The Georgia Bulldogs had high hopes this offseason and were considered one of the favorites to win the national championship heading into the campaign. 

There were two primary questions about Georgia’s team. One was about the offense and one was about the defense. 

The one about the offense pertained to the wide receivers. There were many questions. Is there a go-to guy? Will they be good without experience? Will Gunner Stockton be asked to do too much with what looks to be a worse group?

The questions were, well, valid. Zachariah Branch broke the single season receptions record for Georgia last year. He had over 800 yards and accounted for about a third of Stockton’s production. Colbie Young was the second leading receiver and he went off to the NFL. Noah Thomas, Oscar Delp and Dillon Bell took off as well. Georgia even lost its best receiving back in Cash Jones. 

So, who was going to step up? People asked the questions, and they were the right questions. The wideouts, however, have been good so far, and Kirby Smart didn’t forget all of the questions in the offseason. 

“As a whole, that group was the one everyone wanted to question or say things about coming in. Talyn’s [Taylor] grown up a lot, and he’s made a lot of plays for us. He’s really been a consistent guy that practices hard, plays hard, gets open, and wins one-on-one opportunities. London [Humphreys] continues to improve and get better,” Smart said. 

Talyn Taylor, the former five-star, had a true freshman season that was defined by injuries. Now, he is getting his chance and is tied for the lead with London Humphreys with three touchdowns catches. 

True freshman Craig Dandridge leads Georgia with over 300 receiving yards. He is another player that has answered the ‘who is going to step up’ question. 

Another thing that Smart noted on Tuesday is that Georgia has been missing players. 

“We’ve been injured probably as much at that position as we have any. Throw the wide receivers in there with the running backs, and it’s a tough combination that Coach Bobo and the offensive staff have had to work through,” Smart said. “I’ve been really pleased with the receiver group as a whole. There are a couple guys that you don’t get to see, and that haven’t played as much that get really good work in practice and have been coming alone and doing good things that we hope to see this week.” 

Isiah Canion, Georgia’s transfer wide receiver who is considered a starter, hasn’t played since early in the Arkansas game over a month ago. Thomas Blackshear, the guy who replaced him as the primary X wideout, was injured a couple weeks ago. 

The group overall has been better than many expected. Gunner Stockon’s passing numbers have been better this season than last season. Some of the credit has to go to the guys catching the football.