No, the Sky is Not Falling in Georgia Recruiting
In the wake of the Dawgs smashing Alabama in the 4th quarter of the Natty and bringing home the Big One, I’m sure my fellow Georgia alumni had expectations that Kirby Smart would go take no prisoners on the recruiting trail and get any player he could possibly want. The way Kirby recruits, I don’t blame them. So, as expected, when the Arch Manning to Texas news broke there was some mild pearl clutching. Maybe more than mild. Maybe it was the topic of a week of UGA football podcasts. However, the real meltdown came when running back Justice Haynes, Georgia legacy, committed to the much-hated Alabama Crimson Tide after every single recruiting site had predicted him going to UGA.
It was embarrassing, frankly, how quickly the spin started. “NIL has totally changed the recruiting game.” “Georgia’s reputation for being a defensive team is hurting its offensive recruiting.” Lighten up, Francis.
Georgia is a major program in one of the top 10 most populous states in the country. The NIL money will be there. I believe, generally speaking, every major program has the booster base available to where NIL will be pretty consistently offered across the board in some form or fashion. Also, it’s inevitable that the NIL market will correct itself. How do you dump all this money on unproven kids every single year? How much more value will you be able to add when every team has NIL up & running in some form? Once schools level the playing field again, you’re back to square one. It’s actually insulting to these kids and their families to imply that NIL is the deciding factor for why they’d go to XYZ university over your school, anyways. There are valid reasons Georgia can and will miss on some top recruits.
Consider Manning. Georgia’s QB room is packed. I’d estimate we have Stetson for 2022; Beck or Brock for 2023, 2024, and maybe 2025; and Stockton for 2025, 2026, and maybe 2027. Manning’s easily 3 or 4 years from competing for the starting job. Also, there’s no guarantee Monken will still be at Georgia by the time Manning would start. He’s going to be highly sought after. Bama has a similar problem. They recruit very well at quarterback, they change assistant coaches every other year, and Saban is on the wrong side of 70. Texas, meanwhile, has an excellent, young offensive mind in Sarkisian, and Manning will be competing to start within the next couple of years. The choice wasn’t outrageous or suspicious.
Haynes was a punch in the gut for most Georgia super-fans because he’s a legacy and if Georgia has ANY offensive reputation, it’s the physical, downhill run game. But maybe Justice didn’t want to play in the shadow of his dad’s Hobnail Boot touchdown. Maybe he wanted to be a feature back somewhere, or carve his own path. Georgia hasn’t had a feature back since the Mark Richt days. Meanwhile, Alabama is the perfect destination for skill players who want to be featured. Two wide receivers and one running back will rack up most of Bama’s offensive numbers every season. It’s great for recruiting top skill players. “Hey, want 75% of your position’s touches and >1,000 yards from scrimmage every season? Come to Bama.” Or Ohio State. Of course, we did see the shortcomings of that strategy this past season when Bama needed the next man to step up.
That being said, Georgia plays team ball in a balanced system. Long gone are the days when Jim Chaney had to game plan 40 rushes and 20 passes per game. Not to beat up on Chaney…I actually think he was an excellent offensive coordinator who could put up 35-38 ppg with a very conservative offensive style. Kirby has adapted the offense to a more balanced approach. He’s not having guys throw 600 passes per season like the “new” air raid offenses out there. We’re about 50/50 run:pass like we were under Coach Richt. Funny, Georgia fans were complaining for years about Kirby being slow to open up the offense like other top teams, and now that we have, and missed out on Haynes, we don’t run enough. We just won a Natty. Trust the coach who got us there. Team ball is great for depth and keeping defenses on their toes, and is actually better for player health and longevity, but will turn off guys who want to be featured. It’s as simple as that. And that’s fine. Georgia’s offense has never been more explosive, and two of our three top wide receivers this season were three stars at best. At Georgia, you’ll make the highlight reel when you get on the field. But no matter how hard a coach sells that vision, not every high school kid sees it that way.
So Georgia fans, chill out, for the love of all that is holy. We are still killing it on the recruiting trail and, as long as we have King Kirby, we will be a top 4 recruiting school every single year. Don’t get so caught up in an 18 year old’s life decision. It’s a little creepy. There are plenty of talented kids out there, and with the new transfer rules, you can always get a second crack at a player if he has buyer’s remorse. Look at Arik Gilbert.
Kirby’s not tapping out after one Natty, he wants them all. Trust the process, and how ‘bout them Dawgs?