BUCK BELUE
ATLANTA, Ga – The beatdown loss to LSU in the SEC Championship Game has Kirby Smart, Jake Fromm, James Coley and Dan Lanning catching some major heat. Georgia’s hopes and dreams for a return to the College Football Playoffs came crashing down, with this embarrassing defeat.

No excuses were acceptable. The thin wide receiver position group failed to show up. Early deep shots fell incomplete. The much-publicized running game got stuffed, with Swift limited to only 5 touches because of his shoulder injury. The defense got carved up, whether they rushed 3, 4, 5 or 6 defenders.

It got ugly. Fans left early. It was a huge letdown.

So, what does Coach Smart do now? Change the offensive scheme?  If you are expecting to see that, you will be disappointed. In order to run the Spread/Air Raid scheme, you need a QB that can run and that’s not Jake Fromm. Don’t believe that’s Carson Beck either. And adding Mike Bobo as the new OC wasn’t going to take Georgia’s offense to a new direction scheme-wise. He is a Pro-Style believer too.

The Bulldogs are stuck in the current scheme and better find a way to develop some big-play wide receivers quickly. George Pickens and Dominique Blaylock appear to be playmakers, but the other young guys have been a disappointment. It’s difficult to imagine freshman signees stepping in and delivering big in 2020, but that’s what Jake Fromm needs to get back on track.

Jake Fromm is a pocket passer, who needs reliable, playmaking receivers in order to thrive. Jake had those guys in his first two seasons but did not in 2019. Coach Smart needs to get that fixed.

Georgia will most likely lose around 15 impact players moving into next season. The talent is in place to replace those players who are departing. Expect players like Nakobe Dean, Travon Walker, Nolan Smith, Tyrique Stevenson, Zamir White, George Pickens, Cade Mays & Jamaree Salyer to step up big.

The wide receiver group is the rub. If that position group stays at the same level, expect to see more big-game trouble.