This article was originally published with 247 Sports on August 14, 2015 and can be found here.

ATHENS, Ga. — Georgia head coach Mark Richt handled questions from the media following the Bulldogs’ scrimmage on Friday. Although very little was revealed about what happened on the field, Richt didn’t shy away from pointing out problems with the second-string offensive line.

“The biggest disparity in level of readiness is from the No.1 offensive line and the No. 2 offensive line,” Richt said. “That’s the most glaring thing. Our No. 2 unit is not ready to play winning football.”

Concerns about weak backups are legitimate ones. A solid starting core of lineman can be quickly disrupted by injury. If the backups are struggling as much as Richt let on, the rest of the offense comes into question.

An untested quarterback faces a tougher challenge if he’s constantly under pressure from the opposition. Sophomore running back Nick Chubb is a preseason Heisman Trophy candidate, but his chances will fade if the blocking is subpar. As great as the other four linemen play, all it takes is one struggling spot to derail the rest of the offense.

Despite the overall negative feedback, Richt said there was one second-stringer who may be up to the challenge of running with the first unit.

“The guy that would be the closest, in my opinion, would be Hunter Long,” Richt said. “If Hunter had to play center or guard, I think we could keep functioning pretty good. The rest of the guys at this moment, I’d be a little more concerned with them.”

Long is a senior from Memphis, Tenn. who has played in 14 games over the span of his collegiate career. A former three-star prospect out of Briarcrest Christian High School, Long was listed as an offensive guard coming out of high school but has shown versatility to play all three interior positions. Long’s experience may suit him well if the rest of the backups continue to struggle.

One of Georgia’s longest-tenured players didn’t match Richt’s anxiety on the second-string situation.

Right tackle Kolton Houston has been at Georgia since January 2010. He’s made significant contributions to the team over the last two seasons, playing in 26 games and making 19 starts in that time. In short, he’s been around enough to know whether it’s time to hit the panic button.

That’s the opposite of what Houston did when asked about the No. 2 offensive line. Instead, he showed plenty of support for the teammates that will be backing him up this fall.

“I’d say that’s pretty constant every single year,” Houston said. “Offensive line is one of those positions where you grow every single year. You get these freshman receivers and running backs, that’s just athletic ability. Offensive line, everything is unnatural, so it takes time. All of those guys are going to be just fine.”