Dent hopes to hold up

ATHENS, Ga. — Akeem Dent’s two-part challenge is halfway complete.

Georgia’s senior inside linebacker underwent surgery on his big left toe before preseason camp and returned to practice last week. Now the concern is how he holds up Saturday against Louisiana-Lafayette.

“I know he’s not in the condition today that he would have been had he gotten all those reps in the heat and just continued on from the great summer that he had,” coach Mark Richt said.

How long Dent lasts adds to the intrigue of the debut of new Bulldogs defensive coordinator Todd Grantham. The 6-foot-2, 234-pounder from Atlanta exited spring as the defensive play-caller in Grantham’s 3-4 scheme.

His absence most of August resulted in Christian Robinson assuming that role, so Dent and Robinson could split time calling the shots against the Ragin’ Cajuns.

“When I was out, I was still conditioning,” Dent said. “That was my main focus. I was doing a whole lot of deep-water training and working in the pool, underwater treadmills and stuff like that. Conditioning might be a deal for me Saturday, but I’m trying my hardest to get back in game shape.”

New inside linebackers coach Warren Belin said Dent may be rusty but that he has prepared very well, taking as many mental reps as he could.

Dent signed in 2006 as Rivals.com’s No. 12 outside linebacker nationally and redshirted that year. He has 114 career tackles and has made at least four starts every season since his redshirt freshman year, but he missed five games last season with a hamstring injury.

“I think he’s the chief on the defensive side of the ball, and all of us have got to be the Indians,” sophomore safety Bacarri Rambo said. “He has everybody on the same page, and if we have anybody who gets out of order, he’s the one who straightens things out.”

Said Belin: “He’s got a burning desire to have a great senior year and help this football team to win.”

The Bulldogs are ready to put in the past their defensive woes of the past two seasons, when they allowed more than 30 points five times each year. Dent insists that Bulldogs fans will see a more aggressive defense Saturday, but how does Grantham think his crew will perform?

“You always have expectations as a coach, and you’re always going to have high expectations, at least from my standpoint,” he said. “I’ve got an idea. I think it’s important, as we get going, to kind of get a feel for them, too. Any time you play a team the first game of the year, it’s different, because they’ve had a whole offseason to do things, so you’ve got to follow your concepts.”

Odds and ends

Richt said Wednesday that he wouldn’t mind playing one out -of-conference team from a BCS conference, but the Bulldogs are scheduled to face Colorado (2010), Louisville (2011-12), Clemson (2013-14) and Oregon (2015-16) in addition to playing Georgia Tech annually . ... Junior receiver A.J. Green is unlikely to return punts this season, with cornerback Branden Smith handling that role with reserve tailback Carlton Thomas as his backup.