As another UM season opens, what’s clear is that Mark Richt and his staff have elevated this program to a level just below elite.
What’s less clear is just how big a gap remains between eighth-ranked UM and the elite of college football — Alabama, Georgia, Clemson — and perhaps Ohio State and Oklahoma. As perspective, consider Alabama had 18 five-star recruits on its team last year and Georgia 11. (UM had one and only two now.) Clemson has three likely top 12 overall 2019 draft picks; UM doesn’t have any.
So how big is the gap?