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Published Dec 2, 2019
Ed Orgeron is bullish on the Dawgs
Anthony Dasher  •  UGASports
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Some might call it Coach-speak, perhaps some won’t.

Whichever way you fall, LSU coach Ed Orgeron had plenty of complimentary words for Georgia heading into Saturday’s SEC Championship at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

“It will be the best offensive and defensive line we've seen all year. I watched their offensive line this morning; they're phenomenal,” Orgeron said during his Monday press conference. “There’s probably three or four guys that will be draft choices. All five of them will play in the NFL.”

Orgeron’s comments didn’t stop there.

“D'Andre Swift, one of the best tailbacks in America. Big wide receivers, and a great offensive line,” he said. “Very, very good system. Very physical football team.”

Orgeron saved some of his highest praise, however, for members of Georgia’s defensive line, which is giving up just over 10 points per game. Senior Tyler Clark really has Orgeron’s attention.

“Tyler Clark and their defensive line, I watch them all the time, because I watch opponents' offensive lines,” he said. “They're very well-coached. They're quick, disruptive.”

Orgeron said he knows all of them well.

“I’ve watched them a lot. I recruited every one of those guys,” he said. “First of all, they're NFL players. They play with a low pad level. They play a 3-4; they play very, very good technique when they play the 3-4. They play the 4-3. They bring that No. 99 (Jordan Davis) in that weighs about 330 pounds. I'm sure that's a light day for him. He knocks everybody back and lets those linebackers run through.”

Although he’s confident in his offense, LSU’s head coach said Georgia’s defense will be a tough nut to crack.

As athletic as the Tigers are on offense, the Bulldogs have just as much athleticism on the defense side, and that has Orgeron concerned.

“The thing when you watch the Georgia Bulldogs, ever since I've been watching football, they get 11 helmets to the football,” he said. “They fly to the football. They tackle well in space; they're very physical.”

Orgeron also told Tiger beat writers not to underestimate Bulldog quarterback Jake Fromm.

When reminded that Fromm has gone four straight games without completing 50 percent of his passes, Orgeron said that’s a stat he’s not paying much attention to.

“I can't tell you why he's throwing under 50 percent yet. I can't tell you that,” he said. “But I will tell you this; he's a winner, a fantastic young man. He's a leader. They believe in him at Georgia. He's won a lot of games. That tells you a lot about a quarterback.”

Nor does Orgeron buy into the notion that Georgia’s offensive issues this fall will necessarily hold true on Saturday afternoon.

According to the Louisiana native, he feels Georgia’s best could still be coming.

“Sure. They're going to play their best, man. This is their third time here in a row. They're going to be hungry; they're well-coached,” he said. “We beat them last year, so they have a little chip on their shoulder, know what I'm saying?”

But Orgeron said his Tigers will be ready.

“We've got to let last year go. Last year is different—we played them at home, we played them over there. Whole different time, whole different circumstance,” he said. “But what I'm confident about in our football team is, they're very confident in their abilities, very confident in their abilities to adjust during the game. I think we have an excellent coaching staff so that people can throw whatever they want at us. We're going to have answers and players that can do it.

“It’s going to come down to blocking, tackling, and taking care of the ball.”

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