One hundred days. Today, May 27, 2021, marks one hundred days until the kickoff of Georgia's 2021 football season and its momentous showdown against the Clemson Tigers in Charlotte.
The college football world is just over three months from having a capacity crowd packed into a stadium to watch a match-up of Top Five programs. Excitement is building among fans, to put it mildly. However, much will take place between now and kickoff. Today, we at UGA Sports preview what to watch out for.
First, we have a month of June unlike any other college football has ever seen. A backlog of visits from prospects, mostly in the Class of 2022 and the Class of 2023, will be hosted in a breakneck fashion. Getting to see prospects in person is going to be huge for both the coaching staff of every college program and for the prospects themselves.
Georgia will definitely be extending offers to prospects early on in June—especially players in the trenches whom offensive line coach Matt Luke and defensive line coach Tray Scott have needed to see work out in person. It's very hard to offer linemen, some who haven't been seen in person in two years, without knowing how well they bend, or how they demonstrate strength in the lower half.
Second, there's the transfer portal. The portal gives and it takes away, and Georgia is likely to find itself on both the giving and receiving end of the equation multiple times before toe meets leather against Clemson. With Kirby Smart and Georgia's historic 2018 Class spearheading this 2021 squad—complemented by three stellar recruiting hauls since—a couple of key transfers in spots of need would raise even higher the expectations for this fall's edition of the Bulldogs.
Finally, we should consider the actual preparation. Spring practice was much welcomed by the Georgia program, as a majority of the team had never had the benefit of going through that phase of development. Certainly, those reps provided teachable moments, and the Georgia coaches hope those early lessons took root, producing wisdom and confidence to supersede the actual level of experience in positions of need.
However, as valuable as spring was, the injury bug bit the Dawgs during that period. Staying healthy leading into the Clemson game will be paramount, especially at wide receiver and defensive back. Key position battles will headline fall camp on the offensive line, on the offensive perimeter, and as mentioned, in the defensive backfield.
One hundred days. Don't blink. With all that's set to take place in the summer after a long, COVID-altered period of time, the moments will be fleeting.