Georgia guard Chris Burnette enters 2013 having started 24 games the past two seasons.ATHENS, Ga. – Whether he gets the better of defensive linemen this season or not, Georgia fifth-year senior guard Chris Burnette will not be lacking for support.
Burnette, who has started 24 games for the Bulldogs the past two seasons, married Arielle Haynes in May. The two were introduced nearly four years ago, and Burnette proposed to her last September at Athens Church several hours after the Bulldogs hammered Vanderbilt 48-3 inside Sanford Stadium.
His proposal, which was witnessed by quarterback Aaron Murray and tailback Todd Gurley and several other teammates, included a quoting of Proverbs 18:22 and has been seen nearly 40,000 times on YouTube.com.
“I married way above my pay grade, and when you marry well you can’t do anything but succeed,” a smiling Burnette said last week. “Both of us are really solid in our faith, and we understand that regardless of the outside distractions that are going on, we have each other to lean on as well as the Lord. I think we have a really solid base, and hopefully it will help us last 50 or 60 years down the road.”
The 6-foot-2, 314-pounder from LaGrange, Ga., was a second-team All-SEC selection last year despite playing most of the season with a separated shoulder. He underwent surgery in January and sat out spring drills.