Georgia to face dangerous UNC receiver Hollins -- for a half

ATHENS, Ga. - North Carolina senior receiver Mack Hollins led the nation last season with 24.8 yards per catch.

The Georgia Bulldogs will have to deal with him for only a half.

Hollins has been suspended for the first two quarters of Saturday's Chick-fil-A Kickoff Classic as a result of being ejected for helmet-to-helmet targeting in the second half of last December's loss to Oregon in the Russell Athletic Bowl. The 6-foot-4, 215-pounder is also a three-year captain on special teams.

"We've been preparing for that this whole camp," North Carolina coach Larry Fedora said this week in a news conference. "The biggest deal for us is that he's a starter on all four special teams, so you're talking about four different units you're having to prepare for. That's been more difficult than preparing offensively.

"We'll have the next receiver step up. We've got a lot of guys playing the position."

North Carolina's receivers are coached by Gunter Brewer, the son of former Ole Miss head coach Billy Brewer, and are indeed deep in both talent and experience. Hollins and fellow seniors Bug Howard (6-5, 220) and Ryan Switzer (5-10, 185) have combined for an eye-popping 306 career receptions for 4,374 yards and 39 touchdowns.

Hollins has accounted for 16 of those touchdowns, which ranks fifth in Tar Heels history.

"He's really good," Georgia coach Kirby Smart said. "He's their best gunner and kickoff cover guy, and he is a dominant feature player, but they have other big wideouts. They've got Bug Howard from Wilcox County, who's a really good player, too, and they've got other guys that are matchup problems.

"Certainly when you've got multiple guys out there, it makes it that much tougher."

Switzer is a special-teams menace as well, having already set an Atlantic Coast Conference career mark with seven punt returns for touchdowns. The NCAA record of eight was set by Texas Tech's Wes Welker from 2000 to '03.

The Tar Heels also have junior Austin Proehl, the son of former NFL receiver and current Carolina Panthers receivers coach Ricky Proehl. He averaged 18.8 yards on 12 catches a year ago.

While UNC's top three returning receivers combined for 114 catches last season, Georgia's top trio of Terry Godwin, Reggie Davis and Isaiah McKenzie had exactly half that with 57. Davis is a senior and McKenzie a junior, but it could be Godwin and fellow sophomores Michael Chigbu and Jayson Stanley who determine whether this year's receivers crop is deeper and more effective than a year ago.

"We've been waiting all spring and summer for this," Godwin said. "We know what our job is, and we know we're going to go out there and execute it. I'm very confident in everyone we decide to put out there, whether it's making the right blocks or making great catches."

Both aerial attacks Saturday obviously will be determined by the effectiveness of the quarterbacks. Smart has yet to announce a starter between fifth-year senior Greyson Lambert and true freshman Jacob Eason, while junior Mitch Trubisky is starting for the Tar Heels after winning the job in spring practice.

Trubisky was brilliant last season when coming off the bench, completing 40 of 47 passes (85.1 percent) for 555 yards and six touchdowns. The 6-3, 225-pounder will experience the thrill of starting and will then get another dose of adrenaline when Hollins returns for the third quarter.

"It's going to be exciting with him bringing that leadership and energy the second half," Trubisky told reporters. "It will definitely give us a spark."

Butler pitching in

Former Georgia and Chicago Bears kicker Kevin Butler is helping out with Bulldogs specialists a couple of times a week, Smart said following Tuesday's two-hour practice in full pads. Butler scored 353 points during his college career, setting an NCAA record with 27 games with multiple field goals, and he tallied 1,208 points in his 13-year NFL career.

"He's an undergraduate student finishing up his degree, which allows him to help us," Smart said in a news conference. "I think it's the greatest asset a first-year coach could have."

Odds and ends

Lambert worked with the first team again Tuesday during the portion of practice open to the media. Smart said it would be "a couple more days" before a QB starter is named.... Georgia's athletic website is encouraging fans to wear red to every home game this season except for the Louisiana-Lafayette game on Nov. 19, when they are encouraged to wear black. Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said Tuesday in a news conference that he would like to play Georgia every year in addition to South Carolina and its ACC schedule.

Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.

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