Athlon Sports Names Georgia No. 8 in 2012 Preseason Top 25 Poll

Athlon Sports, publisher of the No. 1-selling college football magazine, continues the release of its preseason Top 25 poll at www.athlonsports.com. The countdown commences every year in early May and leads to the on-sale date of Athlon's category-leading college football preseason annuals.

To celebrate the Georgia Bulldogs being named No. 8, AthlonSports.com will devote an entire day to the program, including a look at the Top 10 Players for 2012, the Greatest Players since 1967 and a Team Preview. (Direct links are included below.)

Mark Richt’s Georgia Bulldogs continue the countdown at No. 8 with two preseason All-Americans and nine players selected as All-SEC performers. Athlon Sports predicts Georgia will finish first in the SEC’s Eastern Division. In the five year period from 2007-11, Athlon Sports was one of the most accurate preseason magazines in prediction accuracy.*

“Heisman candidate Aaron Murray and one of the best defenses in the nation will lead the Bulldogs this season,” says Athlon Sports Managing Editor Mitch Light. “As long as the running game is sound, Georgia will be the team to beat in the SEC East.”

Two Georgia standouts were named preseason All-Americans, with linebacker Jarvis Jones being voted to the first team and defensive back Bacarri Rambo to the third team. In addition, the UGA linebackers unit was ranked No. 1 nationally. The quarterbacks unit was rated No. 4 in the country and best in the SEC. The defensive line was tabbed No. 7 in the nation, while the wide receivers unit was voted No. 8 in the country.

Nine Bulldogs earned preseason All-SEC honors, including Jones, Rambo and quarterback Aaron Murray on the first team. Running back Isaiah Crowell, wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell, offensive lineman Chris Burnette, defensive lineman Abry Jones, linebacker Alec Ogletree and defensive back Shawn Williams garnered third-team honors.

Georgia Team Preview

Georgia's Top 10 Players of 2012

Georgia’s 10 Greatest Players Since 1967

 *Stassen.com analysis of college football preseason publications.