Tate Ratledge breaks down Georgia's guard competition

Georgia's guard competition is nearing its end.

With the season opener against Oregon looming next weekend, the Bulldogs will soon settle on the starting five to trot out against the Ducks. The battle has been waged throughout fall camp, and winners are now set to emerge.

Redshirt sophomore Tate Ratledge has been at the center of the competition. He shared what the past few weeks have been like when he met with the media on Tuesday evening.

In some ways, Ratledge is the X-factor among Georgia's guards this fall.

After starting the year as the first-team right guard, he missed virtually all of 2021 after suffering a Lisfranc injury in his foot against Clemson. Ratledge now feels that he's getting back to his pre-injury form. The other Bulldogs helped keep Ratledge engaged during the run to the title.

"It was seeing them every day is really what kept me sane during that time," Ratledge said. "It was coming in here and just seeing them going to meetings, talking to them. So, they played a really big role in that."

Now Ratledge is battling with players such as Devin Willock, Xavier Truss, Jared Wilson, Warren Ericson, and Micah Morris for one of the starting guard spots.

Ratledge has received the lion's share of first-team reps at right guard in preseason camp. At left guard, Willock has gotten the majority of first-team work.

Ratledge has seen "a lot of improvement" in the redshirt sophomore.

"He’s gotten a lot better," Ratledge said. "He’s really physical, he’s long, big. He’s got a lot of intangibles that a lot of people don’t have and he uses them very well."

Head coach Kirby Smart preaches competition throughout his program. He feels that players elevate their level of play with others to push them.

As camp draws to a close, Ratledge feels that has benefitted himself and the other competitors at guard.

""I try not to base my play off of other people, but you’ve got to stay sharp," Ratledge said. "Bad days aren’t an option. I think that’s for everybody. That’s just the general idea in our offensive line room, no bad days. It definitely pushes everybody to be better."