Bulldog Notes from Pro Football Focus
As you might be aware, UGASports recently secured a partnership with Pro Football Focus (PFF)—and we’re absolutely ecstatic about it. PFF’s variety and number of readily available stats, ratings, grades, etc., are so mind-blowing that even the most intricate of sports statisticians could become overwhelmed.
PFF is particularly recognized for its team/player grading system (1 to 100)—five different grades for every offensive player, five for defensive players, and four for those on special teams. For most teams, including Georgia, this grading system was fully established, beginning with the 2014 season.
With that being said, and beginning with something very simple, here are some PFF tidbits in regard to this season’s Georgia team—and a little taste of what’s to come via UGASports and PFF:
. . . Through two games, offensive lineman Ben Cleveland leads the entire team with an average of 54.0 snaps per game. Safety Richard LeCounte leads all defensive players with an average of 52.5. Since 2014, the Bulldog with the highest per-game average of snaps in a season is offensive lineman Brandon Kublanow (72.6 in 2016). Dominick Sanders, who as a mere freshman averaged 60.8 snaps in 2014, has the highest of all the defenders.
. . . Of all the individual team grades for Georgia in two games, its highest was an 89.1 scored against South Carolina for run defense. Of the Bulldogs’ previous 27 games entering last week, just once did they grade higher on run defense (93.3 vs. Appalachian State in 2017).
. . . Through two games, 27 percent of Jake Fromm’s pass attempts have been thrown outside left, 21 percent outside right, and 55 percent “between the numbers” in the middle of the field. These percentages are more or less on par with last year’s pass direction for Fromm: 29% left, 18% right, and 50% middle.
. . . With a grade of 60.8 vs. Austin Peay, followed by 67.0 against South Carolina, the Bulldogs’ overall special teams grade of 65.9 ranks just 74th of the 129 teams in the FBS. Still, while glancing through all of Georgia’s special teams data through two games, something really caught my eye—punter Jake Camarda’s lofty average hangtime of 4.57 seconds for his six punts—tops in all of Division I (312 teams) of those with at least three punts. By comparison, Cameron Nizialek’s average hangtime last season was 4.26, whereas Marshall Long’s was 3.84 and Brice Ramsey’s 3.71 in 2016.
. . . Of the 42 different offensive players who have appeared this season for Georgia, Demetris Robertson, whose total of 45 snaps is tied with Mecole Hardman for third most of the team’s receivers, has the lowest overall offensive grade of 51.9. As a true freshman for California in 2016, when he was second on the team in receiving, Robertson’s offensive grade for the season was 64.9, yet it ranked 15th of the Bears’ offensive players who played at least 90 snaps.
. . . Although Georgia hasn’t graded out too well on special teams thus far this season, the Bulldogs’ overall 83.4 grade on offense ranks 11th in the FBS, while their 90.1 overall defensive grade ranks 10th. Besides Georgia, only Alabama (No. 5 offense, No. 2 defense) and Washington (No. 6 offense, No. 8 defense) rank in the FBS’ top dozen for both overall offensive and defensive grades.
. . . Last season, of the five different defensive grades for individual defenders—overall defense, tackling, run defense, pass rush, and coverage against receivers—linebacker Roquan Smith ranked first on the team in all categories, except one, pass rush, where his 77.9 grade was second behind D’Andre Walker’s 82.5 pass-rush grade. Fittingly, Walker leads this year’s squad in pass rush with a 71.9.
. . . As a whole, Georgia’s pass rush this season has graded out at only 58.2, ranking 111th in the FBS. This mark is similar to that of the pass rush two seasons ago in 2016, when the Bulldogs graded out at 61.4, ranking 93rd in the FBS.
. . . As for Middle Tennessee State, its best team grade so far this season is 76.4 grade for pass blocking.