Georgia's Murray works, watches

ATHENS, Ga. -- When their favorite college football team suffers a season of discontent, fans often start longing for their heralded quarterback of the future.

Fitting that description at Georgia is Aaron Murray, who enrolled in January as the highest-rated Bulldogs quarterback signee since Matthew Stafford in 2006. Murray has not played this season, yet coach Mark Richt and offensive coordinator Mike Bobo have not officially tagged this a redshirt year for him.

The 6-foot-1, 206-pounder from Tampa's Plant High School will travel with the team again Saturday when the Bulldogs visit Vanderbilt.

"He's got the right frame of mine, and he comes in here like he's the starting quarterback," Bobo said. "He was here on Monday, his day off, grading film himself like he was playing, so I like everything about him. I think he'll be a good player for us."

Murray was Rivals.com's No. 3 pro-style quarterback in the '09 class, trailing Southern Cal signee Matt Barkley and Texas signee Garrett Gilbert. Barkley is starting for the sixth-ranked Trojans, while Gilbert has completed 12 of 15 passes for 113 yards for the Longhorns as Colt McCoy's backup.

Bobo did not make Murray available for this article, but he and current Bulldogs starter Joe Cox believe the 18-year-old is well-equipped to handle what's coming.

"He likes the challenge," Bobo said. "High school isn't SEC football, but he followed a guy that won a state championship and went on to play college football at Miami in (Robert) Marve. He handled those expectations at a very prestigious high school in Plant and won a state championship."

Said Cox: "I don't think he's the type of person who will be rattled by any sort of media pressure or Rivals.com pressure."

Murray became an elite prospect after his junior season at Plant, when he threw for 4,013 yards with 51 touchdowns and just seven interceptions. He also rushed for 932 yards and nine scores, but his senior season was derailed last October by a broken fibula and a dislocated ankle.

He returned in time for the state semifinals and led Plant to the title, and he enrolled early at Georgia along with Zach Mettenberger, whom Rivals.com pegged as its No. 11 pro-style quarterback.

"All we can do now is just work hard," Murray said in the spring. "I think both of us have the mindset now that we're going to do whatever it takes to be the quarterback for the University of Georgia. No one can tell what the future will bring."

Murray completed more than 50 percent of his passes in all three spring scrimmages and had the longest completion in each one, including a 43-yard strike to walk-on receiver Marquise Brown at G-Day. Mettenberger threw for only 43 yards combined in the scrimmages and went 2-of-18.

Murray developed triceps tendinitis last month and could not throw for about three weeks, but he is back at full strength. Bobo said Murray gets a lot of practice reps each Wednesday, when Cox's arm is given a rest.

"Losing that time was valuable, but he's a confident kid who has the ability to make plays," Bobo said. "He's a very competitive kid, and I think he'll do fine."