Top Dawg Blogs Georgia Bulldogs Year in Review: 2020 Edition
Normal is a word that I would not use to describe the year 2020. It was everything but ordinary in the year 2020. If anything was normal about this year, it is the fact that we are adjusting to the “new normal” of social distancing, wearing masks, and staying at home, even for Georgia Football games.
While many may not remember the joy brought to Dawgnation as the Dawgs started the new year with a win over the top 10 Baylor Bears in a sweet Sugar Bowl win. 2020 began with a bang as the often stagnant Georgia offense found some rhythm under offensive coordinator James Coley and junior quarterback Jake Fromm.
While the absentee list was the talk of much of the buildup to the game in New Orleans, new stars emerged and gifted Georgia the victory. George Pickens, Lewis Cine, Jamaree Salyer, and many more made considerable contributions to the season finale victory over Baylor. All three would go on to play a significant role in the following season.
Pickens is now a rising junior on the cusp of becoming one of the best UGA receivers to ever play between the hedges. Consistency is missing from the rising junior receiver, who is one of the most talented players on the field on his day.
Lewis Cine flashed in the 2019 season as the third safety sitting behind senior JR Reed and junior Richard LeCounte. Once news broke that Reed did not make the trip to New Orleans, Cine took on the responsibility created by former team captain JR Reed.
Cine would contribute in a big way as a starter next to Richard LeCounte on the backend. Cine took the momentum into the 2020 season as the starting partner next to LeCounte. Cine is once again thrust into a leadership role this season as he looks to take over the reins of a Georgia secondary.
Jamaree Salyer had big shoes to fill following the departure of both starting tackles Andrew Thomas and Isaiah Wilson. Salyer is a former guard who was converted to tackle after his stellar performance at the Sugar Bowl as the fill-in right tackle.
After the transfer of expected left tackle Cade Mays, Salyer would begin his weight loss journey as he looked to cut weight to help gain more mobility and add more muscle. After a long offseason, Salyer could opt to return for his senior season as the starting left tackle.
In the ensuing days following the Sugar Bowl victory, the mass exodus of the offseason would begin. Starting quarterback Jake Fromm announced his pending departure from Athens as he would forego his senior season in hopes of a career in the NFL. Future left tackle Cade Mays would also tell that he would enter the transfer portal after revealing an ongoing lawsuit filed by his parents against the University of Georgia.
While Fromm’s NFL aspirations were always on Georgia fans’ minds, the whispers of an early departure were quieted by a tumultuous season offensively. Many were taken aback by Fromm’s decision as it was largely expected he would return for a senior season.
The bombshell news was followed by swift action by the Georgia coaching staff as they quickly tapped into the NCAA transfer portal, hoping to find a quarterback who could come in and contribute right away.
One player on the mind of fans was rising senior Jamie Newman; the former Wake Forest quarterback put his name in the transfer portal on December 31st, 2019, just a day before the Dawgs would take the field in New Orleans.
Newman seemed like a perfect fit for a fanbase crying out for a mobile quarterback who could help modernize the Georgia offense.
Newman would announce his intention to transfer to Athens just three days after the outgoing quarterback Jake Fromm’s departure. Newman led the Deamon Deacons to a 10-6 record as the starting quarterback after relieving an injured Sam Hartman at quarterback.
With Georgia finding its new quarterback, the Dawgs look destined to make another run for a National Championship, just forty years after winning its last championship in 1980 under legendary Vince Dooley and all-time great Herschel Walker.
Just as anticipation was building for another edition of G-Day, the world as we knew it would change. COVID-19 would force sports across the globe to shut down with the rest of the world as the NCAA would announce on March 12th that the College Baseball season was canceled while the annual March Madness was forced to cancel.
Spring football was no more as the Dawgs would isolate with the rest of the world as we all endured the brunt of the global pandemic that we know now.
Just before Georgia would begin a return to campus for most of their athletes, they would tap into the transfer portal again with the addition of former five-star quarterback out of Meter Dei High School, JT Daniels.
The former USC Trojan quarterback joined a quarterback room with the likes of graduate transfer Jamie Newman, Stetson Bennett, D’Wan Mathis, and Carson Beck. Daniels was another high profile addition to the quarterback room trying to replace the former starter, Jake Fromm.
After widespread lockdowns enforced worldwide, the focus towards playing football again would shift towards the summer. The Georgia Bulldogs began their return to campus the first week of June as physicals, and COVID tests took place in preparation for a preseason bubble on campus.
On June 8th, the team began voluntary workouts in the Butts-Mehre athletic complex as the journey towards a 2020 season began.
After two weeks of voluntary workouts, the team would progress toward regular preseason camp, which started on August 7th for the Dawgs.
