INGLEWOOD, California – Brock Bowers, the 6-foot-4, 230-pound Georgia tight end who moves like a receiver and is a matchup nightmare for every opponent, reminds TCU head coach Sonny Dykes of another young tight end he coached 15 years ago as the offensive coordinator at Arizona.
“We had a tight end named Rob Gronkowski who was a pretty good player,” stated Dykes on Sunday morning.
Before Gronkowski, air-raid disciple Dykes had rarely ever lined up with a tight end. But having a candidate of this caliber in the job altered everything. And when questioned about Georgia’s two-tight end setup on Sunday before the national championship game, he recalled those days.
“Most people, when they go 12 [one running back, two tight ends], take two good players off the field and replace them with two average players,” Dykes explained. Georgia is undoubtedly the exception to this rule. Their tight ends are remarkable. They are 270-pound wide receivers who can block, like Rob.”
Bowers and fellow tight end Darnell Washington have amassed over 1,200 receiving yards for the Bulldogs this season, with Bowers leading the way. The Californian sophomore also received the John Mackey Award as the nation’s finest tight end.
“I recall watching him on film when I first arrived here,” said the offensive coordinator for Georgia, Todd Monken. “He was not a true Air Raid Y. He was more of a novelty running back F; pass the ball to him. This is where you can see some of his unique abilities, namely his ability to run after the catch, and there are numerous methods to get the ball to him.”
Bowers will leave TCU hunting for an answer that has baffled the SEC throughout the whole season.
Joe Gillespie, defensive coordinator for the Horned Frogs, remarked, “This creates a problem for defenses, as you now have tight ends who can split out.” “They are heavily employed in the passing game and receive numerous targets, especially for a Georgia. They have a tight end that resembles a Swiss Army knife. I mean, he can do everything!”
There are no prizes for guessing who it is.
Kendre Miller (knee) will participate in a “full-speed run-through” on Sunday before the Horned Frogs determine his availability for Monday’s game, per Dykes.
Obviously, Kendre will want to play, said Dykes.
l “This is a huge stage. He is a tough youth.”
Georgia head coach Kirby Smart stated that the Bulldogs hoped to have Washington prepared for Monday. Also uncertain are right tackle Warren McClendon and linebacker Chaz Chambliss.
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