The Georgia Bulldogs finished the 2003 season with an 11-3 record and beat Purdue 34-27 in an overtime thriller in the Capital One Bowl. The SEC East used to be a competition between Florida and Tennessee but in recent years, Georgia has taken over the supremacy of the division and has won the SEC East title the last two seasons to advance to the SEC title game. The Bulldogs will have to avoid injuries and the fact that they have a bull’s eye on their respective back this season but I still like their chances to dominate the SEC West division once again and making an appearance in a BCS bowl in January. For that reason, among others, the Bulldogs rank #2 on my pre-season poll.

The team is returning 19 starters from last year and has the depth to compete with any team in the nation. QB David Greene has been a starter since his red shirt freshman season and enters his senior season having earned second-team All-SEC honor last season. He's emerged as a leader and will need to be more consistent while leading his team across the field. Wide receiver Fred Gibson and running back Kregg Lumpkin will lead the skill position players this season and should each put up solid numbers this season. Thomas Davis led the team and SEC conference with 138 tackles last season while splitting time between strong safety and linebacker. Davis was an all-SEC player in 2003 and could put up even bigger numbers in 2004 with another solid cast of characters around him. Defensive end David Pollack has gone from a power rusher to a speed rusher by cutting some pounds to prepare himself for the imminent double teams he’s bound to see this season. Pollack could be an All-American this season and if defensive end Will Thompson can pick up his game this season, both could win all-conference honors. Linebacker Tony Taylor suffered a season-ending knee injury in the spring game and won’t be available this season. Taylor finished fifth on the team last season with 82 tackles after starting 12 games for the Bulldogs.

The Bulldogs open their season with games against Georgia Southern, South Carolina, and Marshall before the big game at home against the SEC West champion LSU Tigers. The Tigers and Bulldogs are both top five teams in college football this season and they’ve played some unbelievable games in the past and this game (October 2) should be another classic. The Bulldogs follow up that humongous game with home games against Tennessee, Vanderbilt, and Florida. The biggest game of the season, outside of the LSU game, might be played on November 13 when the team travels to Auburn to take on another set of Tigers. The Auburn game is the last conference game on the schedule for the Bulldogs and it won’t be a pushover by any means as the Tigers could very easily be a top ten team themselves. The Bulldogs should compete for another SEC championship and could be huge players in the national title picture as well.

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