Georgia vs Appalachian State: 3 bold predictions for Week 1

2 of 4

ATHENS, GA – NOVEMBER 21: Uga X is officially ‘collared’ prior to the game between the Georgia Bulldogs and the Georgia Southern Eagles at Sanford Stadium on November 21, 2015 in Athens, Georgia. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/Getty Images) /

3. Two Georgia freshmen earn starting nods

Kirby Smart worked hard on his first full recruiting class, finishing with a consensus top-five class. Sure, plenty of them will redshirt this season, but Smart should find a way to get the top of the class on the field.

By the end of the season, Isaiah Wilson could be a starter on the offensive line. For now, it appears Andrew Thomas is in position to start at right tackle on the line. The coaching staff talks very highly of him, and he has received most of the first-team reps at the position. Thomas’ size isn’t far off from right guard Solomon Kindley. Kindley is 6-foot-4 and 341 pounds, while Thomas is listed at 6-foot-5 and 338 pounds.

Richard LeCounte is more of a wildcard. He wasn’t anticipated to earn a starting job right away, but Malkom Parrish is out with a foot injury. He may return for the game, but it seems unlikely. Now, Georgia has plenty of options in reshuffling the secondary in Parrish’s absence, so there are a number of ways to go for head coach Kirby Smart.

However, LeCounte is a talented player in a unit with a senior safety (Dominick Sanders), a senior cornerback (Aaron Davis) and last year’s starter at cornerback in Deandre Baker. With this wealth of experience, the Bulldogs might feel more comfortable rolling the dice with the highly touted LeCounte. He was an early enrollee this year, so he’s had more time to learn the playbook than the average freshman.

Home/Georgia Bulldogs