Dawgs Set To Go Hawg Hunting

FOOTBALL

The captain's for Saturday's game are Clint Boling (offense), DeAngelo Tyson (defense) and Brandon Boykin and Rennie Curran (special teams).

Richt noted that having two special teams captains was rare.

"We've probably done it before while I've been at Georgia but I can't really remember a time off the top of my head,­ at least recently­ when we've done so."

"Going to Arkansas will be tough, they will be ready for us. They have had pretty much the whole offseason to work on us, and also an open date, so I'm sure we will be getting their very best shot scheme-wise and their very best shot physically, mentally and emotionally."

"It's their first SEC game, and you know how important it is to start off on the right foot," Richt continued. "They will have a tremendous atmosphere there. It's not our first away game, but it is our first away game in the conference. It's huge for us. It's huge for them. Second-year coaches tend to do extremely well, and that's where they are right now. So hopefully we can stave off all the crowd, the excitement and energy and settle the game down and play good Dawg football."

Arkansas leads the SEC and is ranked second nationally in passing offense (447 yards per game), and they are second in the league and third nationally in total offense (591 yards per game). Richt said the Dawgs hope to tighten up their pass defense after the Gamecocks tallied 313 yards through the air.

“It doesn’t matter if you play zone or man, there was too much space and not enough resistance,” said Richt. “We’ve got to squeeze the quarterback in the pocket and the receivers too. Offensive football is about getting that space out there for the receivers and Coach (Steve) Spurrier is good at that and Coach (Bobby) Petrino has proven that too.”

Richt went on to mention several Dawgs who would be back and ready to play this weekend including sophomore linebacker Nick Williams, redshirt sophomore tailback Caleb King, redshirt sophomore defensive end Justin Houston and junior offensive tackle Josh Davis. However, Richt also indicated that junior safety Quintin Banks (knee) would not play this week but could return next week.

The Dawgs own an 8-3 edge over the Razorbacks in the all-time series including wins in the last five meetings. The teams last met in 2005, which was a 23-20 Dawg win in Athens. The Dawgs are 3-0 all-time in Fayetteville and 4-0 overall in the series under Richt.