WR Tavarres King: Bulldogs in great shape, eager start preseason camp
Georgia flanker Tavarres King gets behind the Michigan State defense for 80 of his 205 yards in his final game of last season. He's eager for more of the same. (AP photo)
ATHENS — For Tavarres King, the football season can’t get here fast enough. The last time we saw him in game action, he was running up and down the field at Raymond James Stadium to the tune of 205 receiving yards with an 80-yard touchdown. However, his personal highlights got lost in what ended up being a gut-wrenching loss to Michigan State in triple overtime.
“I’ve been extremely eager all off-season to get back out there to continue where I left off,” said King, a senior flanker for the Bulldogs. “It was an extremely high note personally, but not as a team. So we’ve been getting after it this summer. Guys have been participating in drills and workouts. We’ve had pretty much perfect attendance all summer. Everybody’s eager to get back on the field and tackle this thing.”
King and his teammates don’t have much longer to wait. Players report for preseason camp on Tuesday.
Of course, none of them really ever left. According to King, the Bulldogs had 100 percent participation during summer workouts from returning lettermen and incoming freshman. Seventeen of Georgia’s 19 signees enrolled in classes in June and have worked out with the team all summer. Two others — defensive lineman John Atkins of Thomson and defensive end Leonard Floyd of Eastman — were unable to attain freshman eligibility and will attend prep school.
But about 100 players — 75 on scholarship and another 25 walkons — have remained in Athens to attend classes and participate in the Bulldogs’ revamped offseason strength and conditioning program. Program director Joe Tereshinski added added longtime Penn State strength and conditioning director John Thomas and speed and agility specialist Sherman Armstrong to his staff after last season.
“It’s very different, and different is good. It’s definitely good,” King said. “We’ve adapted to the changes that have been made and everybody’s on board with what those guys bring to the table.”
King said he and the other skill players have been drawn particularly to Armstrong. The former track All-American at Illinois has been in Tampa training players for the NFL combine since 2008.
“Sherman’s a guy who knows how to run and runs well himself,” King said. “He’s a guy that us skill guys, we want to imitate his moves and learn everything we can from him because it makes us better.”
The Bulldogs’ summer routine included running and lifting on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and doing boxing and agility drills on Tuesday and Thursday mornings with team runs on those afternoons. They also run pass skeleton and position drills at least two days a week.
“Tuesdays and Thursday are long days because you wake up and do that boxing, then you go to class, eat lunch, come back over here, do speed and agility, then pass skel or position drills,” King said. “So those are long days, but they’re definitely beneficial.”
After first official team meeting of the season on Tuesday, the Bulldogs will undergo medical and physical testing on Wednesday and have the first practice Thursday on the Woodruff Practice Fields.
King said he is in the best shape of his life. He said he can speak for the entire team when he says there is no dread and nothing but anticipation for the opening of Georgia’s preseason football program.
“We’re ready to go,” King said. “This is what we train for. We train to play football. So we’re ready to get out there and compete with each other and make each other better.”
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210 comments Add your comment
kerryb
July 27th, 2012
2:01 pm
Jay Rome is going to be very good. They said he could have started for several teams last year. The only reason he was red shirted was because we were so deep at the position.
AltamahaDawg
July 27th, 2012
2:02 pm
I sure how our staff has been watching ESPN.
7576DAWG
July 27th, 2012
2:07 pm
McGarity has stated that he expects Georgia to improve every year. If the Defense is as good as we all hope, they will be able to play for 60 minutes and will prove last year was not a fluke and that we indeed have a great Defensive Coordinator in Grantham. This will put tremendous pressure on Bobo to prove he is worthy to stay Offensive Coordinator.
Grantham has been at Georgia 2 full years now with his recruits, can’t count the first year because he changed from 4-3 to 3-4. But when Georgia is mentioned by anybody all they talk about is the Defense. A pretty good complement for Grantham and the potential as a top 5 Defense in the country.
Bobo has been Offensive Coordinator for 5 -6 years now and very few complements from anybody. All you hear is underachieving with the talent he has on Offense. This year will be Bobo’s put up or shut up year.MCGARITY IS WATCHING.
SavDawg
July 27th, 2012
2:07 pm
Kerryb I agree who is Jim and why are all his comments negative? I wish he would tell us why he feels this way is he a dawg fan or what?
dmr
July 27th, 2012
2:11 pm
I like that this upcoming Georgia team seems to have chemistry and that to a great extent, there are really no big name players. I mean, don’t get me wrong; J.J., Murray, Mitchell, and a few others may have some cache, but I think that this group can really draw together on the whole TEAM concept.
