Georgia freshmen likely to catch passes

With Georgia returning just four healthy scholarship receivers from last season, Marlon Brown and Rantavious Wooten figured to have the best chance at early contributions among the freshmen.

That opinion hasn't changed three weeks into preseason workouts.

"They're getting a ton of opportunities in practice, and they'll definitely get playing time," Bulldogs coach Mark Richt said Monday night. "I think both of them started out pretty good, and I think both of them hit a wall. I think both of them now are picking it up again and beginning to make progress."

Brown, a 6-foot-5, 200-pounder from Harding Academy, made Tennessee recruiting history last winter by becoming the first private-school player from Memphis to be tabbed a Parade All-American. He was rated the No. 2 receiver nationally by Scout.com and No. 5 by Rivals.com.

The 5-10, 158-pound Wooten was the nation's No. 20 receiver according to Scout.com and No. 29 according to Rivals.com.

Georgia returned to practice Monday, working out for two hours in full pads. The 13th-ranked Bulldogs will work out again today, hold a practice game Wednesday against the scout team and take Thursday off.

Richt said freshman tight ends Orson Charles (6-3, 230) and Arthur Lynch (6-5, 240) also can expect to play. Charles was rated the No. 3 tight end nationally by Scout.com, while Lynch was tabbed No. 5.

The freshman tight ends are being used on special teams as well, but Richt is tempering the buzz surrounding Charles, who became a Georgia favorite in recruiting when he accidentally shattered Florida's 2006 BCS title trophy on a visit to Gainesville.

"Orson definitely had some times in there when his head was spinning," Richt said.

Whether Washaun Ealey, the only tailback in Georgia's '09 signing class, plays right away is a little less certain. The 5-foot-11, 205-pounder was rated by Rivals.com as the No. 11 running back nationally but hyper-extended his elbow earlier this month.

"He's doing OK," Richt said. "He wasn't sticking it in there quite as hard after his elbow got beat up a little bit. Now he's starting to free himself up to go hard again."