Editor’s Note: Georgia added three players early on signing day - wide receiver Dillon Bell of Houston and outside linebacker Darris Smith of Baxley and defensive lineman Christen Miller of Cedar Grove High. Check back later for more updates.
ATHENS – Well, there won’t be another national championship for Georgia football this year, not in recruiting, anyway.
According to the experts, there simply is not a route for the Bulldogs to get back to No. 1 in that particular arena. Oh, Georgia has racked up as usual with its Class of 2022, based on the unique and increasingly sophisticated rankings system utilized these days in the recruiting industry. But it doesn’t appear the Bulldogs will be able to pull off the coveted double-double, winning both the on-field championship and locking down the nation’s No. 1 class in the same year.
Only Alabama has been able to accomplish that feat in the College Football Playoff era. The Crimson Tide followed up national championships in 2020 and 2015 with top-ranked recruiting classes those years. Hence, they’ve remained quite relevant on the field of play.
It’s likewise for Georgia. The defending national champion Bulldogs are doing well on the recruiting trail, as always has been the case under coach Kirby Smart. They enter Wednesday’s signing day ranked No. 3. That’s likely where they will end up, according to projections by 247Sports.
Such recruiting rankings are an increasingly accurate predictor of future on-field success.
“We did a study and, during the playoff era, every single team outside of Michigan State that has made the playoff has had an average ranking of a top-10 class up to that point,” said Tom Luginbill, a college football analyst and ESPN’s national recruiting director. “So there is substance to what I call the ‘paper champion.’ It does create offseason momentum and buzz and, obviously, an infusion of talent.”
Texas A&M and Alabama currently are ranked 1-2 in the rankings. Mathematically, the Bulldogs should not fall out of the top five.
Truthfully, there is not a lot of work left to be done for Georgia. The Bulldogs signed 24 players in December, 18 of whom have enrolled. But the battle for the best of the remaining prospects rages on and will into Wednesday’s scheduled announcements.
There are about seven names on Georgia’s final wish list. Three or four additions seem likely. Three players remain on the Bulldogs’ list of commitments.
Wide receiver Dillon Bell of Houston and outside linebacker Darris Smith of Baxley have not wavered since committing to the Bulldogs, which for Smith occured in December 2020. The 6-foot-2, 205-pound Bell is scheduled for an 8:30 a.m. announcement, and the 6-6, 225-pound Smith is set to go an hour later. Both prospects carry 3-star ratings and are expected to stick with Georgia.
The same can’t be said for 4-star running back Jordan James of Murfreesboro, Tenn. Projections Tuesday favor James ending up at Oregon with former UGA defensive coordinator Dan Lanning. James has been committed to the Bulldogs since March.
James’ change of heart explains Georgia’s late interest in Andrew Paul, a 3-star running back from Dallas, Texas. But the Bulldogs will have to win a tug-of-war with Clemson for the 5-11, 220-pound back, who averaged 9.7 yards a carry and scored 44 touchdowns for Parish Episcopal School.
Probably the most important prospect remaining on Georgia’s board is defensive lineman Christen Miller of Cedar Grove High. Long thought to be a Georgia lock, the 6-4, 294-pound tackle has been vigorously pursued by Ohio State and reportedly is struggling to make a final decision. Miller is due to let the world know his plans at noon in the school library.
The Bulldogs also could sign linebacker E.J. Lightsey, a 3-star prospect from Fitzgerald.
Meanwhile, Luginbill said not to count out the Bulldogs in the battle to land defensive lineman Shemar Stewart. One of the highest-ranked uncommitted national recruits at No. 10 overall, the Opa-Locka, Fla., product long has been thought to be headed to Texas A&M. He is scheduled to reveal his decision at 1:30 p.m.
Where Georgia appears to be coming up short again is in the area of elite wideout recruiting. Outside of George Pickens three years ago – and Marlon Brown well before that -- the Bulldogs haven’t had much success landing 5-star-ranked receivers. And that’s not because of a lack of trying. They were in the mix for the two top-ranked wideouts in America this year, but Luther Burden (Missouri) and Evan Stewart (Texas A&M) ended up elsewhere.
Nevertheless, nobody in the recruiting game is laughing and pointing at Georgia. Since Smart has been on the scene, the Bulldogs have been in the mix for the top class in the country every year. Their average recruiting ranking in the previous six years of Smart’s tenure is 2.8. UGA nabbed the nation’s top classes in 2020 and 2018, and that was before it had a national championship trophy in its display case.
“I think that makes a huge difference,” Luginbill said of Georgia working now with a title. “Not to say that the last five years haven’t been the start in the build-up, but now they have that monkey off their back and they’re not going into seasons wondering if you can beat an Alabama, now you know and psychologically that’s a big deal, both in recruiting and on the field.”
BULLDOGS WATCH
Scheduled announcements for some of Georgia’s remaining recruiting targets:
- 8:30 a.m. -- Dillon Bell, WR, Houston
- 9:30 a.m. -- Darris Smith, OLB, Baxley
- Noon -- Christen Miller, DL, Ellenwood
- 12:20 p.m. -- Andrew Paul, RB, Dallas
- 1:30 p.m. -- Shemar Stewart, DL, Opa-Locka, Fla.
- 2 p.m. -- E.J. Lightsey, LB, Fitzgerald
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