ATHENS — Sometimes you have to read between the lines to figure out how Georgia head coach Kirby Smart really feels about a position group.
That’s not the case with his offensive line entering this season. As the Bulldogs begin fall camp, Smart is very bullish on this group.
“I think him coming back, just validated to the others that he wanted to do something special,” Smart said of Tate Ratledge. “Both he and Truss made that decision. Their leadership has been the different mindset, at least in the spring, in terms of our identity on offense and what they want in terms of forcing people and being physical. I can see it. It permeated our spring with the physicality that our offensive line played with. They have to continue to do that because they’ll be challenged this year.”
Ratledge is a veteran at guard at this point — should he start against Clemson it will mark the fourth time he’s started the first game of a season — but he’s stepping in for Sedrick Van Pran-Granger as the group’s vocal leader.
Van Pran-Granger and Ratledge arrived in the same recruiting class and the former was one of the best leaders of the Smart era. While Jared Wilson has to fill Van Pran-Granger’s shoes from a positional standpoint, Ratledge knows it’s on him to police the rest of the offensive line.
“I’ve never really had to be that guy, but this year in our locker room, I am going to have to be that guy and kind of get people going,” Ratledge said. “I’m an older guy. People listen to me. Stepping into that role is going to be something big for me during this camp.”
Smart has taken notice of Ratledge’s improvements this offseason. That Ratledge, the most proven player on Georgia’s offensive line, is attacking this fall camp like it is his first only gives Smart further confidence in the direction of this group.
“His maturity has grown,” Smart said. “He’s always been a great practice player. He loves football. He’s become, kind of a centerpiece of that group.”
Four of Georgia’s five starters from the Orange Bowl win over Florida State are back for Georgia this fall. At practice on Thursday, the first team offensive line was Earnest Greene at left tackle, Dylan Fairchild at left guard, Wilson at center, Ratledge at right guard and Truss at right tackle.
That Georgia could turn to Micah Morris and Monroe Freeling off the bench speaks not just to the top-end talent but the depth of the group as well.
For as much as Ratledge is focused on improving as a leader, there are a handful of areas he knows he can get better at when it comes to the field.
“For me physically it was about play style,” Ratledge said. “Working on my hands, I had a bad habit of hands last year. It’s something I really can work on this year. And then there’s the mental aspect. Seeing coverages, seeing things before they happen. That’s something that as a group we’ve tried to learn together and get better at.”
The opener against Clemson will be a big deal for this group. The defensive line is always a strength for the Tigers. And for Ratledge, he’ll face off against his former offensive line coach in Matt Luke.
In the early days of August though, Ratledge isn’t thinking about the opener against Clemson or how the Bulldogs matchup. He’s focused on getting the most out of this fall camp, so Georgia can be ready for a longer season.
“When we’re out there it’s going to be physical, tough practices,” Ratledge said. “Camp’s going to be hard. Always is. I feel like you figure out what your team is during camp.”
