How Many Bulldogs Will Go In The First Two Rounds?

The 2013 NFL Draft is quickly approaching, and once again quite a few Georgia Bulldogs are expected to go fairly early in the draft. While it appears as though no one will be in contention for the #1 pick, there are a few who will be off the board fairly early. Here is a look at the top prospects from Georgia, with a projected range.

Jarvis Jones

If it wasn’t for a so-so pro day, Jones would be among the first few players drafted this season. As it stands, the outside linebacker will more than likely go around the middle of the first round. Those in fantasy football leagues will be very interested in a guy who led the nation in sacks for the Bulldogs, combining an impressive motor with superior skill. He is the type of player who can step in and provide help, especially on the pass rush, right away for a number of teams.

Projected Pick Range: #11-#15

Alec Ogletree

Fans of Georgia already know what Ogletree brings to the table, and scouts have figured it out as well. He is great at attacking the line of scrimmage and getting into the backfield against talented opponents. Since he will go later in the first round, chances are a team that will be in the playoff hunt in 2013 will pick him up. That means he might not start right away, but he will get playing time.

Projected Pick Range: #20-#25

Cornelius Washington

It is not every day that you see a SEC school have three linebackers projected to go very high in a single draft, but Washington has the tools to be a special player in the pros. He is a physical specimen at 6’4”, 265 pounds, and if the right team brings him in, he could really emerge as a steal. He does not have the skill yet, which is why he will drop to the second round, but he has enough raw talent to go in the second.

Projected Pick Range: #45-#50

John Jenkins

Not many 359-pound people in the world have as much athletic ability as John Jenkins. The defensive tackle with a bit of a mean streak should sneak into the end of the second round just because of his raw numbers. There are questions about his motor, but that might have more to do with his conditioning than he will to win.

Projected Pick Range: #55-#60

Monday's Meatloaf - debts as yet unpaid

So today's a guy's birthday. It's a guy I know. He might even dwell among some of you that read the words that are posted here. He definitely resides amongst those of you that have an address within the DawgNation.

When I first met Joe Waterloo he spoke a different language. Although we were both in the process of matriculating at the University of Georgia he was from somewhere far to the north. Like beyond Charlotte. Even past Richmond. Yeh, way up there.

Shoulda played Preston
Jones more...

But we took him in and showed him what grits were, we explained to him how to talk right (even though he didn't listen) and we gave him one of the greatest gifts a college football fan could ever receive...Ray Goff.

You see, love of southern college football can sometimes be earned too easily. But at other times it must be given sacrifice after sacrifice before it is earned and given back. And this was the case with my southern Maryland friend. He suffered. He fumed. He waited for his time to be repaid. Much like many of us. Except that many of us had understood and had the faith instilled in us at a young age.

But Joe Waterloo only had hockey, frozen tundra dog-sledding...and the occasional crab boil.

Today's Ingredients
- Once again, congrats to the men's tennis team for finding their way to the top of the SEC!
- Lots of GDay reactions today.
- One of the rising stars is James Deloach.
- Ching talks defense.
- Here's Blutarsky's observations from GDay. I wonder if that first play from scrimmage was one a fan sent in.
- Leather Helmet Blog finds Chris Mayes is a big dude.
- The offensive line is taking shape, but still faces challenges says Paschall.
- And Emerson takes a shot at the remaining questions of the spring.
- Garbin reminds us that those Gators, they do like to embellish.
- Run Home Jack is ambivalent about Joker Phillips having Photoshop.
- And vineyarddawg updates us on the Corvallis regional for the GymDogs.

So, my favorite Joe Waterloo story (that I can share) started innocently enough. T-Bones on Baxter was having a special on beer. You bought a mug and got as many refills as you could drink. If you had been privy to the discussion prior to our arrival you would have surmised that it was just going to be a nice dinner with a steak on the plate and a couple of cheap Killians Irish Reds.

Warning: not conducive to
billiards, or wagering.

But something happened between the time in which we were seated and the time at which the check arrived. It seems Joe Waterloo and I had not only been over-served, but we also had enjoyed one, two or three mugs more than our companions. So since we were not able to control our mouths no more than we would be able to control a motor vehicle, we were rescued by Smitty, who lowered his truck's tailgate so that we could stumble in for the ride back to campus.

