all three of the Crystal Ball predictions favoring the Gators.

Burke ranks as the nation’s No. 301 overall player, No. 52 ranked wide receiver and as the 46th player in the state of Florida.

Last week, Burke visited Florida for junior day and the next day named the Gators as his leader.

Burke, at 6-foot-3 and 180 pounds, was offered by Georgia back in September.

Right now, Georgia has the nation’s 17th ranked recruiting class for the 2021 cycle.

Headlining Georgia’s class is 5-star quarterback Brock Vandagriff out of Bogart, Georgia. Vandagriff ranks as the No. 12 overall player in the country.

Aside from Vandagriff, Kirby Smart has secured commitments from 4-star athlete David Daniel and 3-star defensive tackle Marlin Dean.

For the time being, recruiting is suspended nationwide as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. That includes both on and off campus recruiting.

As far as recruiting goes, it’s not time to hit the panic button based on Georgia’s No. 17 ranking. Smart has secured the nation’s No. 1 class three years in a row and is on a quest to make it four. This year, though, it’ll just take a bit longer to climb up the rankings than in years past.

UGA, Florida among four-star receiver’s top schools

The Georgia Bulldogs are among the top schools for 2021 four-star Plant City, Florida wide receiver Mario Williams.

The Georgia Bulldogs are among the top schools for 2021 wide receiver Mario Williams. Williams is a talented four-star recruit, who plays high school football for Plant City High School in Plant City, Florida.

The entire NCAA is currently in a dead period for recruiting as a result of the Coronavirus. That doesn’t stop players from listing their favorite schools, but it will result in a very different feeling spring from the past couple of seasons.

Kirby Smart and Georgia haven’t canceled the spring game, but it will be delayed in the best of scenarios. Here’s who elite wide receiver Mario Williams put in his top schools:

Williams is picking between four SEC teams: LSU, Georgia, Florida, Alabama and one Big-12 team (Oklahoma). Georgia is continuing to battle the Florida Gators for talented recruits in the Sunshine State.

In recent years, elite talent in Florida has been eluding the traditional in-state programs to go to Alabama, Clemson, Georgia and others. Mario Williams is a high-stakes recruit to watch in 2021. If he doesn’t come to Athens, then the Dawgs will in all likelihood have to play against him, unless he goes to Oklahoma.

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Top-100 recruit expands list, includes Georgia football in final eight

Georgia football was included in the top-eight of an elite 4-star recruit.

Kaine Williams, a 4-star safety in the class of 2021, has included Georgia in his top-eight schools.

Williams initially released a final cut of six schools, which included Georgia. In his tweet on Wednesday, Williams mentioned that no school dropped out of his top-six, however, he did add two schools to his list: Florida State and Texas.

His new top-eight includes LSU, Alabama, Texas A&M, Texas, Oklahoma, Florida, Florida State and Georgia.

Williams, out of John Ehret High School in Marrero, Louisiana, ranks as the nation’s No. 95 overall player and the No. 3 safety in the country.

Right now, according to 247Sports, Williams is viewed as an LSU lean. The Tigers will be a tough program to beat out seeing as how they routinely produce some of the nation’s top defensive backs and are located just 45 minutes from his home.

Williams recently told Rivals that he plans to commit either at the end of May or the beginning of August.

Florida wide receiver claims Gators will win SEC in 2020

Florida Gators wide receiver Jacob Copeland claims the Gators will be SEC Champions this season instead of their rival the Georgia Bulldogs

Florida Gators wide receiver Jacob Copeland claimed the Gators would be SEC Champions this season following a workout. Florida, who has lost three straight games against Georgia, went 11-2 last season, but failed to win the SEC East for the third straight season.

The winner of the Georgia versus Florida game has gone on to win the SEC East in each of the past five seasons. Will that be the case in 2020?

Once again, Florida figures to be UGA’s biggest competition in winning the SEC East. This year’s game in Jacksonville will be played on Halloween.

Here’s the video where Copeland declared Florida would win the SEC:

Copeland failed to secure a reception in Florida’s 24-17 loss to Georgia this past season. The Gators will hope to have a better result in 2020, but they’ll need more than 21 rushing yards on 19 attempts to topple the Dawgs.

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Georgia, Florida fans roast each other with Valentine’s Day poems

The Georgia Bulldogs versus Florida Gators football rivalry is as contested as it has ever been.

The Georgia-Florida rivalry is as contested as it has ever been. The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party is help in Jacksonville every year and neither team or their fan base ever backs down.

This Valentine’s Day, a poem tweet from SBNation helped renew the rivalry on Twitter between Bulldog and Gator fans. Here’s the Tweet that sparked the clash between Georgia and Florida fans:

Seems harmless enough right? That’s not the case in arguably UGA’s most fierce rivalry:

Auburn got caught in the crossfire as well:

It’s a long way away, but the Georgia versus Florida rivalry will be renewed on October 31st in Jacksonville. Should be an interesting Halloween!

Both teams have the week off before facing each other in the rivalry game. The winner of the match-up has gone on to win the SEC East in each of the past five seasons. While UGA has dominated the series winning the past three games and six of nine overall. Despite the surge under Kirby Smart, the Gators and Dawgs have split the past sixteen games.

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The talent gap between Georgia football and Florida is growing

The talent gap between Georgia football and the Florida Gators is actually growing, contrary to what UF fans are saying.

The Georgia Bulldogs have officially secured college football’s top-ranked recruiting class, according to both 247 and Rivals.

For the third time in three years, the Dawgs cemented a top three group of pledges on National Signing Day. Main rival Florida, in the same time span, has not ranked higher than eighth.

Across the two programs’ storied history, Florida maintained the edge in recruiting for a majority of this millennium. Georgia, however, has been the clear winner in such battles since the appointment of head coach Kirby Smart.

To present a hypothetical question:

Would the Bulldogs’ coaching staff be disappointed in landing anything outside a top-three recruiting class? Yes. Absolutely, unequivocally, yes.

So how do the Gators feel about the good-but-not-great recruits they’ve had since the departure of Jim McElwain?

According to head coach Dan Mullen, who has never beaten the Dawgs in his head coaching tenure at both Mississippi State and Florida, they’re content with being only good for the time being.

Mullen famously loves to make what he sees as subtle jabs at Georgia, but will he ever land a solid blow? Like, in terms of out-coaching Kirby Smart?