Georgia Football: Six Things The Dawgs Must Do To Beat Bama

Block Quinnen Williams and Friends

The Georgia Bulldogs will be facing a talented Alabama defensive front in the SEC Championship game. None more talent than defensive tackle Quinnen Williams. Williams is thought by many to be the best defensive player in the country. Some even feel he’s the best overall player in the nation.

Quinnen Williams excels equally against the run and the pass. According to Pro Football Focus, he has 48 tackles against the run this season. An incredible 16 of those tackles, have resulted in no gain or a loss. That’s number one in the nation among interior linemen.

Williams is just as disruptive as a pass rusher. According to PFF, he has 38 total quarterback pressures in 244 pass rushing snaps. Quinnen has eight sacks, 14 quarterback hits and 16 hurries. He has a pass rush win percentage of 19.3 percent, to lead all defensive linemen in the country.

Overall Pro Football Focus gives Quinnen Williams a grade of 95.3 out of a possible 99.9. That is number one among all NCAA defensive players. UGA must double team Williams on the interior to have a shot at neutralizing him. Center Lamont Gaillard will have a huge role in helping control Quinnen.

However Quinnen Williams has plenty of help, with it comes to rushing the passer. Alabama has three other defenders that rank in the top 20 of the SEC in sacks.

Defensive end Isaiah Buggs is third in the conference with 10 sacks. Linebacker Christian Miller has eight sacks, tied with Williams for sixth in the SEC. Linebacker Anfernee Jennings has five sacks, tying him for 19th in the Southeastern Conference.

The UGA offensive line certainly must be on their A game Saturday, if the Dawgs are to prevail.

Attack the Middle and Right Side of the Field

The Alabama Crimson Tide defense is tough in almost every aspect, but there are some vulnerable spots that the Georgia Bulldogs can exploit. The intermediate middle of the field and the right side of the field are the areas opponents have had the most success attacking against Bama in.

Alabama opponents have completed 11-15 passes in the intermediate middle of the field. That’s a 73.3 completion percentage. The Tide allowed 185 yards and two touchdowns in that area of the football field. They also failed to intercept a pass in that area.

Opponents of the Crimson Tide also had success in the intermediate right side of the field. Teams playing against Bama completed 11-18 passes for 200 yards and a touchdown. That’s a 61.1 competition percentage. Alabama did pick off one pass in that area on the right side, between ten and 19 yards downfield.

The right side is also the best way to go when throwing downfield 20 yards or more against Alabama. On 15 deep right throws, Alabama allowed six receptions for 193 yards and a touchdown, a 40 percent competition rate. Bama failed to intercept any of the 15 deep throws to the right side.

College Football Film Room provided a nice chart to break down how teams fare throwing against Alabama, on the different areas of the field via their Twitter account:

Certainly the Dawgs can’t make it obvious by trying to throw to the areas where Alabama is vulnerable all game long. However Jim Chaney would be wise to call plays that take advantage of route combinations to the intermediate middle and right side of the field on third down. He would also be wise to dial-up a shot or two to the deep right.