Who puts a punter on the cover of a magazine? Not us… oh, wait.
After a season-ending injury to punter Brett Thorson in the SEC Championship Game, Thorson decided to return. You may not look to a punter for leadership, but there is not a better player to look to for success. Of course, his punting prowess comes to mind, but his tenacity, commitment to the “G,” leadership and, yes, even his sense of humor will be key to Georgia’s success in the 2025 campaign.
There is something more to prove for Thorson. Remember that hit he laid against Tennessee last season? Well, think back to his stats before. Thorson hadn’t allowed a punt return in two years at Georgia. I mean, he hit one of the greatest punts in football history, blasting a 75-yard “coffin corner” punt against good ole’ Rocky Top in 2022 that fell inside the one-yard line. Then, when those same Volunteers returned a punt for a gashing 26 yards, and what would be more, he delivered a touchdown-saving tackle. Talk about tenacity! There’s no better example of the word. He cares.
After three of the best years in Georgia history from a punter, Thorson forwent the NFL Draft and decided to come back. Jake Camarda was the Bulldogs’ punter prior to Thorson and was selected in the fourth round. Who could replace him? Look no further than the “Thunder from Down Under,” an Australian punter who never played American football. With no connections to football, much less the University of Georgia, Thorson went on a whim and has become one of those Damn Good Dawgs.
Leadership. What a quality, right? Just as I asked why put the punter as the face of a magazine entering a season, I ask you… again… can a punter be a leader? Well, I’ve given you the qualities already. A sense of tenacity, whether it is a game-changing flip of the field with a punt or a game-saving tackle preventing a touchdown, he exhibits it.
A wise man in philosophy, Sir Thomas Carlyle, once said, “How much lies in Laughter: the cipher-key, wherewith we decipher the whole man!” A sense of humor can be the most important characteristic of a man tasked with being a cornerstone of a national championship contending team. Yes, punting is a weapon, but laughter, more so. Thorson has been a source of a smile among this team, and when everything seems so uptight trying to win that coveted trophy, a laugh might not hurt everyone.
A dedication to a team that he may have never heard of prior to stepping on American soil three years ago, that’s undying commitment. A sense of humor that keeps his team lose when the weight of the Red and Black falls heavy on their shoulders, he will make you smile with. Ladies and gentlemen, that’s a leader. That’s a man who is not passive, but a champion in the active state ready to get another title.