Georgia's wide receivers identified as key area of focus in spring game

Year after year replacing NFL talent has been a task faced by Georgia, as the Bulldogs will have to rely on some fresh faces ahead of the 2024 season in their pursuit back into the national championship picture.

Georgia’s ‘G-Day’ spring football game kicks off this weekend in Athens as outsiders will get their first look at this year’s Bulldogs team. And ahead of the showcase, On3’s Andy Staples told Paul Finebaum which position group he’ll particularly have his eyes on as Georgia’s offense and defense square off to conclude spring ball.

“Just seeing what the receivers look like,” Staples said. “I mean, they’ve got to replace Ladd McConkey, Brock Bowers, obviously, tight end but such a big part of the passing game.”

Bowers and McConkey are definitely big losses for the Bulldogs in the passing game, but with both missing significant time last season, Georgia’s pass catchers did get some experience in taking on a larger workload on various occasions last season.

UGA returns three of their top six pass catchers from last season along with several promising additions out of the transfer portal. As many are curious to see who will be Georgia’s top guys this season after three straight years of Bowers leading the team in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving scores.

“Does Arian Smith, who’s been there for a long, long time, does he jump into a much bigger role? Dominic Lovett, who we saw come in last year, is he now the guy? Rara Thomas who came in last year, does he step into a bigger position?” Staples asked.

The Georgia wide receiver room is rich with talent from Lovett, who was the team’s second-leading wideout last year, to Smith who’s a speedster primed for a breakout year. Also adding 6-foot-5 wideout Colbie Young from Miami and former Stanford tight end Ben Yurosek to their roster, some physically imposing players that make the Bulldogs even more dynamic in the passing game.

“That’s the thing. They’ve always had talent. It’s all just a matter of how they put the pieces together,” Staples said. “And I have no doubt that Georgia’s got a bunch of good players and we’re going to probably say some wows about some freshmen that we haven’t seen yet, but that’s really it. Who’s Carson Beck throwing to now that the two favorite people he had to throw to last year are gone?”

Beck had a strong first season under center for Georgia, currently tied as a frontrunner to take home the Heisman Trophy this upcoming season. And Saturday’s spring game may tell us all who could end up being his top targets this year in a highly anticipated season for the Dawgs.