NFL Sec

What is it about the SEC that compels folks to regularly combine a fetid brew of boastfulness with ignorance? The latest example Via The Wizard of Odds provides all kinds of quotable outward contempt from LSU coach Les Miles towards count 'em 1)USC, 2)the Pac-10 and 3)the Big 12/everyone else. The following comments were made during an interview with New Orleans radio station WWL as reported by Carl DuBois of The Advocate.

Let's go through this piece-by-piece, shall we? Analysis after the jump.

After seeing multiple ex-University of Georgia football players in most recent Super Bowl games, only one ex-Bulldog is on a Super Bowl roster this year.

Tim Jennings, a rookie second-round pick, is a reserve cornerback with the Colts. Injuries hampered the diminutive Jennings early in the season and he remains buried on the Colts' depth chart.

Jennings did see action in 11 regular-season games as a rookie, but has been de-activated throughout the playoffs. However, he hopes the Colts' coaching staff decides to dress another cornerback today due to starter Nick Harper's sprained ankle. If so, Jennings will likely play in the Super Bowl.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is reporting that junior linebacker Brandon Miller has elected to return to Georgia for his senior season and thus not enter the NFL Draft.

It may seem absurd because it is, but Miller, a part-time player throughout his career who only started five games last season, was seriously contemplating entering the NFL Draft.

The 6-foot-4, 248-pound Miller probably believes his size and speed will enable him to play outside linebacker in a 3-4 NFL defense. However, outside linebackers in 3-4 defenses are playmakers and Miller make no big plays, evident by his 0 sacks and 0 interceptions over his college career.

Despite a slew of other talented juniors declaring for the NFL Draft in recent days, former Georgia defensive end Charles Johnson is now ranked as the No. 17 prospect overall and the No. 3 defensive end on the big board of ESPN.com NFL Draft guru Mel Kiper, Jr.

Listed at 6-foot-2, 275 pounds but probably closer to 6-1, 280, Johnson led the Bulldogs (9-4) this season with 9.5 sacks and 19 tackles for loss.

His lack of height may drop him down some draft boards, but Johnson's performances against SEC competition on film, his Herculean strength and explosion of the snap combine to make him a probable a four-down player and first-year NFL starter at strongside end in a 4-3 alignment.

National champion Florida was obviously better than a Georgia squad that finished 9-4 on the season, including a 21-14 setback in what has become an annual loss to the Gators in Jacksonville.

Florida had a veteran fifth-year senior at quarterback, while Georgia played a true freshman. An offensive line that was supposed to be a weakness for the Gators turned out to be a strength, while a veteran Bulldog offensive line underachieved most of the season.

The Gators' defense was obviously more fundamentally sound late in games. Florida free safety Reggie Nelson made huge plays while rarely being out of position. Georgia centerfielder Tra Battle made a plethora of great plays but had more snaps when he was mentally out of position.

Finally, UF had much more athleticism at linebacker, which will be evident after both Brandon Siler and Earl Everett are picked in the first two rounds of the NFL Draft this spring.

But yet Georgia had much better talent and production at running back, defensive end and cornerback. So why was UF a much more successful team?

One simple reason: Florida had big-play athletes at receiver who regularly make catches, while Georgia lacked a true vertical threat on the outside and probably led all NCAA Division I-A schools in dropped passes with an average of 4-5 per game.

Carroll Rogers and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution has done a superb job of breaking every meaningful story about the recovery of former Georgia great David Pollack from a potentially paralyzing neck injury.

Pollack spoke publicly for the first time since his neck stabilization surgery on Jan. 3 in this article by Rogers.

Pollack's agent had said the surgery went so well that Pollack may be able to return to the Cincinnati Bengals as early as 2007.

But the 24-year-old Pollack exhibited his maturity and comprehension of just how fortunate he is to still walk by telling Rogers that no decision has been made but that he will not rush back into football.

Although he was robbed by being named just runner-up for the NFL defensive MVP award, Champ Bailey this fall proved that shutdown cornerbacks still exist in the NFL, as the ex-Georgia great and future first-ballot Pro Football Hall of Famer had a league-high 10 interceptions and a career-high 86 tackles.

Bailey, though, was just one of many former Georgia greats to enjoy success in the NFL this year. Dave McMahon of Dawgpost.com provides a well-researched update on how many former Georgia players fared in the NFL this season.

As I noted early in the NFL season, Georgia has become the third best NFL talent factory behind Miami and Ohio State. The Bulldogs tied Tennessee for the third most former players on NFL opening-day rosters, although Georgia's list of quality players in the NFL is only rivaled by the Canes and Buckeyes.

Early in the fall, I researched and wrote a Pulitzer-type series of articles that exhibited the wealth of UGA talent in the NFL. Included in these must-read blogs were the names and status reports of every offensive and every defensive former UGA squad members playing professional football at some level.

Using that list and the encyclopedic-type knowledge of UGA football I have garnered over the years, I formed a hypothetical 53-man roster of former Georgia players who could compete as a team in the NFL right now. Any of the 32 teams in the NFL would probably trade their defensive roster for the talent and depth on that list of ex-Georgia defensive players.

In what should have come as a shock to most Georgia fans, UGASports.com reported Wednesday that Georgia junior linebacker Brandon Miller is contemplating forgoing his senior season to enter the NFL Draft this spring.

Ultimately, I expect the 6-foot-4, 250-pound linebacker Miller to come to his senses and stay at Georgia. His physical skills could enable Miller to be a late second-day draft pick in April and then potentially make a practice squad for a year.

The problem is that Miller is not a good linebacker and has few football insticts. He rarely makes tackles, never makes big plays, is lost in space, has a better 40-time than football speed and has horrendous lateral movement.

Rivals.com rated Miller as the top prospect in the state coming out of tiny Miller Co. High in Moultrie. He was rated as the top defensive end prospect in the nation by the Inisers.com. Everyone expected Miller to end up at defensive end, but the Georgia coaches have honored his request to play linebacker.

UGASports.com is reporting Wednesday night that standout cornerback Paul Oliver will bypass the NFL Draft this spring to return to Georgia for his senior season in 2007.

After spending the previous two seasons as Georgia's nickleback playing behind 2006 NFL Draft picks Tim Jennings (2nd round to Colts) and DeMario Minter (5th round to Brown) at cornerback, Oliver emerged as a shutdown corner in his first season as a starter at Georgia.

The 6-foot, 205-pound Oliver has six interceptions over the last two seasons. However, he got the attention of NFL scouts this fall by shutting down, Calvin Johnson of Georgia Tech (2 catches for 13 yards) and Sidney Rice of South Carolina (3 catches for 31 yards), both of whom he covered in man coverage for much of both of those Bulldog wins. The Gamecocks and Jackets combined to score just one offensive touchdown against Georgia.

Carter Strickland of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution is reporting Monday night that Georgia juniors Charles Johnson and Danny Ware have both decided to enter the NFL Draft.

Strickland has no quotes in this short story, and no official confirmation from either player, their family members or anyone on the Georgia coaching staff. However, I can assure you the AJC would not publish this info without being informed from very reliable sources that both players are gone. Neither defection was unexpected.