For those not familiar with center Jared Wilson, Tate Ratledge’s description of his teammate may come as a surprise.

“He’s a freak athlete,” Ratledge told reporters, when asked about the player expected to replace three-starter Sedrick Van Pran at the position this fall.

“He’s really done a good job of trying to take control up front, being loud with his mike (linebacker) calls, things like that,” Ratledge continued. “He’s really done a good job of stepping up into that role.”

Van Pran said Ratledge wasn’t kidding.

After working with Wilson learning the position each of the past two years, Van Pran knows his potential.

“It’s exactly what he said, Jared is a freak athlete. His explosiveness is one thing I think people underestimate about Jared,” Van Pran said. “But he also does a great job of being able to dissect the defense, being able to make those IDs and digest what is going on in front of him in a split second. Once you add that and understand the explosiveness he has, it’s going to be amazing what he can do.”

Nobody knows that better than Van Pran and Tate.

Wilson played in 13 of Georgia’s 14 games, the lone exception being the Bulldogs’ Orange Bowl win over Florida State.

“Jared isn’t really young, but he really hasn’t had his opportunity to shine yet,” said Van Pran.

Wilson will enter the season with 30 career appearances throughout his Bulldog career.

“I think Jared coming up is ready for that job,” said Ratledge, who predicts Georgia’s offensive line will be just fine with the aforementioned “freak” athleticism he’ll bring to the fold.

For example:

“Just him running. The way he can get to a linebacker, things like that. It’s things you don’t normally see out of a center,” Ratledge said. “He can help get to the linebacker with the guard, where a lot of times the centers just have to pop straight up. Just the way he has great footwork and gets things done up front.”