David Pollack aired out his grievances about the state of NIL in college football, Mark Schlabach provided insight on the contention surrounding Georgia offensive coordinator Mike Bobo and Tony Barnhart gave his \u201cdark horse\u201d candidate for the 2025 college football season at The Red & Black\u2019s \u201cCountdown to Kickoff\u201d event at Athentic Brewing Co. on Thursday.<\/p>\n
The panel of Georgia sports greats was moderated by DawgNation Daily host Brandon Adams, and attendees were encouraged to ask questions to the Georgia alumni at the end. Here are the five biggest takeaways from their comments.<\/p>\n
Teams to keep an eye on for 2025 season<\/p>\n
All three panelists have decades of experience covering college football, so the audience\u2019s interest was piqued when Adams asked them to name a team that could be a surprise contender in the 2025 season.<\/p>\n
Barnhart, who covered college football for both CBS Sports and ESPN, led off by singling out LSU as a team that people are \u201cnot talking about enough.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey are loaded on the offensive side of the ball,\u201d Barnhart said. \u201cI talked to [LSU head coach] Brian Kelly, and he looked at me and said, \u2018This is my best roster.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Pollack, a former All-American defensive end at Georgia and ESPN analyst, followed him up by picking Texas A&M, who he said \u201chas a chance to be really good,\u201d especially because of its star running back, Le\u2019Veon Moss.<\/p>\n
Schlabach, a senior reporter for ESPN, chose Missouri as a team that could sneak into the College Football Playoff because of its relatively easy away schedule.<\/p>\n
Bobo not the issue<\/p>\n
A heated point of contention among the Georgia fanbase is whether Bobo is the correct man for the offensive coordinator position. Many fans cite Bobo\u2019s situational playcalling and poor in-game adjustments as things that have held the team back, but all three of the panelists vehemently disagreed with that viewpoint.<\/p>\n
Barnhart referenced the consistent, long-term success of Bobo\u2019s offenses, dating back to the Mark Richt era at Georgia, calling the criticism against Bobo \u201cpatently unfair,\u201d adding that \u201cBobo didn\u2019t cause the team to drop 36 passes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Schlabach pointed out the inconsistency of the players on the offense both on and off the field as a critical reason why the unit had a down year. He also emphasized the absurdity of the criticism against Bobo.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll say one thing about Mike Bobo,\u201d Schlabach said. \u201cIf Mike Bobo was bad at his job, Kirby Smart would\u2019ve fired him.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Wild West of NIL<\/p>\n
A major talking point throughout the event was the need for change at the administrative levels of college football. The panelists emphasized that the college football world needs federal regulations on NIL and revenue sharing to create a more level playing field for all teams.<\/p>\n
Pollack also strongly advocated for players having agents to help with NIL negotiations, while Barnhart stressed the need for a collective bargaining agreement and a college football commissioner to oversee everything.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you want to change things, a lot of these rules keep getting instituted without players\u2019 input,\u201d Pollack said. \u201cUntil there\u2019s player involvement and player representation, we\u2019re not going to get true change.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI think we\u2019ve needed [a commissioner],\u201d Barnhart said. \u201cI\u2019ve been calling for this for about 10 years \u2014 you need somebody whose job is to look out for the good of college football across the board. We haven\u2019t had that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Confidence in Stockton<\/p>\n
One of the hottest topics surrounding Georgia football this offseason has been new starting quarterback Gunner Stockton, the replacement for Carson Beck, who transferred to Miami.<\/p>\n
Many notable national media members have expressed doubt in Stockton\u2019s ability to lead a Georgia offense that struggled in several big games, but Pollack, Schlabach and Barnhart all praised the redshirt junior signal-caller\u2019s grit and character.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt halftime of the Texas game, one of the starters on Georgia\u2019s offense walked up to Gunner and was like, \u2018If you believe in yourself as much as we believe in you, we\u2019re gonna go out and win this game and be just fine,\u2019 Pollack said. \u201cHe\u2019s got everybody\u2019s ears and everybody\u2019s belief.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pollack added that the players surrounding Stockton must perform better than last season, quipping that Georgia had \u201cmore dropped passes than dropped classes on campus.\u201d<\/p>\n
Breakout players on Georgia defense<\/p>\n
After the floor was opened to questions from the audience, a fan asked the panelists to choose which Georgia defensive players could step into key roles this season.<\/p>\n
Pollack began with freshman defensive tackle Elijah Griffin, expressing how impressed he was with Griffin\u2019s physical ability and well-mannered personality.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think Elijah Griffin is gonna be an absolute animal,\u201d Pollack said. \u201cI met that young man not too long ago when he was practicing, and I was like, \u2018Holy cow.\u2019 He\u2019s 6-foot-5, 315 [pounds], but more importantly, he shook my hand, looked me in my eyes, very articulate.\u201d<\/p>\n
Schlabach said he was concerned about Georgia\u2019s defensive line, but believes that junior edge rushers Gabe Harris Jr. and Elo Modozie could have big seasons, along with junior defensive tackles Christen Miller and Jordan Hall.<\/p>\n
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