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Florida grew into the powerhouse that won the 2006 national title. LSU won it last year, and Auburn went unbeaten in 2004 and probably should've been playing for the whole ball of wax.

Now it should be Georgia's turn.

Phenomenally successful under head coach Mark Richt, with 64 wins in the last six seasons with two SEC titles, the Bulldogs have been among the elite of the elite teams, but they haven't been able to put together that one special season at the right time to get their first national title since 1980. This year's team is the one that can change all that.

Considering Georgia's history of great running backs, it's saying a lot that many consider Knowshon Moreno the best Dawg runner since Herschel Walker. The no-name defense that finished 14th in the nation gets nine starters back, Matthew Stafford is considered by many to be the best NFL quarterback prospect in college football, and the offensive line could grow to be among the best in school history. It's all there to finally get over the hump.

Now the team has to show it can do it with the lights on.

Georgia always seems to do its best work when it's flying just barely under the radar, but now everyone will be watching.

Over the last seven years under Richt, Georgia has been the nation's best program that hasn't been able to get over the hump. It doesn't fall into the Texas A&M/UCLA/Michigan State category of programs that have the potential to explode, but haven't; this is a bona-fide, every-year-top-10 superpower that has won two SEC titles and came up with a whale of a 2002 season, but wasn't in the national title game because of Miami and Ohio State.

This is Georgia's year. This is the time when everything has to come together for a national championship. An SEC title would be nice, another BCS appearance would be solid, but unless Richt is holding that crystal football in Miami at around 11:30 p.m. on Jan. 8, 2009, this season will be a failure. While that might seem harsh, with the level of excellence set by the rest of the SEC when it comes to winning national titles, it's an all-or-nothing year for a Dawg team that's really that good.

What to watch for on offense: Can the receivers come through? Stafford is the type of quarterback who can make everyone around him better, and Moreno is a next-level-caliber talent who can take the focus of the offense away from the passing game. But for Georgia to navigate through the nasty SEC waters and win the title, and play for the national championship, it needs more through the air. The passing numbers weren't awful, averaging just under 200 yards per game, but it was an inefficient attack. Mohamed Massaquoi and Kenneth Harris have the experience, but it might be a bunch of young players, like A.J. Green and Tavarres King, who make it all happen.

What to watch for on defense: The emergence of Dannell Ellerbe. There aren't any nationally known defensive stars, at least compared to the offense, but there are plenty of All-America caliber talents, like CB Asher Allen and DTs Geno Atkins and Jeff Owens. Ellerbe should be the star who brings it all together in his middle spot. If he's the NFL-caliber playmaker he's supposed to be, the defense goes from being a killer to one of the top five in America.

This team will be much better if ... the passing game is more consistent. The running game is in place, the offensive line is terrific, and Matthew Stafford is one of the top NFL quarterback prospects. So why can't the Bulldogs get more through the air? If the receivers are merely consistent and can keep the chains moving, the rest of the offense will open up.

The schedule: Everyone will know right away if Georgia is a national title contender with road trips to South Carolina and Arizona State by Sept. 20. The interdivision draw couldn't be any worse than facing Alabama and going on the road to play LSU and Auburn with both Tiger games bookending a brutal four-week stretch of at LSU, Florida, at Kentucky, at Auburn. Throw in a sneaky-tough early game against two-time defending MAC champion Central Michigan and its explosive spread offense, and the regular-season ender against Georgia Tech and an option that should be jelled by the end of November, and the Dawgs will truly earn a spot in the national title game if they get through with just one blemish.

Best offensive player: Sophomore RB Knowshon Moreno. Originally was seen as a nice option for down the road after showing a good flash and nice power in 2007 spring ball, he turned into the main man with 1,334 yards and 14 touchdowns averaging 5.4 yards per carry. It's a stretch to say he carried the Bulldogs over the second half of the season, but yeah, he sort of carried the Bulldogs over the second half of the season. At 207 pounds, he can run between the tackles, but he's at his most dangerous when he gets a little room to move.

Best defensive player: Junior CB Asher Allen. Allen made the step up from being a nice reserve to a fantastic all-around playmaker with 64 tackles, good for second on the team, three interceptions and five broken-up passes. He plays much bigger than his 5-foot-10 and 198 pounds with great open-field tackling skills, while his tremendous speed and quickness makes him a strong option on any No. 1 receiver.

Key player to a successful season: Senior DE Jeremy Lomax. One of the team's biggest losses is on the end where Sugar Bowl superstar Marcus Howard is gone, taking with him 10.5 sacks. The 6-4, 247-pound Lomax has the potential to flourish with all the attention paid to the rest of the line, and he has to come through after spending his career as a decent reserve.

The season will be a success if ... the Bulldogs play for the national title. The schedule might be too nasty to go unbeaten, but there's no reason this can't be the year they finally break through the ceiling under Mark Richt and play for the whole ball of wax. There's too much talent to shoot for anything lower.

Key game: Nov. 1 vs. Florida. The cute little stunt (that worked) to fire up the team with the mass show of support on the field in last year's game has only stoked the fire of what might be the biggest game of the 2008 season. It's not an overstatement to suggest that the winner of this game will win the East, the SEC and the national title.

