With Georgia set to hold its second scrimmage on Saturday, we'll continue to pay special attention to certain players.
Many of them you’ve already read about via our insider notes, following last week’s initial session. Some, perhaps you missed.
Let’s examine the situation, including a look at the players seeking to improve their current status, as well as some tidbits being reported behind the scenes.
• Xavier Truss continues to compete for the starting job at left tackle. Broderick Jones played at right tackle on the second team. Truss, we understand, played relatively well. Both still have work to do. Jamaree Salyer remains in the picture, and coaches won’t hesitate to have him play the position again this fall. But they really hope either Jones or Truss can get the job done. Or maybe even Amarius Mims. Salyer was held out of last week's scrimmage.
• Warren Ericson has the edge at center, but Sedrick Van Pran-Grainger continues to receive a long look.
• Warren McClendon continues to be Mr. Steady at right tackle for now.
• Two young linemen whose names have been drawing praise, Tate Ratledge and Austin Blaske. Coaches love their work ethic. Ratledge continues to be a name to watch at right guard. Blaske can play all five spots on the line although is not int he two-deep at the moment.
• Carson Beck continues to impress at quarterback and is doing a good job of playing to his strength: getting the ball downfield. Coaches have been impressed with the way Beck has come into spring determined to better his game, and apparently the results are starting to show.
• Demetris Robertson opened eyes last week when he caught two touchdowns. Can he put together a similar performance Saturday? Although fans will understandably remain skeptical until they see it in an actual game, coaches still believe the Savannah native can be a big part of the offense.
• Receivers Justin Robinson and Adonai Mitchell have been talked about a lot. Robinson, with his physical presence, and Mitchell, with his ability to make plays. Both made plays last Saturday and will receive plenty of chances again tomorrow. Nobody likes to have the kind of injuries the Bulldogs are dealing with at wide receiver, but what it has done is given Georgia’s younger receivers even more opportunities than they would have received otherwise.
• Indications are Kendall Milton continues to have an excellent spring. Milton is healthy after injuring his knee in last year’s game against Florida and having a hamstring issue, and seems primed for a breakout. Zamir White and James Cook also continue to receive praise and perform just the way you expect a couple of upperclassmen would.
• Christopher Smith said he had received a look at cornerback, but that’s not unusual as basically every member of the secondary is cross-training to play as many spots as possible.
• Fans ask all the time about leaders. In the secondary, I'm told Lewis Cine is someone beginning to take that role to heart.
• Kelee Ringo still has some rust to knock off, which is understandable considering last week's scrimmage was his first time he's been healthy since undergoing Labrum surgery a year ago. He was held out of the scrimmage parts of practice. There's no denying the former five-star's talent. He just needs to get his game legs up under him, which he certainly will.
• Tight end Brock Bowers continues to impress.
• Quarterback JT Daniels threw seven or eight "beautiful" deep balls last week in the scrimmage. He also had three interceptions. Freshman Brock Vandagriff still has a long way to go to pick up the offense but that is completely normal. Being here for spring camp will pay big dividends for him in the fall.