ATHENS — Georgia football will be looking for more offensive fireworks this season on the heels of another record-breaking championship season.

Coach Kirby Smart saw to it the Bulldogs applied what he referred to as a “connected assault” during their postseason run.

Georgia put together its most explosive three-game stretch of the Smart Era, and it did it against elite competition scoring 50 on SEC West champ LSU and then 42 and 65 in CFP games against Ohio State and TCU.

It was the same TCU team, it’s worth noting, that did not allow Texas to score an offensive touchdown in an earlier game this season in Austin.

Much of the credit was directed toward former offensive coordinator Todd Monken, but departing QB Stetson Bennett reminded everyone at the team’s CFP Championship Game celebration that it was more about the players.

“It ain’t the Xs and Os,” Bennett said, “it’s the Jimmys and Joes.”

RELATED: Stetson Bennett celebration speech sparks reactions

Georgia had 73 plays of 25 yards or more last season, and first-year offensive coordinator Mike Bobo has been scheming for ways to exceed that total in 2023.

Smart said it would be “impossible” to replace the versatility Kenny McIntosh brought out of the backfield last season, and he noted UGA doesn’t have the same “mass and movement” without Darnell Washington, which could be a detriment to the play-action game.

The Bulldogs, however, have arguably the best offensive line in the nation returning to pave the way for some of the most explosive players in the nation.

Without further ado, five explosive players for Georgia fans to celebrate on the 4th of July:

1. Ladd McConkey

There might not be a better story on the team than McConkey, a once-overlooked and somewhat undersized prospect who has blossomed into a strong program representative in the community, the classroom and on the football field.

McConkey was tops among receivers with 58 catches for 762 yards and averaged more than 12 yards on punt returns provided the necessary spark in a frigid win at Mississippi State with 71 yards and a TD catch against the Bulldogs along with a 70-yard run.

McConkey’s 42 combined receiving first downs and touchdowns ranked second among SEC wide receivers, per PFF.

Not bad for a guy Florida coach Billy Napier didn’t bother to recruit from his own hometown and Jim Chaney canceled a visit on.

2. Brock Bowers

Just call him “The Statue,” because a bronze replica of Bowers will one day be outside of Sanford Stadium as a first-ballot Hall of Fame pick as the most pivotal offensive player of the past two championships.

Bowers was essentially Monken’s Frankenstein, a monster mismatch utilized all over the field in a variety of ways.

“Brock’s background is more get the ball in his hands, H-Back, full-back, run after the catch,” noted Monken, who kept defenses off balance by moving Bowers all over the field, often creating confusion with motion.

Bowers led Georgia — and all tight ends across the nation — in receiving yards (942), yards after the catch (479) and receiving yards after contact (274) last season.

3. Dominic Lovett

Smart is tough on receivers, expecting toughness and selflessness at a position that does not always attract players with such attributes.

In the tough-minded Lovett — who once famously described at attitude toward football that “you gotta go out there, drop your nuts and play,” — Smart found a transfer out of the portal he can relate to.

Georgia needs Lovett to step up into a play-making role that will offset the loss of A.D. Mitchell, and all the better if he can do so out of the slot.

Lovett has the speed, quickness and hands to go along with his toughness, and had the fourth-best grade among the Power 5 receivers last year (83.7) per PFF.

“Dom’s been able to make some plays down the field,” Smart said this spring. “He’s been matched up on Tykee and Bull (Javon Bullard) and Joenel a lot, and he’s made some plays on those guys.”

RELATED: Dominic Lovett loves Kirby’s toughness

4. Arian Smith

Smith might be the fastest player in college football and could prove to be the most explosive player on the team — if he can stay healthy.

Smith, who ran a 10.18-second 100 meters at an SEC track meet in 2021, has played in just 19 of UGA’s 40 games his first three seasons.

And yet, Georgia might not have its second national title if not for Smith’s pivotal 76-yard touchdown catch that helped sparked the Bulldogs’ rally from 38-24 down in the fourth quarter.

Smith showed some burst in the G-Day Game, too — almost too much for the head coach’s liking.

“I hold my breath every time, I’m worried about injury,” Smart said of Smith’s performance. “He’s really a fast guy. At times, he gets some awkward tackles and it scares you. He had a good spring.

“We have to be smart about our workload and volume of work for him. The more he does, the more he becomes injury-prone. He stretches the field in ways that other guys can’t do.”

5. Kendall Milton

Milton has that rare blend of power, vision and speed that makes him a home run threat each time he touches the football.

If Milton bounces back from the hamstring injury that limited him in the spring, a 1,000-yard season should be in store. Milton led the team with an average carry of 7 yards, going over 100 (113) in the SEC title game with a 51-yard run against LSU.

“He’s really fast when he’s broken out of there,” Smart noted. “It’s almost like he’s gaining steam at the end of the year …”