What do you make of the Keelan Russell story going into Tuscaloosa on Saturday night?

Yeah, he's a new figure in this rivalry, in this sport, and naturally, I think there's a, you know, desire from the media to over-hype him and to praise him as the greatest quarterback we've ever seen.

But i- if you're a Georgia fan, it hasn't really mattered who's been on that opposing sideline.

They've always gotten great quarterback play against Georgia.

Bryce Young cut you up.

Jalen Milroe cut you up.

Ty Simpson last year on the road in Athens the first time cut you up.

How important is it for Gunner to outplay Russell on Saturday?

There is such a stratification right now about the games that fans truly care about and the ones that are just another Saturday, and I just don't 100% know what you do about that.

Yeah, this is where I'm actually kinda glad that Vanderbilt has Jared Curtis, because it just makes it a little bit easier to navigate the week in terms of storylines and things to talk about.

But, uh, it feels like we say this all the time, BA, now.

The big games feel bigger than ever, and if you're not a big game, it, it is just hard to get up for.

And so, like, y- you mentioned the Vanderbilt game this week.

I'll, I'll be super curious there, especially where it looks like the weather might not necessarily be great on Saturday.

What kind of impact does that have on things? And then, and this was sort of the thing that started it two years ago when, uh, Georgia played Auburn in Sanford Stadium.

[laughs]

Chauncey Bolins, whomever.

Yeah.

So Nate Frazier is, I think, Georgia's number one running back.

And through-- Like, if you told people through the first two games he's gonna have 10 carries, I think every Georgia fan would be thrilled about that because they know they're gonna need to sort of lean on him between the tackles over the course of the season.

And the nice thing that you've seen from Nate so far is that he has hit more consistently explosive runs.

His first carry of the season was a forty-eight-yard touchdown run, and I think the challenge that Georgia had this year for Nate Frazier was for him to be more explosive.

And if that's able to be the case, that's really gonna open things up for this Georgia offense.

Uh, Craig Dandridge, is he gonna be a thing this year, or is he just taking advantage of playing Western Kentucky?

Uh, where are they on the secondary compared to previous secondaries that this team has had and maybe what they can be comparatively?

Yeah.

So that's one of the big storylines so far from preseason practices.

Maybe this group is a little bit ahead of where people thought they would be, where you have KJ Bolden, who could very well be the best safety in college football.

Ellis Robinson really came on at the end of last season, and it seems like that has carried over into this off-season, where he knows it's a big year for him because he's draft eligible.

And Leonard Moore is a fantastic cornerback for Notre Dame.

I think by the end of the year, Ellis Robinson could potentially be right there with him.

Finally, just looking at, at some of the opportunities they have early on, Oklahoma early, at Arkansas early, is there a game that maybe not enough people are talking about that you think could be really interesting on this schedule?

Uh, where are they on the secondary compared to previous secondaries th- this team has had, and maybe what they can be comparatively?

Yeah, so that's one of the big storylines so far from preseason practices.

Maybe this group is a little bit ahead of where people thought they would be, where you have KJ Bolden, who could very well be the best safety in college football.

Ellis Robinson really came on at the end of last season, and it seems like that has carried over into this off-season, where he knows it's a big year for him because he's draft eligible.

And Leonard Moore is a fantastic cornerback for Notre Dame.

I think by the end of the year, Ellis Robinson could potentially be right there with him.

They go into the transfer portal again, and it seems like they really love what they found in Khalil Barnes, the transfer from Clemson.

that-You think could be really interesting on this schedule?

How many guys do you think on this roster will maybe fit into that category at the end of the season that are not fitting into that category now, and who might some of those be in your opinion?

I think that's a great point, Cole, because when I look at this Georgia team and covering them on a day-to-day basis and the fact that they've won the last two SEC titles, they're in the college football playoff for the last five years.

I look at them as where they're going to be at the end of the season, maybe not necessarily where they start the season.

And the biggest guy is a guy that's already well-known in league circles.

That's Elijah Griffin, former number one defensive player in his recruiting class.

But this is a guy where if he makes the leaps that Georgia expects him to, he can end the season as one of the best players in college football.

He is that physically impressive.

Why are people struggling to get on board with Gunnar Stockton and what maybe he is or can be as a college quarterback?

I realize I'm asking you an unknown, but just how do you think has Mike Bobo progressed and is he ready to deliver for Kirby Smart?

Yeah, Bubba's had good years at Georgia before, obviously starting in his first stint.

And then even his first year back in 2023, that offense averaged 40 points a game.

But I think Bubba's success at Georgia has always been tied to what he has in terms of skill, position, talent.

And I do think that this year that is a fair question mark where You lose a guy like Zachariah branch, who was so important.

Yes.

You bring back your running backs and Nate Frazier and Chauncey Bowens, but I don't think neither of those guys were explosive enough to the knee that they needed to be last year.

you know it's a long time until october 10th where where georgia ought to be undefeated how do you see the schedule and where where does danger lurk the most for you

Um, what's your feeling on these? Are-- Is it just a formality until most of these go away?

I think it is a formality until these get-- until these go away.

I think maybe the only thing that would be interesting to me moving forward would be if maybe the SEC walks back from a nine-game conference schedule because I think from certainly Kirby Smart's perspective, and I would venture to guess most of the SEC coaches, I don't think there's a lot of appetite to go to a nine-game schedule every year just because of the belief that it does make things more difficult.

You heard Kirby last year after the SEC championship game talk about what that ninth game meant.

Like, you know, Georgia lost Gabe Harris in that game.

Uh, that ultimately made a difference in how they played against Ole Miss in the college football playoff, and Ole Miss didn't have to play in the SEC championship game.

Alabama was very banged up in that game.

What do you see for Zachariah as a Sunday guy? 'Cause he's little.