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Profile: Ledbetter ready to fill UGA's dual-vacuum need for leaders, linebackers

Someone definitely raised UGA's Jonathan Ledbetter the right way. Just like someone taught him how to dress to impress at Tuesday's session of SEC Media Days.

ATLANTA—Someone certainly raised UGA linebacker Jonathan Ledbetter the right way, regarding the nuances of life.

Just like someone taught him how to dress to impress, in perhaps the most important public appearance of his young life.

On Tuesday morning, before a small assemblage of local and national media, prior to Day 2 of the SEC Media Days, Ledbetter was holding court near a hotel pool, meticulously dressed in a perfectly pressed black suit, white silk shirt and pink bow tie.

Throughout the session, Ledbetter amiably answered questions dealing with last year's ups and downs (SEC champs/losing a heartbreaker to Alabama in the College Football Playoff title game), along with the pressure of handling absurdly lofty expectations for the coming season, even though UGA incurred plenty of defensive turnover during the offseason.

Among the key defensive losses: Linebacker Roquan Smith (1st-round pick, Chicago Bears), rush end Lorenzo Carter (3rd-round pick, New York Giants), defensive tackle Trenton Thompson (5 sacks, 13 tackles for loss the previous two seasons), linebacker Davin Bellamy (10 sacks, 17 tackles for loss the previous two years) and defensive back Aaron Davis, a stabilizing force in the secondary for four years.

Yes, everything was going perfectly smooth for Ledbetter ... until the clock struck 8.

At that point, while intently listening to a question, Ledbetter seemed momentarily confounded by the melodic noise of an unseen smartphone. He then realized it was his own phone, conveniently tucked in the breast pocket of his jacket.

That's when comedy ensued.

"Oh, excuse me, that's my alarm," said Ledbetter, with a tinge of embarrassment. "I would have missed (the early media session), if I had woken up to this (alarm call)."

The media horde had a hearty laugh; but from my angle, I was also privy to something quirky and extraordinary: Ledbetter had reserved two different alarm apps for a wake-up call—at precisely 8 a.m.

The message here: Meeting with the media will never be a life-changing event for college athletes. In this realm, they've seen and heard all the questions.

That aside, Ledbetter still couldn't wait to start this grueling day, full of seemingly endless media sessions, TV interviews, taking pictures with UGA fans and generally serving as a one-man welcoming committee with every step through the Omni Hotel and adjacent College Football Hall of Fame.

Must ... be ... the ... bow ... tie!

That's called leadership, putting others above yourself and prioritizing one's time; and it's perhaps the most vital component to a championship-contending team.

****

So, Mr. Ledbetter, how do you expect the Bulldogs to compensate for the substantial turnover among the defensive front seven?

For starters, Ledbetter believes he can handle the labyrinth of responsibilities at outside linebacker, namely setting the edge.

Secondly, he's eagerly anticipating the addition of Notre Dame grad transfer Jay Hayes, who could be dynamic in the trenches.

"We’ll be able to go big up front, have close to three 300-pound D-linemen and at (defensive end). I’m at 280 right now, and I can play at that," says Ledbetter. "It’s good to set edges, so we can play big up front when we play those (type) teams.”

And finally, Ledbetter has immense faith in the small army of blue-chip freshmen and sophomores nipping at the coaches' heels for significant playing time.

"We just did it," says Ledbetter, responding to how UGA will reload at linebacker. "We have a lot of talent ... now, it's just about getting the young guys reps."

So, Mr. Ledbetter, how do you think Georgia will fare in its bid to repeat as SEC East champs ... and perhaps take down Alabama in either the conference title game or CFP championship? How does one handle the sky-high expectations?

"It's a little different, and I will say, this is kind of a weird answer, but it's a little dangerous," says Ledbetter, cutting a large, but surprisingly sleek figure at 6-foot-4, 280. "You know, (sometimes) the thought of complacency comes in, and you've just got to push it out.

"You hear people say, 'Oh, they're definitely going (to the CFP semis), they've got it all.' Of course, that's the main goal, but you've got to take that one game at a time."

The Bulldogs (13-2 last year) shouldn't have much difficulty handling their business in week-to-week increments.

They have driven players and intensely focused coaches pulling the strings. It also helps to arguably possess the SEC's easiest schedule, among likely bowl contenders.

**Austin Peay, Middle Tennessee, UMass and Georgia Tech covering the non-conference slate—all at home.

**Eminently doable home matchups with Tennessee and Vanderbilt, leading to the crescendo of butting heads with Auburn on Nov. 10 (in Athens).

**The only other potential blemishes come on neutral or enemy turf. But even in a worst-case scenario, it's hard to imagine UGA sustaining multiple losses to the likes of South Carolina (road), Missouri (road), LSU (road), Florida (Jacksonville) and Kentucky (road).

QUICK NOTE I: UGA has knocked off Kentucky eight straight times, with an average victory margin of 19.6 points.

As such, even if South Carolina upends UGA on Sept. 8, good luck placing a bet on the Gamecocks finishing the SEC at 7-1 during the regular season.

With Kentucky (road), Missouri (home), Texas A&M (home), Ole Miss (road) and Florida (road) on the docket, a 3-2 mark would likely be the maximum bar of achievement.

QUICK NOTE II: If you're looking for a more viable bet, what about Missouri's Drew Lock and South Carolina's Jake Bentley going 1-2, among quarterbacks, in next year's NFL draft?

Coach Smart won't acknowledge the relative ease of this year's schedule—that's the media's job anyway—in concrete terms; but his intensity for the upcoming season was palpable on Tuesday morning ... just a few minutes after Ledbetter's smartphone sounded the superfluous alarm.

"Every team is independent from the previous one," says Smart, who's not wired to purely judge seasons on wins, losses and expectations. (Once again, that's our job!) "We look at it as, 'Potential vs. Effectiveness.'

"... We're constantly trying to get the most (out of our players). This year, it will be (about) being ready tactically, mentally and physically. We've got to do the best we've ever done preparing this group."

So, no complacency with a revamped defense that held seven opponents to 14 or fewer points last season?

"The intensity of your coaching staff really has an effect on that," says Smart, who similar to his longtime coaching mentor, Nick Saban, preaches the stealth art of giving out immediate feedback to players during adverse situations.

There's also one more secret ingredient to daily success, in Smart's laser-focused world: W-O-R-K.

Ledbetter would almost certainly agree with his coach's sentiment. They're cut from the same cloth.

For anecdotal proof, look no further than the pair's first encounter, during Ledbetter's high-school years in Tucker, Ga.

Persistence, as with sports and life, in general, may be the key to everything.

"(Meeting Smart the first time) was great," recalls Ledbetter. "He recruited me to Alabama. It's weird to have him (eventually) come on board to Georgia. He said he would coach me, and I was kind of like, 'OK, I'm going to Alabama, and he'll coach me there' ... and ended up going to Georgia.

"Best decision I've ever made in my life, and a year down the road, he ended up being my head coach."

In turn, Smart (21-7 overall record) would be immensely proud of his senior's development, mentoring a herd of freshmen and sophomore defenders who will be called upon for steady active duty. Bank on it.

For tangible proof, look no further than Ledbetter parroting the talking points of Smart and defensive coordinator Mel Tucker, in terms of being physical, being relentless and always maintaining one's composure on the field.

"You can't worry about the outside noise," says Ledbetter, while channeling his inner-Smart. "The (back-slappers) are not really in there (at UGA's practice facility), doing it with you ... it's kind of like a family thing, keep it in house."

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