ESPN analyst Greg McElroy has high hopes for the Georgia Bulldog defense. In his preseason ranking of the top 10 defenses in football, he ranked Georgia fourth.
“This might be a little controversial because they were not quite the same last year as they were in year’s past,” McElroy prefaced.
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Georgia’s defense was ranked 23rd in points allowed per game in 2024. That isn’t bad, but it’s far from the dominance Georgia showed in 2021-23 when the defense never ranked below 5th in points allowed per game.
So why does McElroy rank Georgia’s defense 4th?
“I trust Kirby Smart,” McElroy said, “I think he’s one of the best defensive minds in the entire country. He creates a culture of physicality and toughness. It’s hard to play against this group regularly.”
There’s the question of how Georgia will be able to replace the talent of NFL first-round picks Jalon Walker, Mykel Williams, and Malaki Starks. However, McElroy says fans shouldn’t be worried about the talent Georgia lost because of UGA’s track record.
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“When have you ever been super concerned about the past departures we’ve seen on Georgia’s defense? They’ve had a lot of guys shuffling in and out of the lineup last year. Yet, they still played pretty good football for most of the year.”
Georgia was considered one of the biggest losers of the 2025 NFL draft due to losing nine defensive players in the NFL draft. The Bulldogs also lost nine players via the transfer portal. However, McElroy believes Georgia’s high-level freshmen and sophomores will be able to fill the holes left by the massive exodus.
Only three team defenses ranked ahead of Georgia: Ohio State placed No. 3, Penn State placed No. 2, and SEC rival Texas placed No. 1. Georgia and Texas will play each other in Week 12, and college football fans will see which defense is stronger.
This article originally appeared on UGA Wire: What Greg McElroy thinks of Georgia’s defense
