Matthew Stafford News

Led by Knowshon Moreno, Georgia responded just fine after being bounced from No.

Clint Boling made plenty of noise last season straight out of Chattahoochee High School.

One reporter thought he had gotten a great scoop when he asked Central Michigan coach Butch Jones if he planned to do anything different for Saturday's game against No.

Georgia's Justin Fields, above, will back up Shaun Chapas at fullback in today's opener against Georgia Southern.

Defensive tackle Jeff Owens sustained an ACL injury in Saturday's season opener and will be out for the rest of the season.

Knowshon Moreno rushed for three touchdowns and Matthew Stafford passed for two scores, as top-ranked Georgia opened its season with a 45-21 triumph over Georgia Southern.

Georgia coach Mark Richt shouldn't have to bring up Appalachian State when warning his No. 1 team about the danger of opening against Georgia Southern on Saturday.

The Mountaineers, who compete with Georgia Southern in the Southern Conference, rocked college football by beating No. 5 Michigan in an opener last year.

Later that season, Georgia Southern won at Appalachian State.

'That gets my attention,' Richt said.

And if that doesn't get the Bulldogs' attention, he can just remind them what happened four years ago.

So this is where the season begins for Georgia. The Bulldogs are consensus No. 1 and coach Mark Richt is stocked with as much talent and depth as he's had since he set up shop in Athens seven years ago.

Not since Herschel Walker's last game in a Georgia uniform - more than a quarter century ago - have the Bulldogs taken the field as the No.

One year ago, Georgia had reason to worry about opening the season with three freshmen on its offensive line, but at least coach Mark Richt could look forward to having a strong returning nucleus in 2008.

The top-ranked Georgia Bulldogs put their lofty ranking on the line this weekend at home, as they open their 2008 schedule against instate foe Georgia Southern.

A.J. Green may be the Georgia receiver that fans are most eager to see play Saturday against Georgia Southern, but if the Bulldogs' depth chart released Tuesday holds true, the freshman won't be the first one ...

Knowshon Moreno is hoping that a revamped offensive line won't slow Georgia's offense this season.

Mark Richt couldn't hide his enthusiasm after he made the climb to the press box to watch Georgia's spring game in April.

His picture adorned an article in USA Today that proclaimed his team the preseason No.

For a season and a half, Matthew Stafford has been Georgia's quarterback, but not necessarily the Bulldogs' leader - more of a caretaker than a playmaker.

Matthew Stafford has started only 21 college games and thrown just 604 passes but already is being viewed as a potential high pick in the 2009 NFL draft if he decides to skip his senior season at Georgia.

Submitted by Marc Weiszer on Fri, 08/22/2008 - 4:49pm. We've got our college football preview section coming out in our Sunday paper and online.

Georgia completed its first practice game Thursday in preparation for its regular-season opener against Georgia Southern.

Fans who show up for Georgia's Picture Day today at Sanford Stadium aren't the only ones that will miss out on getting a photo snapped with Bulldogs mascot, Uga, this weekend.