DEL.ICIO.USMoreno slows down in SEC games
Georgia tailback’s highlight leaps, runs have been stymied in conference play
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Athens — After seeing Knowshon Moreno leap over the head of an upright defender in one game and catapult himself from the 4-yard line into the end zone for a touchdown in another thing, everybody was sure this was going to be a banner season for the Bulldogs’ sophomore tailback.
But as the season has progressed and the competition has stiffened, Moreno has played a little closer to the ground.
Brant Sanderlin / bsanderlin@ajc.com
Knowshon Moreno (24) is hit by Tennessee defensive back Demetrice Morley.
Moreno is still having a fine season. He’s averaging 98.3 yards rushing, which is fourth-best in the SEC and 27th nationally, and he leads the league in scoring at 10 points per game.
But the highlight-reel runs have largely been absent in conference contests. In Georgia’s three SEC games against Tennessee, Alabama and South Carolina, Moreno has averaged 71.3 rushing yards. His longest run from scrimmage was 13 against the Vols on Saturday.
“Here’s what I say about Knowshon: Knowshon’s going to make great runs every game,” coach Mark Richt said. “Knowshon’s going to make people miss. Knowshon’s going to break tackles. The question is where does he start making people miss and where does he start breaking tackles? Does it happen at the line of scrimmage?
“He’s made some a great three-yard runs. I’ve seen him behind the line of scrimmage have to dodge a guy and spin. … I think Knowshon has run every bit as good as he’s ever run.”
What Richt is not saying is Moreno has suffered some from Georgia’s problems on the offensive line. Already a young group, injuries have depleted the unit to the point that it will start three freshmen and two sophomores against Vanderbilt on Saturday.
A season-ending knee injury to junior left tackle Vince Vance against Tennessee forced the latest shuffle. The Bulldogs will use their fourth different group of starters on the offensive line this weekend.
Moreno, for one, is not complaining.
“Well, you can see from the first game until now they have improved,” said Moreno, who rushed for 1,334 yards last season. “If you look back at this last game, you could see [quarterback Matthew] Stafford’s having time to throw the ball around and they opened up holes for the backs to get big gains. I think they’re really improving. I don’t think this latest change is really going to affect us that much.”
It didn’t seem to hurt. Georgia lit up Tennessee for 458 total yards and 29 first downs. They’ve just got to get adjusted to it, communicate and keep on playing football and playing hard.
Services »