Chris Low has a great Q & A with 2009 Georgia Bulldog QB Joe Cox. Cox continues to impress by saying all the right things while exuding a calm confidence in he and his teammate’s abilities.

This is why everyone is excited about Joe Cox.

What do you provide to this offense?

JC: I’m a competitor, and with me being a vocal leader and being a real fiery guy with the way I play on the field, I think that can bring a spark to the offense that we maybe haven’t had in the past. I know I don’t have the strongest arm. I’m not the fastest guy or the tallest guy, but I’m going to do everything in my power to win games.

While Stafford’s gifts were unparalleled his leadership style left a lot of fans wondering if he was too passive on the gridiron. That, if things went off the rails he lacked the tools get things back on course. This may be a little unfair to Matthew but no doubt the fans will enjoy the change in leadership style that Cox brings.

First though, Cox has to get the job done on the field. Will Cox come out looking like the QB that brought Georgia back from the brink against Colorado or will he sputter and force things like he did against Ole Miss the very next week? I think it’s a lot less likely now but how much patience will Richt have before he sends in Logan Gray?

Answers will begin to emerge to all of these questions at the G-Day game on April 11.

Since the Diamond Dogs got rained out tonight at Alabama and the basketball team crashed and burned in Tampa last night, I started to peruse my usual haunts (see left-margin links) for interesting tidbits about the Dogs.

It didn’t take me long to find this bit about Georgia’s 2009 quarterback situation over at Dr. Saturday’s preview of SEC teams with unsettled QB situations.

Georgia: Logan Gray vs. The Memory of That One Game Against Colorado Three Years Ago. Relevant Dynamic(s): “Pocket guy” vs. “Athlete”; Exciting new faces. Before there was Matt Stafford, Number One Pick, there was Matt Stafford, Overwhelmed Freshman, who led three scoreless quarters at home against an atrocious Colorado outfit in 2006. It took fellow freshman Joe Cox to come off the bench for a 14-point fourth quarter rally to avoid one of the more humiliating losses in recent Bulldog memory, after which Cox quickly ceded the stage back to his more-hyped rookie teammate and was never heard from again.

Yep, that is Cox’s moment. He’s also been getting good reviews in the fire and leadership department. The article goes on to imply that Cox will be sharing significant playing time, or be beaten out Logan Gray.

I actually don’t disagree with this, but the article compares Cox to Joe T. as someone who is only going to get their shot at starter as a matter of courtesy. This, I disagree with. I believe Joe Cox has all the necessary tools for Georgia to win, but that it will be Logan Gray’s athleticism that will be impossible to suppress.

Cox may well be the starter all season with Gray coming in for a change of pace but my instinct tells me the offense will be seeing more Gray by the time the cocktail party rolls around.

We all know Gray and Cox are going to play a lot this year, and we’re fortunate they’re both DGDs who will handle the situation with patience and class. The real interesting question may be… which freshmen QB sees the field in 2009?

A pretty casual Q & A with Georgia QB Joe Cox. Most interesting items:

How would you rank the top 5 BCS conferences?
SEC, Big 12, ACC, PAC 10, Big 10.

Is there anyone who doesn’t rate the Big 10 the worst BCS conference? Maybe Steve Spurrier.

Who is your biggest rival?
Florida, definitely.

Though, I’d like to see more players answer with Georgia Tech, it makes perfect sense that Florida is number one to them. The neutral field, big game environment along with the fact almost every goal Georgia has relies on a victory against the Gators to be achieved makes the game in Jacksonville the most important one of the season.

Also, the Charlotte Observer has a nice sit down with Georgia’s current number one QB.

The Athens Banner-Herald has a story comparing the 2005 Georgia Bulldogs to the 2009 Georgia Bulldogs. The most obvious similarities are the previous year’s disappointments and the QB situation; a patient fifth year senior rising to take his much-deserved turn at the helm of the offense.

A key difference though is that Shockley had challenged Greene consistently the previous three years. In 2002 I believe you could make the argument that Shockley was about to overtake Greene until he injured his foot in the South Carolina game and missed enough games to allow Greene to solidify his hold on the starting job.

With regards to the QB situation, next year bears more of a resemblance to the 2002 season. Even though Cox has been a solid number two, he never seriously challenged Stafford for the starting position in the last couple of years.

Then, there are quotes like this:

Cox, who battled for the starting job in 2006 along with Stafford and Joe Tereshinski, is the front-runner this time around for the No. 1 spot.

“I think he’s plenty enough ready to go in and lead this football team,” offensive coordinator Mike Bobo said.

Redshirt sophomore Logan Gray, who played on four specials teams unit this past season, will begin the spring at No. 2.

“It’s going to be interesting to see Logan do his thing too in the spring, but right now Joe’s the No. 1 quarterback and we’ll see who wins the job in the end,” Richt said.

Uh, “going to be interesting”, “right now” and “we’ll see” all seem to be saying that Gray is a serious factor at the QB position for 2009. In all of this coverage of Cox ascending to number one to have his “Shockley moment” I think there is at least some doubt about who will be taking the first snap of 2009 in Stillwater, OK.

I think Gray gets overlooked because of how he was utilized in 2008; Special teams. What’s missed is the fact that the kid is a great enough athlete to compel the staff to get creative about finding ways to get him on the field. Those natural athletic gifts are Gray’s edge in this competition.

All things being equal, why wouldn’t you put the best athlete on the field?

Next year, when you see Logan Gray on the field it will be at Quarterback, and it may be a lot more than people are currently expecting.

I am actually excited about Joe being QB next year. I think what he may lack when compared to Stafford in regard to physical tools he may make up for in leadership and moxi.