Several receivers step up in first UGA scrimmage

The first official spring scrimmage took place last week for the Georgia Bulldogs and according to reports, the offense had a pretty nice day despite no AJ Green, Kris Durham or Isaiah Crowell. Yes, of course Green and Durham have departed the program and Crowell hasn't finished high school yet, but that is pretty good news for folks wondering if Aaron Murray can follow a solid redshirt freshman season with a Stafford-esque lead in the sophomore year. (Remember, Stafford struggled too his freshman year and the sophomore campaign ended with an appearance in the Sugar Bowl and a No. 2 ranking.)

It appears that Caleb King may FINALLY be living up to some of the high school hype he brought to Athens and he could end up giving Crowell a run for his money, assuming he stays out of the doghouse. A few of the other backs made some impressions but the Bulldog Nation is starting to come to grips with perhaps King and not Washaun Ealey being the lone challenger to Crowell for the Boise State start at tailback.

As far as targets for Aaron Murray, the latest reports have Michael Bennett having made a few nice catches while Marlon Brown showed some nice hands with one touchdown grab. Odds are Orson Charles will take a bigger role in the offense now that Green is gone, and Murray has a rapport with Charles dating back to their Plant (Tampa) high school days. Charles is a matchup nightmare for the opposition as he is too strong for corners, too fast for linebackers and too big for safeties. Georgia has a large supply of tight ends so look for Charles to be used simply as a mismatch favoring the Bulldogs.

Richt also praised the defense but it will be tough to see how much the defense has really improved until John Jenkins suits up at the nose tackle position. Jarvis Jones can make plays all day long in a scrimmage but we won't know how good he'll be until Jenkins is in there, plugging up the middle. Bacarri Rambo missed the scrimmage as did Richard Samuel and those two are expected to be major players next season.

It was just the first scrimmage but if the offense can find a few playmakers before Crowell gets to Athens, you would have to call the spring a success.