Despite his marvelous mullet, offensive guard Tate Ratledge has somewhat flown under the radar when discussing Georgia’s offensive line this offseason.
Ratledge returns for Georgia after starting 14 of 15 games for the Bulldogs’ lost season. While he didn’t earn All-SEC earns for Georgia, it was a largely positive season for Ratledge. He only missed the Kentucky game due to injury, which was far from the case in 2021 when he broke his foot on the opening drive of the season.
He’ll return as a starter this season and unlike this time last year, he doesn’t have to focus on rehab or strengthening his foot. He can instead turn his attention to improving and becoming a bigger presence on the offensive line.
“I think one thing we figured out is that we have a good offensive line room and we’re deep,” Ratledge said this spring.
Ratledge is a key reason for both that talent and depth. He’s entering his fourth year in the program and is clearly a veteran on the offensive line.
Ratledge played right guard for Georgia last season and will do so again for the Bulldogs again this fall. At this point, we know what Ratledge brings to the table for Georgia.
He may not have as much national hype as Sedrick Van Pran, the best center in the country, or the upside of Amarius Mims — who seems to be the next star offensive tackle to come off the Georgia assembly line — but you could do a lot worse than having someone of Ratledge’s ability in the middle of your offensive line.
Ratledge and left guard Xavier Truss were both first-year starters in 2022. Last season’s offensive line was defined by the strength of its tackles. Broderick Jones and Warren McClendon are both now in the NFL.
In 2023, it will be the interior of the offensive line that is seen as this group’s strength.
“I think it gives us a leg up,” Truss said. “I think there’s a lot of maturity and a lot of experience on our o-line — especially now having Tate, Sed, myself and all the guys back. Even Mims, you know, is a big help, and this will be a great year for Mims growing. I think if we all just work hard, it’ll work out.”
Ratledge arrived at Georgia with a ton of hype, as he was the No. 38 overall player in the 2020 recruiting cycle. To this point, only injuries have slowed Ratledge down in his career. He went on to become a key starter for Georgia’s high-powered 2022 offense.
Now that he’s firmly a veteran on the team, Ratledge will look to go from being merely a good player to being a great one. Or elite, as Kirby Smart might like to say.
Georgia has not yet won the Joe Moore Award, given out to the nation’s top offensive line. The group was a finalist last year but was not quite able to best Michigan.
If Ratledge and the Georgia offensive line continue to grow as Ratledge’s mullet has over the course of his college career, it will be difficult to deny the group their rightful recognition.
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