Continued improvement of Amarius Mims important for Georgia offensive line
ATHENS, Ga. — Tate Ratledge was vocal about wanting to see more out of the Georgia offensive line this week. The guy he plays next to – Amarius Mims – plays a big part in that happening.
In his first season as Georgia’s starting right tackle, Mims had huge expectations put on him. Mims was named First-Team All-SEC in the preseason by both the media and the coaches.
And while it makes sense that folks would put their faith into the former five-star and No. 10 overall player from the Class of 2021, Ratledge said he wants to start seeing a ‘mean streak’ out of Mims.
“I think he’s a physical freak. Like I said for all of us, I’d like to see a mindset of finishing people because I know he can do it better than anybody out there,” Ratledge said. “I think he’s a phenomenal player, but a mean streak is what I think I’m looking for. He’s a great player, I love playing next to him, he helps me out a lot and I try to help him out as much as I can. I really enjoy playing next to him.”
Those words aren’t meant to be a shot at Mims by any means. As Ratledge made clear, having the 6-foot-7, 340-pound freak beside him is incredibly helpful. Instead, they should be taken as a sign of the untapped potential that’s there for Mims as he continues to get used to being a starter.
Kirby Smart on the other hand doesn’t see Mims as a first-year starter however. With as much as Mims played last season – over 35% of Georgia’s total offensive snaps with two games in the College Football Playoffs that he started – he was essentially a starter last season. Still, there was room for improvement entering this season and still is two games in.
“Amarius has done a good job. He’s played well, especially in the pass game and continues to work on the run game with getting movement,” Smart said. “He’s a guy that got really good experience last year in terms of the end of the year with the injuries we had. He really played like a starter last year. He’s continued to do that this year. He and the rest of the o-line unit, we need a really solid performance out of them in terms of protection and movement up front to create run game.”
Mims and the Bulldogs open SEC play this weekend in Athens. Top-ranked and 2-0, Georgia welcomes South Carolina to town for the SEC Game of the Week. Kickoff time form Sanford Stadium is set for 3:30 p.m. ET on CBS.