I think this can be a very good group. I think they can overcome some of their inexperience and depth issues. I think the coaching staff is going to have to play to their strength and make some adjustments in the early going. Overall, I like what I am seeing today.
LeftCoastDawg
July 27th, 2012
2:12 pm
Jim sounds like the brother of GTBob
Gater Hater
July 27th, 2012
2:13 pm
AM is the same size as Zeier and Shock, was it an issue with them. No. Geez, Look at the boy’s numbers. You dont have to be the cookie cutter size for a QB to be good or great.
dawgfan
July 27th, 2012
2:15 pm
I just don’t see us having the depth to do much more than we did last year. We have an unproven O-line. We haven’t had a good O-line in years. Love the defense, but they wore down at times last year and ran out of gas. Whose going to run the ball, tin man Richard Samuel? We don’t have a big time running back and the Richt/Bobo brain trust doesn’t let freshmen running backs do anything of substance. We’ll have gobs of young talent wasting away on the sidelines because they haven’t learned how to pick up the blitz in the triple X 24 takeoff 48(b) double HH package.
Anyway, I predict a season very similar to last year. We’ll be a solid top 15 to top 20 caliber team because of the defense and some playmakers on offense, but a lack of depth, sub par O-line play and Mike Bobo’s flag football play calling will hold us back from achieving any more than that.
Thanks.
NC Dawg
July 27th, 2012
2:18 pm
Conley could be the man. Very impressed with his freshman season.
Jim
July 27th, 2012
2:18 pm
Come on guys, our special teams were awful last year, and we lost our kicer, punter, and kick returner. We got taken to the cleaners on special teams against South Carolina, LSU, and Michigan State. Mizzou will be no different, Tenn has a full time Special Teams coach ex-NFl’er, so does SC, so does GTech, teams will beat us there again, we’ll lose 2 games because of special teams, like we do every year.
Gater Hater
July 27th, 2012
2:20 pm
I think the big nastys are going go be just fine, and JT should be able to contribute like several freshmen did in ‘02. KM gives us what we were looking for from IC. It’s gonna be good….
He will
July 27th, 2012
2:29 pm
Many must not know Mitchell starred in high school at the cb position and a returner, then was switched his senior to offense and starred there but was being recruited at cb. He’s going to just great both ends. Mark it. I know him and he will shine.
Old Dawg
July 27th, 2012
2:34 pm
Captain Obvious: Georgia Southern still uses the flex bone formation. They do have a wrinkle Tech doesn’t use: the QB often lines up in a shotgun formation, but the rest is the same as Tech’s.
It’s good to head the Dawgs have had great attendance for summer workouts. I don’t think enough folks give them credit for all the work they put in during the summer.
Go Dawgs!!!!!!!!!!!!
VINCE
July 27th, 2012
2:38 pm
Great place to go if you’re a walk-on. Mishandled roster always leaves many ships available,
He will
July 27th, 2012
2:40 pm
Only thing will keep Georgia players from a good individual season and team…is the stuff they do off the field or injuries.
Joey
July 27th, 2012
2:43 pm
“I guarantee Mizzou will roll coverage to Tavarres early, as he’ll be the only proven deep threat on the field,…”
******************************************
Hey, Jim, I guarantee Marlon Brown is a “proven deep threat on the field,” when he is on the field.
North Georgia Dawg
July 27th, 2012
2:46 pm
We’ve got other receivers besides Mitchell and King, in case people forgot. We’ve got Chris Conley and Michael Bennett and Justin Scott-Wesley. It’s not like King will be the only decent receiver if Mitchell is playing mainly on defense.
North Georgia Dawg
July 27th, 2012
2:48 pm
Oh yeah, I forgot about Marlon Brown. Not a star, but he had two long touchdowns when Mitchell was hurt and has good size and is a good blocker as well.
DawginLex
July 27th, 2012
2:53 pm
Time to play football folks and stop talking
The OL is going to surprise folks because they are athletic and not as big as last year’s group.
Still gonna be 315, 310, 300, 310 and 315 with backups of 305, 310, 305, 295 and 300.
We have 7 right now ready to play SEC football and 3 others trying to get there. If Beard, Theus and Ward can learn techniques, we have 10 to rotate.
The nose guards are both up to 365 each. NO ONE is going to run the ball on UGA.
We have more running backs ready to play as compared to 2011.
Mizzou will not be a cakewalk and they will be amped up.
