Steelemas doesn’t come until next week, but if you hie thee over to his website, you can read Phil Steele’s Georgia preview today.
He ranks the Dawgs 23rd, well ahead of Florida, but likely to be at least as far behind Tennessee. He thinks the offense will improve from last season and the defense will hold its own, but notes that Georgia won four close games in 2015 and the coaching change as potential limitations. Overall, as the header to this post indicates, he’s pretty lukewarm about Georgia’s chances.
As far as the individual units go, it’s a mixed bag, but he does point to some concern about the loss of so much productivity at linebacker and, of course, special teams.
There are always a few fun stats tossed in. In this case, Georgia is riding a ten-game winning streak against Ole Miss, including five straight in Oxford. (Kirby isn’t, though.)
It’s also worth checking his seven years of offensive and defensive stats. Based on his yards per point metric, last season marked the most inefficient offense at Georgia since Stafford left, and by a pretty significant margin over 2014. Defensive efficiency was a different story, as the team turned in its best effort there since 2012, with a lot less NFL draft picks.
Dig through it. There’s plenty there, as you’d expect from Steele.
Get The Picture 
looks like he sees losses to unc, ole miss and ut. Those three games will probably make or break the season and be the difference between an 8-4 or 11-1 type season. Once again survive september should be our mantra.
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So who’s the sure loss outside of those 3? Given the 2 scenarios you presented there has to be one….UF? GT?
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probably should have said 9-3. Four losses and we are unranked. I think three or four losses is a failed season. We absolutely have to be no worse than 3-2 after ut. 11-2 with wins over uf, auburn and teck would be very satisfying along with an eight game win streak after the bowl.
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Agreed. Especially if there are other signs of growth/positive trends in the win streak (from Eason starting and getting better, to the line blocking better, to even something bittersweet like Chubb playing better/more.)
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Expect a “failed season,” by that standard (which is significantly better than Georgia’s historical average).
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“hie thee over”
I’ve never seen that. Is that a phrase you picked up from some Elizabethan harlequin romance or general usage in your tidewater upbringing?
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Macbeth…
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I thought I got it from a rap song.
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It’s that hip-hop culture I’ve been hearing about.
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You guys are killing me.
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Projects Catalina as the starter at LT. Catalina being solid at LT and Chubb returning to me is the key piece in letting Eason line up behind center.
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As a resource, nothing comes close to PS’s one stop shopping bible. Just got mine last week and haven’t begun digging through it yet. For one season I subscribed to his online pick service and can tell you predictions are not his forte. I know he proclaims a long history of being the best of the preseason mags but that isn’t a high standard given when they are written and the quality of staff’s they employ.
Great source of info, consider the magazine a “must have”, but from my experience he is weak at picking winners. His updated stat page is the only reason to subscribe to his service. His picks are so bad he doesn’t even give you his record from week to week, even on his “Best Bets”. In my bad years, and I have a had a couple or five, I am not as far off as he is. Granted, he picks every single game, every week so he cannot give the amount of time he could if he focused on the most likely game to bet. I honestly don’t know how he does what he gets done, can’t be much of a life. He even does all the pro games too, for those interested in that type of thing. Being from Cleveland, he may be better at that style of football.
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Nothing sucks like a big orange
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There are a lot of considerations…last year’s squeeking by in a few games is a concern..but for me that concern is more than offset by the fact that Schotty was and isn’t. This is huge consideration on the plus side. Also the schedule…and I still say we had a much better team than Bootch fielded last year…but were out-coached and out-gambled. CMR would often gamble that he had a big enough lead to outlast the clock. Bootch gambled on fourth down a few times (instead of kicking fgs) and won. This year’s coaching staff will be better than that, at the very least. Georgia also had a better (roster) team than UF and it was a Charley Foxtrot for the ages. I see a minimum of 9 wins in the season..10 will almost certainly mean playing Bama or LSU in ATL….Looking at Fournette, I’d rather play Bama.
That would mean being one win away from making the final four.
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The Offseason Hope Cycle is nearing its apogee.
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I’ll take my chances with LSU’s QB whoever it is over whomever Saban throws out there. Bama showed last year that you can control Fournette with a good front 7 and dare the Tigers’ QB to beat you. I’ll take my chances with Miles as opposed to Saban in a one game take all situation.
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Game of the year at home against Tennessee. We beat them for the upset of the year!
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