Georgia quarterback Gunner Stockton (14) celebrates his 11-yard touchdown run with Georgia offensive lineman Monroe Freeling (57, left) and offensive lineman Daniel Calhoun, right, during the second quarter against Marshall in their season opener at Sanford Stadium, Saturday, August 30, 2025, in Athens, Ga.
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The stat sheet will tell you the Georgia offensive line did its job to open the 2025 season.
But those numbers don’t paint a complete picture of how things looked for the Bulldogs on Saturday against an overmatched Marshall team. Nor does it ensure the offensive line issues that plagued Georgia last season won’t do the same once the team gets into SEC play.
“When you’ve got a quarterback that can run, guys, it’s, you know, running the ball is easier than throwing the ball, but running the ball in some conferences is harder than others,” Smart said. “There are no free yards in football. You earn everything you get, so when you have the extra element, it certainly helps, but, you know, you’ve got to be smart about it, too.”
Georgia opened the game with Monroe Freeling at left tackle, Micah Morris at left guard, Drew Bobo at center, Juan Gaston at right guard and Earnest Greene at right tackle.
This was the expected offensive line for Georgia to open the season, following Gaston’s strong fall camp. In starting, he became the first freshman offensive lineman to start a season-opener since Andrew Thomas did so in 2017.
The Bulldogs likely won’t play the same starting five this week, as injuries have already become an issue for Georgia. Gaston and Greene both exited following the second drive of the game.
Smart said this week that both players are dealing with lower-extremity injuries. Gaston was seen on Monday on a scooter with a boot and knee brace on his left leg. Greene does have a history of back issues, as he missed time during the 2022 season following surgery.
If Georgia were playing Tennessee this week instead of Austin Peay, perhaps Georgia pushes either player into the first five. But with an easier opponent on the schedule, the Bulldogs can afford to be patient in letting Gaston and Greene overcome their injuries.
Left guard Morris is also dealing with a hand injury but he is expected to play through it. For a group that struggled with injuries last season—only Dylan Fairchild and Xavier Truss started every game — the 2025 season-opener was more of the same for the Bulldogs.
The injuries to Gaston and Greene pushed others up the depth chart and into the spotlight. Bo Hughley came in at right tackle and ended up playing twice as many snaps as Greene did on Saturday.
Georgia was likely always going to rotate Hughley in given it wants to develop better depth at the tackle spots. His role becomes much bigger now with Greene possibly hindered.
At guard, Georgia rotated between Daniel Calhoun and Michael Uini. These two were in competition with Gaston to start at right guard. Calhoun entered the game first for Gaston and outsnapped Uini 31 to 26.
Georgia was already without Malachi Tolliver, the team’s projected backup center. Freshman Cortez Smith was elevated in Tolliver’s absence, who did dress out as he recovers from a preseason ankle injury.
“We were able to play a lot of players in the offensive line, both out of necessity, but also out of getting a lead,” Smart said. “So it was really good to get a lot of experience for guys to go in and play the game.”
The injury situation is something that Smart can’t really correct. He is a coach, not a doctor.
As for how the group played, Smart was more complimentary of what Georgia did in the run game than pass. He thought the Bulldogs had some issues on play-action passes, specifically in terms of communicating who picks up who in protection.
Smart added that the conditioning of the group was not where it needed to be. Saturday’s game against Austin Peay is expected to be even warmer than last week’s contest was.
Georgia’s offensive line was never going to return to its prior standard in just one week. Even without the injuries, Georgia was going to have to prove itself with this group in SEC play to quell some of the doubts about the position.
Many national pundits have pointed out the difference playing behind a good offensive line made for Carson Beck at Miami. They’re not wrong, only giving Georgia’s current offensive line further fuel.
The Bulldogs’ offensive line has an early-season storm to weather with the injuries to Greene and Gaston. Neither is expected to miss significant time and should be back by the time SEC play really ramps up.
But those two opened the season as Georgia’s five best offensive linemen. Missing snaps, even if Hughley, Calhoun and Uini play well without them, will make it harder for this group to come together and gel.
That was a problem last year for Georgia. We’ll see if these early setbacks derail what
could be a promising group.
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