The Georgia Bulldogs have a roster full of talent. That’s one of the reasons why they are the reigning College Football Champions. If Ole Miss want to come away with a famous victory, they must play a perfect game. What will help, is limiting the below players in the game.
Ladd McConkey, WR
Georgia have been known for heavy usage of their run game However, the passing game is just as deadly when on form. Tight end Brock Bowers gets a lot of the plaudits, but WR Ladd McConkey is one of the most talented receivers in college.
Despite missing the first four games through injury, McConkey has 337 yards from 22 catches, with just 1 TD. Yes, it’s a slight knock that he doesn’t score enough TDs, but his qualities show up in the open field.
Ladd McConkey has such twitchy athleticism. Easily a top 10 WR in the 2024 #NFLDraft pic.twitter.com/BxMegkMmlM
— Jason DiRienzo (@allpurposescout) November 7, 2023
The Junior receiver is a clean route runner, making separation look easy. In open space, he can chew up yards and flip a possession from deep in his own half into scoring range. On top of that, he has the speed to take the top off the defense. He is a weapon, one that Carson Beck loves to get the ball to as much as possible.
Players like McConkey are hard to stop. Ole Miss will need to find a way to prevent him having open space with the ball.
Tykee Smith, DB
Watching Tykee Smith on the field is fun, not for the opposition though. Smith is one of the more experienced guys on the field, entering college in 2019 with West Virginia.
It’s only the last two seasons where he has been consistently on the field for Georgia, since transferring in 2021. Despite that, he is one of the most impactful on defense.
Smith is a swiss army knife on defense. He is used as a pass rusher, with excellent acceleration to get to the QB quickly, as seen last Saturday against Missouri. On top of that, he is a ball hawk, with 4 interceptions this season, leading the team.
Smith is the type of player that can swing the momentum in favour of his team. He plays with high level energy, with the Georgia defense feeding off it. The Rebels can’t let him dictate the energy, they need to play quick tempo.
Carson Beck, QB
When Carson Beck was made starting QB at the beginning of the season, he had his struggles. However, he has grown into the role and is putting up big numbers and great performances.
After 9 games as the first time starter, Beck is doing much better than people expected. 2,716 passing yards, 16 passing touchdowns and just 4 interceptions. He has slowly crept into Heisman contention.
Beck is throwing the ball with confidence, showing off the arm talent and the calmness in the pocket. Give him enough time and he will find receivers. Putting pressure on him quickly and pushing him out of the pocket is good. However, he still has the ability to find his players.
This is clinical by Carson Beck and probably my favorite play against Missouri. In the redzone your process is sped up. Quickly eliminates the out based on the leverage, works to the MOF, McConkey is capped inside, throws Delp into space and protects him.pic.twitter.com/iut64GLm01
— Nick Martin (@themicknartin) November 6, 2023
Even when the team was struggling, Beck made key plays to help towards Georgia staying unbeaten. In my opinion, he is not talked about enough alongside the other top QBs in college.