by Shawn Sillinger
The No. 9 Georgia Bulldogs shouldn?t have much difficulty beating the UAB Blazers in Saturday?s Orange Bowl Classic. Taking down that big spread is another matter.
The Bulldogs are pegged as 17.5-point favorites (with a total of 38.5) despite the absence of starting quarterback Joe Tereshinski III. He?s out with a high ankle sprain suffered during last weekend?s 18-0 victory over the South Carolina Gamecocks; doctors say Tereshinski will be out 4-6 weeks, but the senior pivot insists he?ll be back on the field in four weeks, no matter how much pain he may be in.
Freshman Matthew Stafford was brought in to relieve Tereshinski in the first quarter of Saturday?s shutout win. Stafford was an occasionally shaky 8-for-18 for 171 yards, no touchdowns and three interceptions against the Gamecocks, but he has nonetheless been named the starter against UAB. Redshirt freshman Joe Cox will be the No. 2 QB.
By the time Tereshinski is ready to play, there might not be a starting job for him. Stafford is the quarterback of the future for Georgia ? his development project has simply been put on the front burner a little earlier than desired. The poor numbers Stafford posted against South Carolina belie his raw talent; the Bulldogs drove for a rushing TD by Danny Ware and two field goals under his stewardship.
UAB?s defense isn?t nearly as good on paper as South Carolina?s ? especially through the air. East Carolina?s James Pinkney was able to throw for 280 yards last week in a narrow 17-12 loss, as the Blazers failed to cover the 6.5-point spread. That?s a bit of a red herring, though; East Carolina flew under the Conference-USA radar last year at 5-6 overall (8-3 against the spread) and sported the No. 29 air attack in the nation at 256 yards per game.
Where UAB may be in bigger trouble against Georgia is on offense. Not only are the Bulldogs one of the nastiest defenses anywhere, the Blazers are also in a quarterback controversy of their own. Sam Hunt, a transfer from Middle Tennessee, will start this Saturday after being pulled against East Carolina in favor of Chris Williams. It was Williams who secured victory over the Pirates with a pair of TD passes. Coach Watson Brown says both QBs will play Saturday.
Handicappers who support the Bulldogs this week are putting their faith in Stafford living up to his potential right out of the box. He may indeed be able to do that against a suspect Blazers defense, but it?s still a leap of faith at this point. Game time at Sanford Stadium in Athens is 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
Article courtesy of BetUS.com
The No. 9 Georgia Bulldogs shouldn?t have much difficulty beating the UAB Blazers in Saturday?s Orange Bowl Classic. Taking down that big spread is another matter.
The Bulldogs are pegged as 17.5-point favorites (with a total of 38.5) despite the absence of starting quarterback Joe Tereshinski III. He?s out with a high ankle sprain suffered during last weekend?s 18-0 victory over the South Carolina Gamecocks; doctors say Tereshinski will be out 4-6 weeks, but the senior pivot insists he?ll be back on the field in four weeks, no matter how much pain he may be in.
Freshman Matthew Stafford was brought in to relieve Tereshinski in the first quarter of Saturday?s shutout win. Stafford was an occasionally shaky 8-for-18 for 171 yards, no touchdowns and three interceptions against the Gamecocks, but he has nonetheless been named the starter against UAB. Redshirt freshman Joe Cox will be the No. 2 QB.
By the time Tereshinski is ready to play, there might not be a starting job for him. Stafford is the quarterback of the future for Georgia ? his development project has simply been put on the front burner a little earlier than desired. The poor numbers Stafford posted against South Carolina belie his raw talent; the Bulldogs drove for a rushing TD by Danny Ware and two field goals under his stewardship.
UAB?s defense isn?t nearly as good on paper as South Carolina?s ? especially through the air. East Carolina?s James Pinkney was able to throw for 280 yards last week in a narrow 17-12 loss, as the Blazers failed to cover the 6.5-point spread. That?s a bit of a red herring, though; East Carolina flew under the Conference-USA radar last year at 5-6 overall (8-3 against the spread) and sported the No. 29 air attack in the nation at 256 yards per game.
Where UAB may be in bigger trouble against Georgia is on offense. Not only are the Bulldogs one of the nastiest defenses anywhere, the Blazers are also in a quarterback controversy of their own. Sam Hunt, a transfer from Middle Tennessee, will start this Saturday after being pulled against East Carolina in favor of Chris Williams. It was Williams who secured victory over the Pirates with a pair of TD passes. Coach Watson Brown says both QBs will play Saturday.
Handicappers who support the Bulldogs this week are putting their faith in Stafford living up to his potential right out of the box. He may indeed be able to do that against a suspect Blazers defense, but it?s still a leap of faith at this point. Game time at Sanford Stadium in Athens is 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
Article courtesy of BetUS.com
