[su_spacer size=”20″] The fifth day of fall camp 2015 for the Dawgs meant pads and full contact on Saturday. Yesterday also marked exactly 4 weeks till the Dawgs kickoff against the ULM Warhawks in the first game on September 5th. As we edge closer to the start of the college football season, we are looking at the different position groups for Georgia. So far, we have touched on the quarterbacks, running backs, and the offensive line. Today we size up the tight ends in UGA Fall Preview 2015.
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UGA’s Tight Ends’ Coach John Lilly has five players he can call upon for new Offensive Coordinator Brian Schottenheimer’s offense. The top two Dawgs currently coming off of last year’s season are sophomore Jeb Blazevich and senior Jay Rome.
[su_spacer size=”40″] Both Blazevich and Rome played a lot of downs last year. Going into the 2014 season, junior Jay Rome was the favorite to be the full time starter, but Jeb Blazevich came in as a freshman and quickly established himself starting 10 of the 13 games he played in, finishing the year with 18 catches for 269 yards and 2 touchdowns. Rome has had trouble with getting bit by the injury over his collegiate career at Georgia, but he did end up playing in 12 games last year and made 2 starts, finishing with 10 catches for 59 yards.
[su_spacer size=”40″] Regardless of who wins the start, both Blazevich and Rome expect to see a lot of playing time again in 2015, especially if the talk of Coach Schottenheimer planning on utilizing the tight ends more in his offense than previous Offensive Coordinator Mike Bobo did comes to fruition. Doubly so if we see more two tight end offensive sets as those rumors have been popping up since spring camp. In fact, it would not surprise me if Blazevich and Rome double their production from last year.
[su_spacer size=”40″] Let’s take a look at Georgia’s tight end depth chart going into fall camp 2015:
[su_spacer size=”40″] [su_box title=”Projected Tight End Depth Chart Entering into Fall Camp” box_color=”#050505″ title_color=”#ffffff”] 1. 83 Jeb Blazevich (6-5, 248 lbs, So.)
2. 87 Jay Rome (6-6, 250 lbs, Sr.)
3. 88 Jackson Harris (6-6, 247 lbs, Fr.)
4. 85 Jordan Davis (6-4, 235 lbs, RdSo.)
5. 41 Jared Chapple (6-4, 232 lbs, Jr.)
[/su_box] [su_spacer size=”40″] You will notice that Jonathan Ledbetter’s brother, number 88 Joseph Ledbetter, is no longer listed at tight end. That is because he has been moved over to defense at defensive end.
[su_spacer size=”40″] I expect Blazevich and Rome to battle it out for the top two spots on the tight end depth chart. Behind them, there is redshirt sophomore Jordan Davis, true freshman Jackson Harris, and walk-on junior Jarred Chapple. I expect Harris to battle it out with Davis for the third spot on the depth chart. Harris has good size and is strong, but Davis has some experience over Harris as he appeared in six games last year and three receptions for 66 yards.
[su_spacer size=”40″] Last year, the UGA coaching staff utilized full back Quayvon Hicks in a hybrid role, almost like an H-back, at TE and FB. It will be interesting to see if he is utilized in the same way by OC Brian Schottenheimer or if he will just be left to concentrate on playing at the FB spot. Hicks certainly has the size and athleticism to play TE.
[su_spacer size=”40″] Up next, we will finish up the offense by looking at the wide receivers before heading onto the defensive side of the ball.
[su_spacer size=”40″] [su_box title=” UGA Fall Preview 2015 Series” box_color=”#050505″ title_color=”#ffffff”] [su_spacer size=”20″] QUARTERBACKS
[su_spacer size=”20″] RUNNING BACKS
[su_spacer size=”20″] OFFENSIVE LINE
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