Report: Georgia may be down another offensive lineman as camp opens
Georgia apparently has lost another offensive lineman, at least for a while.
DawgPost.com, the Scout/Fox Sports website that covers the Bulldogs, cited sources in reporting that sophomore tackle Austin Long will miss at least the first two weeks of preseason camp after being diagnosed with mononucleosis. Two persons familiar the situation have confirmed that report to the AJC, but I haven’t gotten any official confirmation from UGA yet. Spokesperson Claude Felton said he was unaware of Long being sidelined.
If it’s true, that means the Bulldogs are down to six scholarship offensive linemen who have even one snap of experience, including the five starters. Georgia has lost three other offensive linemen since spring practice. Redshirt freshman guard Brent Benedict and junior tackle A.J. Harmon transferred to other schools and senior tackle Trinton Sturdivant was lost to a knee injury.
Georgia signed five freshmen offensive linemen in its 2011 recruiting class: David Andrews, Watts Dantzler, Zach DeBell, Hunter Long and Xzavier Ward.
Long, a 6-foot-5, 304-pound redshirt sophomore, was considered the top lineman in Tennessee when he signed with the Bulldogs out of Briarcrest Christian Academy in Memphis in 2009. He was listed as the backup to Justin Anderson at right tackle heading into camp.
Long has had a hard time getting on the field. Back surgery before he got to UGA resulted in a redshirt year and he did not play last season as he continued to rehabilitate that injury.
Meanwhile, the players were on Spec Towns Track this morning trying to make their times for a running test. UGA is not providing us with the information from those tests but, for what it’s worth, we know from Facebook that Big John Jenkins “passed with flying colors.”
Today is all about testing, physicals and orientation for the Bulldogs. Real football doesn’t start happening until 4:20 p.m. tomorrow when they embark on the first of 29 practice opportunities between now and the Sept. 3 opener against Boise State. Apparently getting some young offensive linemen ready to play will be a priority.
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150 comments Add your comment
Tobias Funke
August 3rd, 2011
2:28 pm
Careful. Chip doesn’t watch the show and might not get our sense of humor. How about this one, “You’re forgetting, Lindsay, that as a psychiatrist, I was a professional twice over – an analyst and a therapist. The world’s first “analrapist”.”
Pete
August 3rd, 2011
2:29 pm
AT LEAST uga will have plenty of excuses when Boise completely destroys them!
It’s a good game plan for the SEC!
BSU 55-0
Stadium is silenced in the first 3 minutes, uga fans start leaving at halftime.
Yawn…. bring on the real challenge, TCU, Air force, Nevada, Fresno, SDSU, etc……
West Side Dawg
August 3rd, 2011
2:32 pm
It’s going to be hard not to start 0-2 this season for UGA. To little depth, to many fresh faces. Will set up better for next year. It’s going to be interesting to see who Georgia goes after in their coaching search this off season.
old dawg
August 3rd, 2011
2:38 pm
no problem. just move richard samuel to the offensive line. he seems to be the only solution to being thin at a position that the staff can come up with. i mean he has played offense before so he has seen them from behind and his days on defense, he was able to see the o-line from the front, so he has it covered. what a great perspective!
BIGDAWG37
August 3rd, 2011
2:41 pm
BRING ON BOISE STATE!!! DAWGS ROLL 31-17!
JB
August 3rd, 2011
2:46 pm
Dang, will summer colds and being homesick reported next.
DIT
August 3rd, 2011
2:48 pm
Hey Pete, I’ll take some of that action. If you feel that confident I’ll bet ya even. BOISE is nothing. Proven every time they go up against the SEC. UGA is in the middle of the SEC as a team. UGA will win by 14-17. You better thank the Lord that you were not playing a strong SEC west team. It would be over with at half time for Boise.
Pete
August 3rd, 2011
2:50 pm
DIT…………… You mean like Alabama??? who got ownt by Utah?? The same Utah team Boise has destroyed since 1987?
LOL, yeah keep hoping……… If UGA stays within 3-4 td’s it’ll be a miracle.
GeoffDawg
August 3rd, 2011
2:50 pm
I think you’re right Dawg Tell. Lynch to LT could potentially be a great move. He’s not seeing the field much at TE and as we learn year after year, you can’t possibly have enough able bodies on the O-line. I wonder if he’s open to it?
JB
August 3rd, 2011
2:51 pm
Pete………Boise won’t be destroying anyone in the SEC. They feast on borderline High school teams.
