Georgia Football: Who Will need To Step Up for the Bulldogs in the Sugar Bowl

The Georgia football team is without five starters, and two more key role players. So, who will need to step up in the Sugar Bowl for Kirby Smart's squad?

The count continues to rise. 

Now seven key players for Georgia will be out of the Sugar Bowl, five of them starters. Andrew Thomas, Isaiah Wilson, J.R. Reed, Tyler Clark, Ben Cleveland, Brian Herrien, and Divaad Wilson are all absent from the trip to New Orleans. 

So, who will have to step up and replace the production of two All-Americans, and five total starters? We take a look at some of the young guys that will get extended playing time in the Sugar Bowl. 

Offensive Line: 

With both starting tackles out of the contest, Cade Mays and Jamaree Salyer will likely slide out to the edges to start, then you will see a hodgepodge of offensive linemen rotated in. Smart said in his presser yesterday that almost ten guys have rotated in with the ones over the last several weeks of practice. 

Some young names to be on the lookout for are Clay Webb, Warren Ericson and Xavier Truss. Especially Ericson and Truss, the two freshmen tackles are expected to get extensive run in Wednesday's contest. 

Running back: 

Though D'Andre Swift was available for the practices leading up to the Sugar Bowl, his health status is still questionable, to say the least. And without Brian Herrien on the trip, one could rightfully assume that Zamir White, James Cook, and Kenny McIntosh will be getting the majority of the touches. 

D-Line: 

The depth of the defensive line from Georgia has been talked about for the majority of the season, and it's something that Matt Rhule spoke about in his press conference yesterday. Georgia losing Clark for the matchup certainly hurts, but that position group is as deep as they come. 

There are no new names to really look out for here. The majority of the younger guys like Travon Walker and Nolan Smith have played a good bit all season. Clark's absence will only extend Walker's playing time one would assume. 

Defensive Back: 

Lewis Cine got his first career start in the SEC Championship, as Georgia opened the game in a 7-defensive back set against LSU. Now, with J.R. Reed nursing a foot injury, Cine will most likely get his first true start at the safety position. 

Cine posted a career-high six tackles in the SEC Championship and is one of Georgia's fastest players. 

As for Divaad Wilson's playing time that he occupied, junior STAR Mark Webb has gotten the majority of the starts at the position and will presumably get another one Wednesday. I would expect to see Tyrique Stevenson to get some run at the position as well now that Wilson is out. 

For all the talk about bowl games no longer mattering, one thing is for certain. Win, lose, or draw, coach Kirby Smart and Georgia fans alike will get a good look at the very near future of the program.