But before we even crossed Milledge we had a great idea. Tate Center was open and would surely have several tables open since most students were busy preparing for their finals the next day. It was the kind of idea that brought both excitement and joy to our feeble and addled brains. The kind of idea one can only grasp once he's had a few too many refills in the course of a couple hours. And not surprisingly our friends were fully supportive. Although perhaps they were just anxious to get rid of us.

So we found ourselves surrendering a couple of bucks and our student IDs and then stumbling to the table we had rented. Shortly thereafter it was easy to realize that everyone that was at the Tate Center pool hall that evening was watching us - two drunk fools trying to coordinate pool balls into a rack all while attempting to talk trash. You know, saying things like "Imgonna phlish u sunzbitch...hjulp."

The rest is rather...fuzzy. But I do believe we managed to finish one game in which we bet $1000 on the outcome. And it only took an hour and 28 minutes to finish. About four minutes into it was when we both realized how bad of a decision it was. I mean hell, we still had to walk back up Baxter. And study. Evidently.

Joe Waterloo won the game. And I never paid him the money. Which is why today I'm wishing him a happy 21st birthday!! You're finally legal bro! And the next time we won't have to translate for the waitress whenever you order.

Go Dawgs! So..which of the rest of you bastards is next? Rack em up!

Bernie

Men's Tennis is SEC Champs...again!

Once again, Coach Diaz's Dawgs are on top!

The fourth-ranked Georgia men's tennis team used a road win over Arkansas Sunday to clinch at least a share of the 2013 Southeastern Conference regular-season championship. The Bulldogs defeated the No. 53 Razorbacks 4-1 at the Billingsley Tennis Center in Fayetteville, securing a 35^th overall conference title and the program's 27^thregular-season crown - the most of any SEC school.

For Manuel Diaz, it is the 22^nd SEC championship in 25 seasons as Georgia's head coach (14 regular season, eight tournament). Diaz also won four titles as a player and three as an assistant coach for a total of 29.

Georgia has won eight SEC championships in the last eight years counting both regular-season and tournament crowns.

"The guys did a great job of coming out refocused in singles," Diaz said. "[After we lost doubles] they did a great job and have shown that they have tremendous focus when it's needed most. While we need to do a better job in some areas, we also know three of our guys were sick today and I'm proud of them for coming out and competing the way they did. This is tremendous for our team."

GDay marks end of spring, almost

So over 45,000 fans gathered at college football's most beautiful landscape yesterday and suddenly a scrimmage broke out. It was a beautiful day by all accounts and no significant injuries. Just some bumps and bruises, which is exactly the way you want a scrimmage to be. Unless you're Florida.

I was neither able to go nor able to watch thanks to a blackout (no, not that kind) for anyone who wasn't joined at the hip with both Comcast and ESPN3.com, so I hunkered down with Scott Howard and Zeier for much of it.

Since I wasn't able to take it in firsthand, I'll leave the real analysis to those that were. However I will add that I'm pleased we had a receiver with a big day, some freshmen had a solid afternoon, and that the defense did well. As I pointed out the other day, kind of a bummer we didn't get to see much of Gurley and some others. But we know what we have there. The opener for the season and the opener at home loom much larger than the game yesterday.

And I think we're heading into the summer with our feet firmly under us. That's a good thing. With just two more practices to go the team should be able to enter August camp with more answers that lingering questions. Which is why yesterday was such a great day for Georgia Football.

And yet it was Nebraska that had the best scrimmage of all. (Warning, dust is in the air and may cause an eye to tear up.)

Conley's "new level"

Chris Conley has had himself a spring. Real big.

Malcolm Mitchell is done until August. Michael Bennett is still recovering. So Conley has capitalized on being healthy and ready.

“When we came in together, I saw his talent as a freshman with me redshirting,” tight end Jay Rome said. “I just feel like him, Malcolm, me and a lot of other guys that when an opportunity presents itself and we get the ball in our hands, we can do great things with it. Conley has been really getting after it. He’s a really dedicated player. He puts in a lot of extra hours.”

That includes working on team off days with Mitchell, Scott-Wesley and others, Rome said. They go through drills and catch balls off the Jugs machine.

“I think the best thing about this receiving corps is there’s a lot of talented people on it, but there’s not big egos,” Conley said. “There’s not a guy who says, ‘I want my touches. I want to be that No. 1 guy.’ It’s just a whole bunch of guys who are willing to go out there and work, and whoever starts a game, we’re fine with that. Everybody else is going to be able to get touches and make plays, too.”

