By KEVIN ECKLEBERRY

Daily News

Terry Godwin and the Georgia Bulldogs will head into the season ranked fourth in the Amway Coaches Poll.

Alabama, which beat Georgia to win the national championship last season, is ranked first, and Clemson and Ohio State are second and third, respectively.

While the Bulldogs lost some key players either to graduation or to the NFL, they have plenty of talented men returning, including Godwin.

Godwin, a Callaway High graduate, is a senior wide receiver, and he was second on the team in receiving yards in each of his first three seasons.

Godwin was a key player during Georgia’s drive for a title last season.

In the SEC championship game against Florida, a playoff game against Oklahoma, and the championship game against Alabama, Godwin had a combined 14 catches for 147 yards with a touchdown.

Godwin has 111 catches and eight touchdowns during the past three seasons, and six of those touchdowns came last year.

Georgia opens its season on Sept. 1 against Austin Peay.

Mon Denson and the South Carolina Gamecocks, meanwhile, finished just out of the top 25.

South Carolina, which went 9-4 last season, received the most votes of any team not in the top 25.

Denson, a LaGrange High graduate, is a red-shirt junior running back for the Gamecocks.

Denson got his first playing time a year ago, and he ran for 152 yards on 41 carries with two touchdowns.

Georgia will travel to South Carolina on Sept. 8 for its SEC opener.