I say we still get it done but it will be crazy there
DirtyDawg
July 27th, 2012
2:54 pm
Ain’t it great to see us pontificate about what ‘we know’ will happen this year…and we know it because we’re so damned smart about football. Why it’s a wonder that we all aren’t on somebody’s payroll cause we know so much…go figure.
Me, I’m just looking, optimistically, forward to the season and choose to believe that we are as good as some people believe we can be. And why the hell not? I mean what good does it do the ‘Jims’ of this blog to be so damned pessimistic? Are you/they angling for the ‘I told you so’ award? Nobody around here’s giving those out so far as I know, so why? Are they simply trolls whose only purpose is to yank on Bulldog leashes just to hear/see us growl? Regardless, I’m looking forward to a successful season where Steve Superior gets his butt whipped enough, including by us, that he’ll decide that maybe its time to get back on down to Florida…where we meet a ‘Brother’ Saban-coached Alabama in the SEC game and thrash his a$$ severely…and where Jim here decides its time to move on, or at least change his ‘handle’ (or whatever they call it…then again he probably does that several times a day already).
Yeah I’m looking forward to a goodun. If for no other reason than to get the naysayers to STFU.
ARdawg
July 27th, 2012
3:04 pm
Altamaha
From what I’ve read, Mizzou’s major threat is J Franklin’s arm and legs. He’s close to Tebowesque but not as good. He also doesn’t have the supporting cast level talent that Tebow did. A decent OL, a decent TB and mediocre receivers. If the Dawgs defense remains stout, Mizzous offense shouldn’t be a problem. Mizzou’s defense is certainly the expected weak spot on the team of a team that wasn’t impressive last year and they lost 7 starters
DawginLex
July 27th, 2012
3:05 pm
Richt at Cobb Galleria:
The guys that we signed at kicker, like Marshall Morgan, are very powerful and can certainly kick it into the end zone on a pretty consistent basis. One of the things we like about him most was not only was he accurate, but the ball gets pretty high.
******************
I’m not worried about this kid. Plus we kick from 5 yards closer in 2012
Dawgfan2012
July 27th, 2012
3:06 pm
I like what I am hearing……GO DAWGS!!!!!!!
Jman
July 27th, 2012
3:07 pm
I need help. What does GATA mean?
Cdpridg
July 27th, 2012
3:07 pm
Good job Chip! We love our Dawgs!!
Joey
July 27th, 2012
3:07 pm
DawginLex, that’s good news on the O-line. Are we too thin somewhere else, with the losses in scholarship players?
North Georgia Dawg, and Brown is fast, and big (4.5/40, 6′5″, 220). I think he will be a big deal this season, with Orsen gone.
Cdpridg
July 27th, 2012
3:08 pm
Oh and GATA!!
ARdawg
July 27th, 2012
3:08 pm
I feel pretty good about the Dawgs defense. Only getting stronger as the year progresses. The offense to me is a big question mark. I didn’t have high hopes for the OL before, now I question the running game that wasn’t much to celebrate last year. True, it is shored up with some fine young talent yet, unproven. I see Malcome as the #1 which may or may not be a good thing
Hollywould
July 27th, 2012
3:12 pm
” No one will run on uga this year” Aren’t those the same guys that played against LSU?
Don Abernethy
July 27th, 2012
3:14 pm
Team unity is going to be the key to a successful season . I hope there are enough good leaders to keep trouble makers in line. No more jail birds please!!!
Joey
July 27th, 2012
3:14 pm
Maybe our lack of experience in the place-kicking game will force Richt to go for more 1st downs and TDs. Richt has been a kickers dream, breaking records for FGs – I, for one would like to see him more Spurrier-like in regards to FGs.
Let a FG be an absolute last resort.
Don Abernethy
July 27th, 2012
3:15 pm
My comments were not a duplicate. This is censorship.
Spanky
July 27th, 2012
3:17 pm
Jman, GATA= Get After Their A$$es
Joey
July 27th, 2012
3:18 pm
Hollywould, LSU had a whopping 237 offensive yards in the Dome. Blame Murray for the turnovers for points, and the special teams for the runbacks.
Don’t blame Grantham’s 2nd year D.
AltamahaDawg
July 27th, 2012
3:20 pm
We lead the lead in 1st down.
AltamahaDawg
July 27th, 2012
3:21 pm
league
Dawg-Gawn
July 27th, 2012
3:24 pm
Not to open up a can of worms, but how could there be 100% participation during the summer, if Aaron Murray was allowed to attend the Manning Camp then spending two weeks on the west coast being a counselor at the Nike Opening (Oregon) and then (California) at the Elite 11 Camp?