GDay rosters

As expected, they came out late yesterday. If you're heading to Athens with your business face on, you'll wanna download or print this out somehow. Otherwise, not a lot of surprise.

Murray followed by Bauta and/or LeMay. And Mason followed by Welch and then Greg Bingham.

Gonna be a great day in Athens. I'm jealous of those of you who will be there..

GDay Gameday Preview

With the travel and entertainment portion aside, let's get down to the nuts and bolts of the spring scrimmage.

What are we going to see?
What we know for sure is that the team will be split by depth, which is to say that the first team offense will try and function against the first team defense, and then vice versa. So one team gets the 1st offense and the 2nd defense, the other gets the 1st defense and the 2nd offense. (I typed that out even though it was self explanatory, came to such a realization and then left it in case it was not...) Grantham will coach one team and Bobo will coach the other. Assistants split up forthwith.

Ward's a redshirt soph that's
finally healthy.(via)

What we don't know yet will be one of the more intriguing subplots to this year's GDay (and actually any spring game really) - the rosters. I would imagine those would leak out starting sometime today. And when they do we'll have a better idea of where certain players are on the depth chart.

What should we be looking for?
And for once the depth chart at tailback is not going to be that interesting. Thank God. Seems like each spring the last few years we've wondered where "so and so" would be and if Richt would once again favor seniority over the spring's hot name.

But the depth on the defensive side of the ball will be of particular interest with so many starting spots up for grabs. After the end of last season, we should be definitely be looking at how well the run defense looks. I'm sure the defensive coaches have awoken from a deep sleep plenty of times since December 1st to nightmares of Lacy and Yeldon running free in the secondary. I know I have. Can the line plug up holes for the linebackers to roam unhindered? is one of the top GDay subplots. I would expect to see a lot of spirited competition to make key tackles, big stops and game changing plays on that side of the ball.

Offensively the line is (always) at the top for me. I'm eager to see how much depth we might truly have. Reports have Xzavier Ward as a potential tackle opposite Theus. Finding someone to lock down that side is key to allowing some of our guards posing as tackles back inside where they should be.

Beyond that it would be nice to see a receiver like Conley pick up where he left off on New Year's Day. And it would terrific to see Quayvon clearing space and helping to set the pocket.

Also, Hutson Mason. I think getting a chance to run things last week was a shot in the arm. Here's a guy that's waited, truly been the poster boy for patience. We've seen a lot of him during his springs in Athens and I think we know what he can do. But I bet he has a big day on Saturday. He's gotten a taste of being the #1 guy and I think he wants to show fans what they can expect from him when the huddle is his.

Harvey-Clemons, special talent. (via)

Other players that could have a big impact: Tray Matthews (the spring's darling), Josh Harvey-Clemons (position change to feature his skills more), Mike Thornton (has he locked down the nose over Mayes?), Sheldon Dawson (has shined with three picks in the previous scrimmages) and Ramik Wilson (may have solidified a starting spot with Herrera at inside linebacker).

And what will we not see?
You won't see much of Murray. Same goes for Gurley. Plus, none of Malcolm Mitchell. And while that might be a bummer, especially for young fans wearing their jerseys, it does open up the field for Keith Marshall and the new kid AJ Turman to get more snaps [edit: not on campus yet. Sorry] as well as a chance to see how we might plan to use newcomer JJ Green.

Additionally, who is in the third QB slot behind Mason? Faton Bauta has been nursing some tendinitis in his bicep. Doubt we'll see too much of him, which is a shame. Which leaves us with walk-on Parker Welch, the new kid Brice Ramsey and Christian LeMay.

And nothing says GDay like a spirited debate over which number should be the third string quarterback. Y'all have fun and root for no injuries.

Go Dawgs!

Jenkins eager to hit Gurley

Evidently Jordan Jenkins put on quite the show for the media yesterday. He weighed in on the Auburn allegations, almost guaranteed a win in the opener, cracked jokes about some teammates, and then listed some players he planned to hit at tomorrow's scrimmage.

