Todd Monken knew early on in offseason workouts that he had something special in freshman tight end Brock Bowers. While the team was going through stadium runs, Bowers would constantly be one of the faster participants.

Not just for a tight end, but on Georgia’s entire team

“Right away you can tell he only knew one speed,” Monken said.”He’d be 10 yards in front of every other guy. He was working at his own speed to be the best he could be, and that is a rare quality to put yourself out there like he did. So right away you could see this guy is different.”

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That ability doubled with his athleticism helps explain why Bowers was able to lead the team in every receiving category this year. He was named the SEC Freshman of the Year and was pretty clearly one of, if not the, best tight ends in the country.

Bowers clearly has the attention of a talented Michigan defense, as the freshman tight end has been Georgia’s top pass-catching option for much of the season.

“Yeah, Brock is a heck of a player, man. He’s really dynamic,” Michigan defensive coordinator Mike MacDonald said. “The thing that they do with him is he can play -- he really plays every position. He’ll play the Z, the Y, the X, the move guy, the down guy. They’ll give it to him on reverses, screens. It’s pretty impressive. A tribute to their coaching staff for putting him in positions to affect the game.”

Monken compared Bowers to running back James Cook in that aspect, as a player who can be used in a number of ways. The Georgia coaching staff was confident Bowers could be a versatile weapon dating back to his high school days, when he was occasionally employed as a running back.

Monken added though that Bowers has more “range” while praising the progress Bowers quickly made as a route runner. Georgia’s offensive coordinator even went as far as to say it was fun using Bowers in the manner in which he has this season.

The freshman tight end played his best game against an equally talented Alabama defense earlier in December, as he hauled in 10 passes for 139 yards and a touchdown.

Georgia is likely to need a similar effort against a stout Michigan defense, led by edge rushers Aidan Hutchinson and David Ojabo. His speed, a separator in SEC play, will have to show up on Friday.

“Seeing how fast he was, going up and getting the ball, he’s very shifty with the ball in his hand, I pretty much knew that he was going to be dangerous,” wide receiver Kearis Jackson said. “Especially when he gets the rock in his hand. When I seen him the first time, I was like, yeah, he’s going to be one of the top tight ends in the country.”

Friday could be Georgia’s final game of the 2021 season. But Monken feels comfortable knowing that Bowers is only just starting to show what he can do as a tight end at Georgia.

“He works awfully hard at his craft. It’s important to him. He doesn’t say a lot, he just works,” Monken said. “It’s the most amazing thing. Like I spend less time talking to James Cook, Zamir White, Brock Bowers, those guys of the world because they’re trying their rear end off to be the best player they can be for them and for our team.”

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