Bigger roles for many on UGA's defensive front

Sophomore defensive lineman DaQuan Hawkins-Muckle is part of a younger starting front seven under Georgia first-year head coach Kirby Smart.
Sophomore defensive lineman DaQuan Hawkins-Muckle is part of a younger starting front seven under Georgia first-year head coach Kirby Smart.

Georgia's starting defense during last November's stretch run included Sterling Bailey, Chris Mayes and James DeLoach up front, with Jordan Jenkins, Leonard Floyd, Jake Ganus and Tim Kimbrough as the linebackers.

None of those front seven remain as the No. 18 Bulldogs prepare to open their season Saturday against No. 22 North Carolina in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Classic.

"It's tough anytime you lose a good group, and they had a really big group," Bulldogs first-year head coach Kirby Smart said this week. "When you talk about the number of starts and opportunities those guys had and then you change those out, I think that's where you get the anxiety. Although some of the guys now may be talented, they're going to be asked and called on to play a more significant role than they've probably ever played when it comes to the defensive snaps."

The good news for the Bulldogs is that each of the projected starters among the front seven - defensive linemen Trent Thompson, DaQuan Hawkins-Muckle and John Atkins, and linebackers Lorenzo Carter, Davin Bellamy, Reggie Carter and Natrez Patrick - have at least one career start. In fact, all but Carter made multiple starts last season.

Georgia's defensive linemen and outside linebackers are working under the same coaches as last season, with Tracy Rocker and Kevin Sherrer representing the lone assistants retained by Smart from the Mark Richt era.

"It's provided a lot of stability," Hawkins-Muckle said. "We didn't have to pick up where someone else left off. Coach Rocker just kept on helping us."

Hawkins-Muckle, a 6-foot-4, 320-pound sophomore defensive tackle from Atlanta, played in 10 games last season. He started against Missouri and again in the TaxSlayer Bowl against Penn State, with his Missouri appearance occurring after the Tigers tipped and intercepted Greyson Lambert's first pass of the evening and returned it to Georgia's 1-yard line.

Three plays later, Missouri had to settle for a 20-yard field goal, and the Bulldogs wound up winning 9-6.

"I made my first start against Missouri on the goal line, and it's just been downhill ever since," Hawkins-Muckle said. "It's very different compared to this time last year, when I was really nervous going into game week. I didn't really know what to expect.

"This week, I'm ready and excited. I'm ready to kick this thing off."

Georgia led the nation in pass defense last season and hopes to improve this season against the run. The Bulldogs allowed 149.5 rushing yards per game a year ago, their third-highest total of the Richt era.

The Bulldogs did not allow a 100-yard rusher in any of their last five games, but carrying that streak to six will be difficult against North Carolina's Elijah Hood. The 6-foot, 230-pound junior rushed for 1,463 yards last season, averaging a healthy 6.7 yards per carry.

"He's a hard runner," Hawkins-Muckle said, "but I'm pretty sure it's nothing that me and my team can't handle. He is a hard runner, though."

The Bulldogs continued preparations for North Carolina with a 90-minute practice Wednesday afternoon.

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

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