They play the 81st easiest schedule according to rivals, most teams they play ranked over 80 in rivals rankings. Say what you will about the Dawgs, they will put 22 Stud players on the field against those guys. We’re not North Nevada State. They better bring an extra chin strap.
savannahdog
August 3rd, 2011
2:52 pm
old dog now that’s just funny
JB
August 3rd, 2011
2:53 pm
Can either one of these kickers block?
here we go....same story...different year...
August 3rd, 2011
2:54 pm
another lineman down.
Mark Richt is the only football coach I know who thinks stocking the offensive line isn’t important.
Pete
August 3rd, 2011
2:55 pm
JB…. or smurf using different names all the time……..
uga can’t even beat a CUSA team or a crap hole Colorado team. All a sudden you think you can compete with one of the best teams in the country?? You tools are all delusional.
Had all the same “talent” as last year and got embarrassed by UCF? It’s embarrassing for your team fans like you even talk like you do. You should be embarrassed, I’m even embarrassed for you that’s how bad it is.
Keep dreaming all pre-season……….. it’s all you dawg fans have… pre-season, then after the first game you can look forward to next year’s pre-season. hehe LOL!
JB
August 3rd, 2011
2:56 pm
He’s NOT DOWN. He’s got the sniffel’s. He will back at practice by mid August. Geez.
JB
August 3rd, 2011
2:57 pm
Pete, you’re clueless.See you here after the game.
Dawgs Tell
August 3rd, 2011
2:58 pm
@GeoffDawg- I have no idea.However,the coaches better start looking at all alternatives for the O/L.All it takes is one of the starting Five to go down and we are in deep you know what.
JB
August 3rd, 2011
2:59 pm
Or Paul Johnson’s a$$………….you’ll get it from that also.
Gay Dawg
August 3rd, 2011
2:59 pm
I have had mono and it was not cool. Get well Long. We need the big boys in force!
Destin Dawg
August 3rd, 2011
3:01 pm
move Mike Thornton ( N.T. ) over to OL.. guard ??.. he’s a big boy !! Go Dawgs !!!
JB
August 3rd, 2011
3:01 pm
Dawgs Tell……….. There are 7 or 8 other linemen on this team. Yes, green as a frog, but hell, Tennessee played 5 true freshman last year with NO back ups and became bowl Eligible….and should of beat LSU at LSU. We’ll be fine.
Tobias Funke
August 3rd, 2011
3:01 pm
Put your money where your mouth is “Pete.” Dawgs win big. 41-17
GeoffDawg
August 3rd, 2011
3:02 pm
Pete, last I checked, the only historical data to base a Georgia vs. BSU outcome on was largely not in your favor. We have high schools in this state with more DI talent than the Broncos. You wouldn’t even qualify for a real home and home series.
Beast from the East
August 3rd, 2011
3:03 pm
Here’s a little story on Muschamp’s career at UGA for those interested.
http://www.gatorsports.com/article/20110803/ARTICLES/110809897?p=1&tc=pg
Nothing Could Be Finer
August 3rd, 2011
3:06 pm
Yea, Mono is a lot more than just sniffles.
JB
August 3rd, 2011
3:07 pm
Seriously, Boise is winning all those games playing NO one. Their strength of Schedule is laughable. Look it up yourselves. That’s why Peterson won’t entertain offers to coach big boy football. He has 10-11 wins built in a year. Yea, they have a decent team, but even in the ACC, they go 7-5, 8-4 tops with that team.
Dbalcer
August 3rd, 2011
3:09 pm
Mono is a big deal. If the spleen is enlarged he could be out for a while. Also they want to make sure no one else gets it because it is very contagious. My daughter got it last year and it took over six months before she felt normal. Any virus that went around she got and was very six. I hope he gets well quickly.
JB
August 3rd, 2011
3:09 pm
Beast, he’s known in Georgia now as …” Will Who?”
Birrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrd Man
August 3rd, 2011
3:10 pm
I swear, I hate looking at the paper each morning, and especially hate coming to ajc.com as often as I do, because there’s usually bad news about my beloved Dawgs.
JB
August 3rd, 2011
3:12 pm
Better than looking at the Obama News….LOL
DawginLex
August 3rd, 2011
3:12 pm
I think we underestimate boise to our own peril.
This will not be a blowout either way
Boise has Moore back and a DL that is fierce at rushing the passer.
I want to see how they play since they have lost both corrdinators to other schools. I also want to see who steps up for Young and Pettus to make big plays at the end of games.
They beat VT with under 2 minutes left. VT then lost to James Madison. Then won the ACC and got obliterated by stanford in the bowl. Boise beat Utah who got manhandled by Notre Dame and lost to Nevada.
This is a home game for UGA.
I have said UGA will win and I’m not changing my prediction. 4-5 points
Dawgy Style
August 3rd, 2011
3:13 pm
Boise opened with a win over Virginia Tech last year.