OFFENSE

Knowshon Moreno is a big reason why Georgia's so highly rated this season. (Ronald Martinez / Getty Images)

The offense was opportunistic and it put points on the board, but it didn't move the ball nearly as well as you'd think considering the team put up 40 or more points six times. It was a balanced attack, but it's no coincidence the season changed and the Dawgs got good, really good, once the young offensive line fully jelled and RB Knowshon Moreno turned into a superstar. There's as much talent and potential on the three-deep depth chart as any team in America, but for all the promise and all the high school accolades, there are still question marks. Will the receivers start producing on a regular basis, or will they just look the part without really being the devastating group they should be? Will QB Matthew Stafford fulfill his destiny and become a top pro prospect? Will all the redshirt freshmen from a terrific 2007 class be ready for primetime right away? There are simply too many good players to be 74th in the nation in total offense again, and with a line like the Bulldogs have, and with the talent in the backfield, it won't be.

Quarterbacks: Stafford might turn out to be the best NFL quarterback Georgia has developed in decades, and now he's about to turn his game up a notch. At least that's the hope. He has all the tools, a great line to work behind, a terrific running game to take the pressure off, and an improved receiving corps. In other words, it's all there for him to rock. Joe Cox is a nice No. 2, and with other strong prospects waiting in the wings, this is a good situation.

Running backs: There's a slew of great young running back talent to get fired up about, three good fullbacks to use in a variety of situations, and a future top draft pick in Knowshon Moreno. As always, Georgia has more than enough options to fill in the gaps if something goes wrong, and there's no reason the ground game should be anything other than unstoppable no matter who's toting the rock. The only thing missing is a sure-thing No. 2 back with a proven track record, but remember, it's not like Moreno was a proven commodity going into last year. Caleb King will soon grow into a superstar of his own.

Receivers: If everyone plays up to their potential and their possibilities, especially veteran Mo Massaquoi, this will be a devastating corps, but at the moment, it's the big X factor between Georgia being really good and being a national champion. Having a quarterback like Stafford makes everyone look better, and there will certainly be plenty of chances for big plays and plenty of opportunities to shine. Now it's time for the Georgia receiving corps to be a strength, and not just a collection of guys. This is the million-dollar receiving corps that boasts brilliant high school resumes across the board. There's plenty of speed, lots of talent, and size, size, size, with most of the top options going 6-2 and taller.

Offensive Line: What was a huge, glaring concern and a possible Achilles heel going into last year turned into, arguably, the team's biggest strength. Sometimes learning on the fly, the green line that was supposed to need a ton of time ended up allowing a mere 15 sacks in 365 pass attempts while paving the way for a killer running game that dominated over the second half of the year. OT Trinton Sturdivant is special and will be sorely missed after tearing up his knee, but Chris Davis and Clint Boling are going to be all-stars, and there's more than enough good talent waiting in the wings just looking for a chance to play. While everyone will expect big things out of this group, merely being as good as last year would suffice.

DEFENSE

Considering last season's unit was supposed to be a problem with no experience and several holes to fill, finishing 14th in the nation in total defense and 18th in scoring D, allowing 323 yards and 20 points per game, showed how quickly this program rebuilds. Now the defense is loaded with former high school all-stars who have grown into great college players. There's depth, options, and the potential for an even better rotation with a loaded defense that'll be dominant at times. The only downside is the lack of a sure-thing pass-rushing end, with Marcus Howard gone, but there will be pressure from all four spots up front, led by the tackle pair of Geno Atkins and Jeff Owens, while the linebacking corps will be solid, if not spectacular. The secondary grew into something special by the end of the year, and now it should be terrific led by soon-to-be all-stars CB Asher Allen and FS Reshad Jones.

Defensive Line: After underachieving in 2006 and overachieving a bit last year, the line comes back loaded with talent, experience and depth for each spot. The tackles are tremendous and the ends are great against the run. Few offenses will be able to consistently run on this group, but it might take a little while before the pass rush emerges from the ends. There might not be much in the way of national superstar power, but that will quickly change; this could grow into the SEC's best line in a hurry. Geno Atkins and Jeff Owens might not be household names, but they could form the nation's best tackle tandem. Kade Weston and Corvey Irvin are active inside presences who'd start for most teams.

Linebackers: The linebacking corps supposedly needed a year to get ready, and as it turned out, it needed a half a season. Now the corps is ready to be special with a nice starting threesome led by star Dannell Ellerbe to lead a group of young players with fantastic high school resumes. There's speed, athleticism and big-hitting playmakers to burn, and there's even more depth in the rotation. The second team isn't quite interchangeable with the first team, but it's not far off. At the very least, the second-teamers would form a strong starting trio for about 100 other teams.

Secondary: The secondary was a major concern going into last year with top corner Paul Oliver kicked off the team, but the pass rush saved the day early and allowed the young prospects to jell into a strong unit. While there's no questioning the talent, teams that could protect the passer were able to produce on the Dawg back four. Tennessee's Erik Ainge was effective, and so was Troy's Omar Haugabook, but once the DBs got their feet wet, they were nasty. Georgia picked off only two passes in the first eight games, and 13 in the final five; by then it wasn't just because of the pass rush. FS Jones will be one of the SEC's best, Asher Allen is one of the league's best all-around corners, and C.J. Byrd and Prince Miller are solid.

Special Teams: Senior Brian Mimbs will handle the punting duties after averaging 42.4 yards per kick and putting 16 inside the 20, and he'll start out with an early line on replacing irreplaceable PK Brandon Coutu, who hit 18 of 23 field goals. While Mimbs has a big leg, he'll have to battle with true freshman Blair Walsh, who won't be in the mix until fall camp. Redshirt freshman Drew Butler, son of Georgia legend Kevin Butler, will also get a look. Top corner Asher Allen is also the team's top return man, averaging 24.6 yards per kickoff return. He'll take over the punt-return duties, with Prince Miller also seeing a little bit of work.