A Vikings Fan’s Viewing Guide to CFB: Can Georgia Repeat?
Josh Frey
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Just like the NFL season is fast approaching, we are nearing the day where college football teams will arrive on campus and begin their own preseason work. As a self-proclaimed NFL Draft nerd, I get almost as excited for the college football season as I do for the NFL season. Because of that, I am putting together guides for many of the notable college football programs ahead of the 2022 season. Whether you’re a seasoned college football viewer, or just getting into it for the first time, there is something here for everyone.
We’ve already gone through many of the major contenders in the AAC, the ACC, the Big 10, and we just finished up in the Big 12. Today, we get started with the granddaddy of all college football conferences: the SEC. What better way to start out with the national champs? Let’s talk about the Georgia Bulldogs.
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Overview
The Georgia Bulldogs had one of the best, if not the best, defenses in college football history in 2021. With that came a national championship, but it also meant that they had eight players from that side of the field get selected in the NFL Draft, including five in the first round. Now, they have to rebuild that side of the field, but maintain one of the most overpowering defensive linemen in the nation, Jalen Carter.
On the other side of the ball, Stetson Bennett is back for his seventh season of college football at QB. The wily veteran looks to help lead this Georgia team back to the promised land, but will the rest of the roster be able to fill the spots of 15 draft picks?
2022 NFL Draft Prospects
- EDGE Travon Walker, Round 1, No. 1, Jacksonville Jaguars
- DT Jordan Davis, Round 1, No. 13, Philadelphia Eagles
- LB Quay Walker, Round 1, No. 22, Green Bay Packers
- DT Devonte Wyatt, Round 1, No. 28, Green Bay Packers
- S Lewis Cine, Round 1, No. 32, Minnesota Vikings
- WR George Pickens, Round 2, No. 52, Pittsburgh Steelers
- RB James Cook, Round 2, No. 63, Buffalo Bills
- LB Nakobe Dean, Round 3, No. 83, Philadelphia Eagles
- LB Channing Tindall, Round 3, No. 102, Miami Dolphins
- RB Zamir White, Round 4, No. 122, Las Vegas Raiders
- P Jake Camarda, Round 4, No. 133, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- G Justin Shaffer, Round 6, No. 190, Atlanta Falcons
- G Jamaree Salyer, Round 6, No. 195, Los Angeles Chargers
- DB Derion Kendrick, Round 6, No. 212, Los Angles Rams
- TE John FitzPatrick, Round 6, No. 213, Atlanta Falcons
Notable Transfers In
N/A
Notable Transfers Out
- QB JT Daniels (West Virginia)
- WR Jermaine Burton (Alabama)
- WR Justin Robinson (Mississippi State)
- OT Owen Condon (SMU)
- IOL Clay Webb (Jacksonville State)
- DL Tymon Mitchell (TCU)
- CB Jalen Kimber (Florida)
- S Latavious Brini (Arkansas)
2022 Schedule
- 9/3 vs. Oregon
- 9/10 vs. Samford
- 9/17 @ South Carolina
- 9/24 vs. Kent State
- 10/1 @ Missouri
- 10/8 vs. Auburn
- 10/15 vs. Vanderbilt
- 10/29 vs. Florida
- 11/5 vs. Tennessee
- 11/12 @ Mississippi State
- 11/19 @ Kentucky
- 11/26 vs. Georgia Tech
Keys to 2022
TE Arik Gilbert
The Georgia Bulldogs had their defense ravaged in the NFL Draft, and while they had a few losses through this process on the offensive side of the ball, their biggest blows came through the transfer portal. They lost multiple pass-catchers to in-conference rivals as Jermaine Burton heads to Alabama and Justin Robinson goes further west to Mississippi State.
Arik Gilbert joined Georgia through the transfer portal in 2021 after a very successful 2020 season at LSU, catching 35 passes for 368 yards and a pair of touchdowns. However, he did not play a single game due to an off-the-field issue. There’s no denying he has extreme talent at the position, and his role, in no small part, could determine how fluid the Bulldogs offense is in 2022.
Rebuilding the Defense
We’ve been beating around this topic’s proverbial bush throughout this entire discussion, but now it’s time to talk about it. This Georgia defense might be in trouble in 2022. Just in the draft alone the Bulldogs lost three starters on the defensive line, three starters at linebacker, and two defensive backs. Then they lost CB Jalen Kimber, S Latavious Brini, and DL Tymon Mitchell to the transfer portal. Sure, Jalen Carter is a terrific player that should go near the top of the first round in 2023’s draft, but this is a massive hole to dig themselves out of.
Fortunately, Georgia somehow still has significant depth across their defense, and that only got better when LBs Nolan Smith and Robert Beal Jr. elected to return for one last run at another title. CB Kelee Ringo could be another prospect that goes in the first round of the 2023 draft after winning a starting spot last year. It’s not going to be easy, but Georgia should be a tough competitor in the SEC once again.
My “Purple Player to Watch”
The Georgia Bulldogs are one of the best teams at churning out NFL talent at the running back position. They had a pair of RBs drafted this spring, and now, they have two more players in the backfield that could flash NFL talent. With some uncertainty revolving around Dalvin Cook’s contract situation following this season, Alexander Mattison heading towards free agency in 2023, and the NFL’s displeasure in spending high draft picks on running backs, this could be the perfect time for the Vikings to grab another young potential star.
Of the two players in Georgia’s backfield, the best prospect right now looks to be Kenny McIntosh. At 6’1 and 210 pounds, he’s a little bigger than the typical RB, and he has terrific hands as a receiver. He caught 22 passes 242 yards and a pair of touchdowns last year on top of averaging 5.7 yards per carry.
Again, if the NFL continues to devalue running backs in the draft, this could be a player that the Vikings can snag late in Day Two or even early Day Three. Even though they have Kene Nwangwu and Ty Chandler playing incredibly in camp, it’ll be hard to pass on a player with the potential of McIntosh next spring if he’s still on the board going into Saturday.