JB
August 3rd, 2011
3:14 pm
It won’t be that close Lex. I’m thinking they get a steady dose of Samuels and Crowell and passes in the flats to Orson Charles. I’m saying we score close to every possession……………………………………Damn, where’s that medicine….LOL…….We will win and make all Dawgs proud and the SEC.
Beast from the East
August 3rd, 2011
3:16 pm
JB,
Still don’t get the UGA fans that hate Muschamp. Did they also hate Pat Dye? Why do they admire Dooley, who ws from Auburn? What about Richt, who was from the “U” and then coached at FSU? Makes no sense. In coaching, you gotta take the opportunities that are presented to you. He would have been a fool to turn down one of the top 5 jobs in the country because they’re a rival of his alma mater.
James T. Kirk
August 3rd, 2011
3:17 pm
State University of Boise – 67 Pansy Mutts – 3
Beast from the East
August 3rd, 2011
3:17 pm
JB,
I goota go with Lex on the BSU game. Gonna be a tough game, but I’ll be pulling for Dawgs.
JB
August 3rd, 2011
3:20 pm
Beast…. We don’t hate him. Just kidding on here. Richt is right….He’ll always have some Dawg in Him…………And you know and I know in the business he’s in, there’s a chance he won’t be at Florida long. The demands there, as on most SEC campuses are brutal. Good luck this year. except the last weekend in Oct.
honest_abe
August 3rd, 2011
3:25 pm
amen brother jb. amen.
thom
August 3rd, 2011
3:28 pm
Well just dang! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3MHtftW3r4
Eassyy
August 3rd, 2011
3:29 pm
No wonder so many Gators blog on the AJC. The Gainesville Sun isn’t exactly a great publication…I think I understand Beast
'94 UGA Alumni
August 3rd, 2011
3:32 pm
I agree Dawg Tell
Beast from the East
August 3rd, 2011
3:34 pm
Eassyy,
The Gainesville Sun is like a school paper compared to the AJC. Gainesville is just a little bit smaller than Metro Atlanta…..just a little. LOL!
Simple Jack
August 3rd, 2011
3:40 pm
The d-d-dawgs m-m-make my peepee tingle.
ARdawg
August 3rd, 2011
3:43 pm
DawginLex
I say at minimum, Dawgs win by a TD although I expect two. Fairly thrilling in the 1st half and not even close in the 2nd. Boise runs out of horses “so to speak”
Mad Dog One
August 3rd, 2011
3:46 pm
@ beast I thought you were from the SEC? If you are not a Dawg we hate you as do all real fans of a SEC team!!!!!!!!
JB
August 3rd, 2011
3:47 pm
Beast…………..I always like to log on and read Dooley out of the Sun. Is he still There?
Beast from the East
August 3rd, 2011
3:49 pm
Mad Dog One,
Gator through and through! Hate me all you want, but it won’t change a scoreboard!!!!
DawginLex
August 3rd, 2011
3:49 pm
Y’all be nice to Beast
After we end up with a better record than florida, Beast is going to change his blog name
BeastFromTheEastEatenByDawg
Beast from the East
August 3rd, 2011
3:50 pm
JB,
Yeah, he’s still there. He just got back from vacation recently. He’s got a radio show now. Had Jeff Schultz on it recently.
Say What??
August 3rd, 2011
3:52 pm
Beast, I had no problem with Muschamp leaving Texas to coach the Gators. God bless him! To go from a defensive coordinator at Texas to the head coach of arguably the most prolific college football dynasty in the last 15 years is huge! My problem stems from his comments once he took the job. Now I know that he has to play to his new fan base – I get that. And I am sure that there are more than a few die-hard gator fans that went bonkers thinking that a former Bulldog would be coaching their team and they needed to be reassured where his heart is. But I recall him referring to his time at Georgia as “temporary insanity” and saying that the only folks playing on Saturday were Florida and everyone else. What about HIS team??? Seems to me that with comments like that, he totally turned his back on his former team in order to placate his new team and fans.
I think he is going to do a great job there, I am glad to see a former Dog move up in the college coaching world, and his hire didn’t make it any easier for us in Jacksonville. But I have to admit that when I read those comments, I was completely taken back by what seemed agressive shots at his former team. I don’t recall similar shots being taken by the other coaches you mentioned in your post (Mark Richt, Pat Dye, Vince Dooley). I just thought that for all the paise that he got for his coaching prowess, he kind of showed that he would do anything he needed to do, regardless of what it meant to anyone else… Just my opinion….
Okay… Cue the “Say What?? is a pansey” comments in three… two… one…