Just asking?
7576DAWG
July 27th, 2012
3:24 pm
Mitchell will be used on Defense but all you have to do is line him up on the line and Missouri will automatically have to double team him. He doesn’t even have to go anywhere and get worn out since he will be primarily playing Defense but just his presence will demand respect from Missouri. Let him rest some but using him as a decoy to take up two Missouri Defensive backs will open up the other receivers.
Mark (another one)
July 27th, 2012
3:25 pm
This is Friend’s second year coaching the o-line, so I expect more consistency. The talent is there. Also, boxing and MMA training is great for offensive linemen learning to punch out on defenders.
College football rosters are in a constant state of turnover so I don’t rely much on last year’s team stats. Different players, opponents, etc. make it difficult to generalize. I do believe you can look at individual players, but even there a lot goes to how future opponents adjust and how the player’s skills continue to develop during the off season.
UGA strugged to run last year. I don’t expect that this year. Malcome, Samuel, Marshall, and Gurley are all quality backs that were highly recruited. I also expect Marlon Brown is also a big, fast receiver who started delivering on his potential last year. Last year’s team had little balance on offense and I expect that balance to return this year.
The real concern during this off season has been the losses and suspensions in the defensive backfield. Moving Mitchell will help but that is the major vulnerability of the Dawgs. Especially early in the season. Richt has said Mitchell fill focus on defense, especially early in the season with the heat, and they will work him in on offense as the season progresses and the temperatures drop.
AltamahaDawg
July 27th, 2012
3:26 pm
Did they move the KO back to the 35? I know they are talking about (or did pass) pulling it out to the 25 on a touchback.
7576DAWG
July 27th, 2012
3:31 pm
Joey
I agree the biggest bright spot we had was Defense last year.
Even with all of Murray’s turnovers and disastrous special team play we would have won two of the 4 losses if our SENIOR field goal kicker hadn’t missed half of his attempts. I will never understand the criticism of any of the Defense and Grantham.
ARdawg
July 27th, 2012
3:31 pm
Mark (another)
Good analysis and I agree with it mostly. However, last year performance is really the only yardstick available for comparisons IMHO. It’s nothing more than a place to start. Remaining players usually only improve with experience and time. How much is the hardest to gauge
ARdawg
July 27th, 2012
3:41 pm
7576DAWG
In Murray’s defense, he was running for his life more than half the time last year. I’m no apologist for Murray, he had a few bone head plays but the OL last year was atrocious
DIT
July 27th, 2012
3:45 pm
UGA needs to run for at least 150 yards. If they can do that we should win. I do expect us to beat Mizzou, however, I feel it will be a close game.
O-line has talent, but just inexperienced. LEX, I hope you are correct.
Ace
July 27th, 2012
3:48 pm
Talt to him at the end of the year and he can tell where they went wrong.
Snoop Dawg
July 27th, 2012
3:53 pm
Talk is cheap. We hear too mucho fit prior to each season.
Snoop is looking for less talk mad more action. Some sign that they can walk the talk.
Talk is cheap…
i'm a big georgia fan
July 27th, 2012
3:54 pm
but you people need to go back and read the first 2 pages of comments on this blog. and you should then realize why so many trolls are attracted to uga sites. it is because dawg fans are generally stupid.
i'm a big georgia fan
July 27th, 2012
3:57 pm
we are great. no one will beat us. murray is as good as luck (my favorite). how about beating a ranked opponent and winning a bowl game. right now georgia is ucla without the nice weather and pretty girls.
LogicalUS
July 27th, 2012
3:59 pm
“Jim, don’t believe all of this hype about Missouri. They don’t match up with us on offense or defense. My prediction is that we will win that game by 2 or 3 TD’s.”
Bhahahahahah, UGA the perennial underperformers in early season road games is going to show up in Columbia, Missouri and roll Missouri by 3 TDs?
Good lord, did happy hour start three hours ago? Ask Colorado if Mizzou should be worried about this occurring at all. In all likelihood, UGA will be lucky to score 3 times much less win by 3 TDs.
In reality, reading unbiased sources about Missouri, this is shaping up to be an embarrassing trip to the Midwest. Missouri apparently is loaded at WR with a stable of quality personnel to match up against UGA depleted and suspended secondary. Without a dependable running game on which Bobo can turn to protect his overmatched CB, look for a shootout which forces Murray to again make some ugly plays as the pressure builds which results in a loss to Missouri.
Hollywould
July 27th, 2012
4:05 pm
Joey,all 237 were in the 2nd half.