ATHENS — Some might think winning a national championship would have a big impact on Georgia’s recruiting efforts. That they would recruit even better now that they’ve proven their concept, that you can actually win in Georgia.
But that hasn’t happened with the 2023 recruiting round, the first full class to sign with Georgia post-championship. The Bulldogs sit with No. 2 overall, up last year from No. 3 in the standings but still in line with Georgia finished consistently under Kirby Smart.
Georgia Football Recruiting Ranking Under Kirby Smart
- 2016: 6th
- 2017: 3rd
- 2018: 1st
- 2019: 2nd
- 2020: 1st
- 2021: 4th
- 2022: 3rd
- 2023: 2nd
Alabama has the No. 1 overall rank by a good margin. The Crimson Tide landed six 5-star players, including two from the home state of Georgia. Conversely, the Bulldogs have only one player who ranks among the top 32 prospects overall according to the On3 Consensus rankings. That would be 5-star passing thrower Damon Wilson, who signed with Georgia on Wednesday.
Related: Winners and losers of Georgian football from the 2023 early signing period
So why hasn’t there been a big recruiting bump? For Smart, he thinks it’s because the national championship hasn’t really had an impact on the type of players Georgia recruits.
“I don’t know if you can measure that,” Smart said. “I think it puts you in the conversation with more national guys, but there’s nobody there. I look at that list and say we wouldn’t have had it if we hadn’t won it or we them. had because we won it.”
Of Georgia’s 26 pledges and signatories, only six are from the state of Georgia. That’s down from the 2021 and 2022 recruiting cycles, but Georgia has been forced to rely more on in-state talent during those cycles due to restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. 19. It was also a down year for rookies in Georgia, as there were only five top 100 rookies in the state for that cycle. The 2021 and 2022 cycles both had nine recruits in the top 100 in the state.
The Bulldogs are still cleansed when it comes to elite talent, landing 10 top-100 rookies in the 2023 cycle. Only Alabama has more. And the Bulldogs aren’t done yet, as they’re still heavily involved with 5-star tight end prospect Duce Robinson and 4-star defensive lineman Jordan Hall. The latter will announce his engagement on Thursday afternoon.
Georgia is once again positioned to win another national championship, as the Bulldogs enter the college football playoffs with a 13-0 record. Alabama on the other hand is preparing to play Kansas State in the Sugar Bowl.
Related: Georgia defenders explain how they plan to ‘shake’ Ohio State quarterback CJ Stroud
Much like last season’s success having a limited impact on recruiting, Georgia players aren’t content to rely on past success. The members of this team want to carve out their own legacies, especially the 2022 signers who weren’t part of the title team last season.
“I feel like this year after a conference championship win, we worked harder than last year after a loss,” wide receiver Kearis Jackson said. “It’s crazy because people can look at it like we’re complacent, we’re happy. It’s just another box we wanted to check, one of our goals. Our season isn’t over yet. We still have goals we want to accomplish. The Peach Bowl is the next thing we want to accomplish.
When Jackson first arrived in Georgia, he did so with the Bulldogs fresh out of their first college football playoff appearance. He wanted to work hard to maintain the new standard set by the previous group of Bulldogs.
New signers in 2023 will step into something even bigger. One in which competing for national championships is the norm and not an anomaly.
And a large recruiting class is expected and should not fluctuate based on the final results of the previous year.
“I’m really excited about this group. They have a lot of character,” Smart said. “The one thing about the coaching industry that you value better now more than ever is the high character, tough and uncompromising football players who come here with the understanding that they are committed to excellence in terms of class, competitiveness, tenacity, love football, and these guys get it.
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