Competition Welcomed

Dewberry moves up
BY JOSH KENDALL
The Macon Telegraph

One week after head coach Mark Richt bragged on the progress of Dannell Ellerbe , the junior linebacker has taken a step back.

Sophomore Darius Dewberry , a graduate of Peach County High School, moved to the starting spot at weakside linebacker Wednesday thanks to his performance in Saturday's scrimmage.

\"I'm going to play the best three linebackers and coming out of the scrimmage, I was happy with (Dewberry, middle linebacker Brandon Miller and strongside linebacker Akeem Dent ) and not as pleased with Dannell so I made the move,\" linebackers coach John Jancek said.

While this may simply be a move to motivate Ellerbe, Dewberry is for now slated to be with the first-team defense in Saturday's G-Day game, Jancek said. Dewberry played sparingly in a reserve role last year and finished with six tackles.

\"He doesn't know the position (weakside linebacker) right now, but in the long run for him to get some reps at weak side linebacker and some cross training is going to be crucial to his overall development and getting him on the field,\" Jancek said.

It's likely by the time the fall rolls around, or even by G-Day, Ellerbe will be back with the starters on the weak side. Ellerbe has made 22 tackles in his career, which has been hampered by injury and off-field issues. Georgia's coaches are very pleased with the progress of Dent, a redshirt freshman, and expect to platoon Dent and Dewberry on the strong side this year.

\"They are two guys that can really play the position, very athletic and very strong,\" Richt said. \"Of course, they're young and they'll probably get fooled a little bit here or there, but you probably couldn't draw them up better than those two guys right there. And they're great kids, great competitors.\"

Redshirt freshman linebacker Akeem Hebron has missed all but the first three spring practices due to a hamstring injury, and he will not play in the G-Day game.

Practice report

Georgia worked out for almost two hours Wednesday afternoon, and the Bulldog defense bounced back after being knocked around by the offense in a Saturday scrimmage.

\"The defense definitely got the best of the day and they enjoyed that after the scrimmage on Monday,\" Richt said. \"It was a little bit of a comeback for the D, which you could just about predict.\"

Offensive lineman Vince Vance , who has missed most of spring practice due to a MCL sprain, returned to full contact work on Wednesday.

\"Vance went the whole day, and (head athletic trainer Ron Courson ) said he did great,\" Richt said. \"He'll probably play in the game.\"

Live on CSS

The Bulldogs annual G-Day game will be televised live by CSS. The game kicks off at 2 p.m. Saturday in Sanford Stadium, and Georgia's No. 1 offense will face its No. 2 defense. The No. 1 defense will go against the No. 2 offense.

Proceeds of this year's game go to Hope Haven, a private corporation that helps individuals with developmental disabilities in the Athens area.