On September 26th, 2020, the Dawgs would take the field in the long-awaited 2020 season opener. Georgia was on the road against a familiar face, as former offensive line coach Sam Pittman would kick off his head coaching career with a game against his former pit stop.
It didn’t take long for the quarterback’s concerns to creep back into the national television spotlight. D’Wan Mathis was the game-time decision as to the start for the Dawgs in the season opener on the road.
Mathis and the Georgia offense struggled out of the gate as mistakes piled up on a young offense with a young quarterback. It would only take six drives of a stagnant offense for Kirby Smart to pull the plug on Mathis.
With JT Daniels not healthy to play in the season opener against the Hogs, Georgia would turn to former walk-on quarterback Stetson Bennett to guide the Dawgs in relief.
After a first half yielding just a field goal and a safety for the Dawgs offensively, Georgia needed to respond in a big way in the second half to avoid an embarrassing opening loss. After entering halftime with a 7-5 deficit, Stetson Bennett guided the Dawgs towards a 32 point second-half performance.
Bennett finished the afternoon 20/29 passing for 211 yards and 2 touchdowns. Bennett’s solid outing on the road against Arkansas earned him the nickname the “Mailman.” This wouldn’t be the end of Stetson Bennett as he earned him the opportunity to start the next five games.
Bennett would follow up his heroics off the bench against Arkansas with another great outing against Auburn at home, this time as the starter. Georgia jumped out in front of the Auburn Tigers early with a physical run game that ran the Dawgs to victory.
The Dawgs would carry the early season momentum into a home game against the Volunteers of Tennessee. Georgia got off to once again a slow start in the first half as mistakes cost the Dawgs points early.
With the Volunteers up 21-17 at halftime, the Dawgs would look to another big second half. It resulted in 27 points unanswered in the second half as the defense put together a great shutout second half.
Three turnovers forced and one touchdown by the Georgia defense put the Vols to sleep in a remarkable second-half turnaround for the Dawgs just a week before a date with the Tide.
Georgia started the season hot with a 3-0 record with a quarterback who was told during camp that he was a fourth-string quarterback. The offense was exceeding expectations with their play through the first three games.
While the limitations of a quarterback like Stetson were visible due to his smaller stature and less than ideal arm strength, Todd Monken did a tremendous job adapting to the former walk-on’s skillset.
A road game is always tricky in the SEC, but, arguably, none is more challenging than playing Alabama in Tuscaloosa. Even in the COVID-era of less than 30% capacity inside stadiums, Alabama had a home-field advantage to boost high-level NFL talent.
Georgia’s failure to produce four quarters of good football was in the spotlight against Alabama. With a 24-21 lead at halftime, the Dawgs looked primed once again to knock off the Tide and Nick Saban.
Like in recent years, halftime adjustments were made on both sides, which ultimately benefited the Tide. Alabama would cruise to victory with 21 points unanswered in the second half. Georgia would bounce back with a win on the road against Kentucky.
With their backs against the wall heading into the Georgia-Florida game, the Dawgs knew that a loss would likely seal the fate of their chances at making the College Football Playoff. After a 14-0 lead within the first few possessions of the first quarter, things would fall apart after Bennett’s touchdown pass to Marcus Rosemy. Both Rosemy and Bennett would suffer injuries.
After a hot start, Bennett would struggle in the passing game as it would later come out that he sprained his AC joint. Redshirt freshman D’Wan Mathis would replace Bennett as the Dawgs looked to shift momentum.
The shift resulted in nothing coming out of it as the Dawgs would fall to the Gators in Jacksonville. The second loss of Georgia season all but guaranteed the Gator’s an SEC Championship game bid.
After the loss to Florida, it was expected that the Dawgs would make a change at quarterback. The former transfer from USC JT Daniels had been on the sideline for much of the season as he continued to recover from his ACL injury.
After the Missouri game’s postponement, Daniels would make his debut a week later against Mississippi State. With significant players dealing with injuries defensively, Georgia turned to the offense to carry the team forward.
The debut of JT Daniels sparked the Georgia offense for the rest of the season as the Georgia offense came into its own. Georgia put up 31, 45, 49 points in the last three games of the season as the Georgia passing game provided the Dawgs with a balanced offense.
The emergence of Daniels gave the Dawgs a quarterback capable of consistently taking shots downfield. The gunslinger style of Daniels utilized the talents of receivers like Pickens, Burton, and Jackson.
Georgia finished the year 2020 strong with an offensive outbreak that sparked the Dawgs to three straight wins to end the regular season. With a Peach Bowl matchup with Cinncinatti in less than 24 hours, the Dawgs have a shot to kick off 2021 like they did 2020.