Athens — The college football rankings are months from being announced.

Actual games are even further away.

But the talk of a national championship around Georgia refuses to die. In fact the din will grow to a ear-splitting roar as the season gets closer. Georgia is a team many want to invest in for the 2008 season. Not monetarily of course, no one would ever gamble on college football. But, at least emotionally, a few people might consider wrapping their heartstrings around the Bulldogs.

Fans are starting to get their hopes up.

Georgia coach Mark Richt is trying not to fuel the flames.

He has pulled out a reminder of his 1988 Florida State team that was preseason No. 1 and lost 31-0 to Miami in the opener. He has talked about the toughness of Georgia's schedule. He has regurgitated the "one day, one hour" at a time quote over and over.

In short, Richt is doing what he can to not dampen the enthusiasm but at least temper it with statements like this: "We could either continue to progress or regress. I would hate to think we wasted all this time to regress."

But, really, Richt is fighting a losing battle.

People have taken stock of what Georgia has and they are buying in. Now, following four weeks of spring practice, here is even further analysis for those ready to invest.

Quarterback: Buy

Matthew Stafford proved he had the physical skills to excel as a freshman. But this spring he started to mature into his role and become the natural leader of the offense. Now he is looking toward continuing that trend throughout the summer.

"No coaches can do anything from here on out so it is up to us to get this thing going and I am excited about it," Stafford said. "I think I am more motivated (than in the past). Not even just because of the national championship hopes or anything like that. I just know what kind of talent we have. I know what kind of hard work it takes.

Wide receivers: Buy

Georgia didn't have two of its top four receivers, was missing its tight end, didn't have the impact freshman, Tavarres King, and still made big plays in the G-Day game. A lot of that was due to Michael Moore. The junior who disappeared last season, reappeared this spring and had two touchdown catches to cap off the spring.

"He just keeps on capitalizing on the opportunities that he gets," backup quarterback Logan Gray said. "He got a whole bunch of reps and we kept throwing balls to him and he kept making plays. You can't ask for much more than that."

Georgia will get more than that come fall. Mohamed Massaquoi, Tony Wilson and King will be back from injuries. And the nation's No. 2 wide receiver prospect, A.J. Green, is set to join the fold.

Maturity: Hold

The players are 18-22 years old. There is nothing but national championship talk swirling around them. Their heads are going to be in the clouds. And it is tough to focus up there.

"I am sure they are thinking about it and talking about it," said offensive coordinator Mike Bobo about the national championship. "And what they should aspire to do is win championships at Georgia. We should be motivated every year to get the very best out of every day, day in and day out.

"But they are 18-22 and sometimes they think they have arrived before they have actually arrived and that is our job to consistently keep them motivated," Bobo said.

But the coaches can't do that now. The players are own their own now that spring practice has concluded. "We have got to have guys step up and lead in the offseason program, seven on sevens, organizing some walk-throughs," Bobo said. "They have got to do a good job of that in the summer to make sure that we not only get bigger and stronger and faster but we get mentally prepared going into the season."

Running backs: Buy

Knowshon Moreno proved his value last year. Caleb King proved his in the spring game.

"He played great," Stafford said. "When there was nothing there he hit the hole just to make something happen.

"He is a big-time player,' Stafford said.

King had 31 yards on six carries and two catches for 17 yards.

Behind him Richard Samuel, a true freshman, could be ready for playing time in the fall. But there is no question the backfield will feature a heavy dose of Moreno and King.

"(King) was spinning off of tackles and breaking tackles," wide receiver Kris Durham said. "Him and Knowshon, they are both so agile and quick. Caleb has probably got the best cut back when he sticks his foot in the ground. It's the best I have ever seen."

Offensive line: Hold

Not a great word to associate with the offensive line but there is little doubt this group is a work in progress. To be fair it was a unit that was without maybe its best player, Clint Boling, due to mono. But still Richt has not see consistency from that spot.

"We are just not in sync yet," he said. "We don't know who our top five is yet. That is going to take a little time we are hoping to find as many as eight or nine, 10 would be glorious but I don't know if we are going to get to that point."

Defense: Buy

The offense was able to put a few big plays together against the defense, but overall this unit is faster, deeper and more athletic than it has been in years.

Richt has praised the linebacker combo of Rennie Curran and Dannell Ellerbe throughout the spring. Darryl Gamble has proven he is versatile enough and good enough to play all three positions and play significant time there.

Safety Reshad Jones has started to figure out where to go and that has allowed his natural instincts to come back.

Jarius Wynn showed it is going to be hard to keep him off the field at defensive end. And up the middle Georgia is as strong as anyone with Jeff Owens, Geno Atkins and Kade Weston.

"This year it is an older team and you feel more comfortable with the people here that are in the major positions because they have done it for a long time," junior cornerback Asher Allen said. "This team we can do a lot of things. But the big question is are we going to do it?"