"I'm gonna try to get a couple hits on Todd (Gurley). Because I didn't hit him all last season in practice, and I think I hit him once in a scrimmage," Jenkins said. "Todd's been talkin' a lot of trash. I need to hit Todd. And I hope we get a stunt where I get to hit (offensive linemen) David (Andrews) and Dallas (Lee), because those guys decided to blind-side me on (a drill.)"

Swann's song for spring

When you're the lone returning starter it's hard to avoid the spotlight.

Swann is getting used to a new group around him after the secondary lost starting safeties Shawn Williams and Bacarri Rambo and cornerbacks Sanders Commings and Branden Smith.

“It’s a different look,” Swann said. “It’s a very different feeling for me. I look to the left, I see Branden. I look behind me I see Rambo and Shawn. The other corner I see Sanders. All four of those guys are gone now. I’ve just got to get comfortable playing with the guys that are here now because that’s who I’m going to be playing with.”

His coaches are confident in the junior cornerback and see even more potential than he's shown thus far in his career. The first key was seeing that Swann had been moved to the boundary corner spot. Listening to Grantham and Richt it's easy to see why.

via

“I think he was tremendous last year,” defensive coordinator Todd Grantham said. “When you look at the way he played and the way he progressed, I expect him to be a leader for us back there.”

The 5-foot-11, 185-pound Swann said he’s tried to learn the responsibilities of every position in the secondary to teach the younger players better.

“I think Swann is leading extremely well for us,” coach Mark Richt said. “I think he’s practicing hard. He’s to the point in his career where he’s got to think in terms of trying to perfect his trade and what he does. He’s not learning what to do anymore. He knows what to do. He really doesn’t have to prove to anybody that he’s a very good football player, he’s already proved that. Now it’s just a matter of can I lead and can I become the very best football player that I can possibly be. I think that’s his mindset. I’m seeing good signs of that.”

And it's worth remembering that Swann was one of the biggest stars in the bowl game against Nebraska - six tackles and a couple of picks. A performance that has helped him get over the devastating loss in the Georgia Dome.

Swann said his big bowl game helped him get over the SEC championship loss. Alabama went ahead for good on a 45-yard touchdown pass to Amari Cooper, who beat Swann for a 45-yard touchdown with 3:15 left.

“Damian’s been Damian,” receiver Chris Conley said. “He’s developed more. He’s got the same confidence that he has had last year, but I think the biggest thing about Damian is he’s a true SEC starting corner. He plays like one. He’s got the presence of one and quarterbacks and offenses are going to be aware of that because he’s made those plays and he’s continuing to make those plays in the spring and he’s only getting better.” 

"Auburn found a way to make those dudes eligible."

Trooper Taylor, weather forecaster

It's tradition. And I'm not only referring to Auburn here. Selena Roberts' story on Mike McNeil and Auburn's most recent shenanigans sheds an ugly, albeit one-sided, light on the WarTiglesmen underbelly. The allegations are severe, no question. But I'll refrain from pointing fingers wait until the dust clears up a bit for two reasons.

One. We've seen a smoking gun on the Plains before and nothing was done. Everyone already knows that Cam Newton and the 2010 titles were purchased. Which is why this news smells like a former player trying to bully the bully that bullied him. Maybe a second whiff will bring an even worse odor. It is Auburn after all. Cheating in Opelika is their oldest tradition now that Updyke has killed the trees.

Two. A lot of what's alleged is stuff that takes place in every nook and cranny of the NCAA's boundaries. Maybe Auburn has perfected the culture of it. Maybe McNeil wasn't given his due rights as a citizen because of his status as a football player. But it's big time football. The fact that it happens in lots of places doesn't make it right and it doesn't excuse this instance. But...it happens.

So where do we go from here? You mean other than watching the Auburn alumni squirm? Well, apparently there's another part of the story Roberts is working on focusing on the Auburn boosters. Joy. Raise your hand if you've heard that story before. Other than that I think the telling part may be to watch the relationship between Chizik and ESPN. The former Auburn coach who is implicated in the allegations has since become an analyst for the mothership. So far there's no comment from either. But we know that ESPN likes to let the real investigative journalism happen and then react to it. The direction in which they react may be a significant development.

Until then, how about another $money$ quote from the story.

“Chizik didn’t like anyone who didn’t fit a certain image.”

That's why Trooper Taylor used a backwards facing ballcap to cover up his dreads and HIGH Lyfe cranial tattoo. Wonder what else he was covering up?