The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Bulldogs flourishing in age of transfer portal
So far at least, ATHENS — nobody on Georgia’s current team has entered the transfer portal. That’s more of the exception than the rule in college football these days.
Just ask South Carolina, the Bulldogs’ opponent Saturday. The Gamecocks are dealing this week with the news linebacker Derek Boykins entered
the NCAA’s portal for players seeking transfers. Boykins is the third South Carolina player to seek transfer this season, joining junior defensive back Jamyest Williams and redshirt freshman running back Lavonte Valentine.
Tennessee also was dealing with a significant exodus of players when Georgia arrived in Knoxville last week. Three players left the Volunteers heading into the game.
The timing is not coincidental. NCAA rules permit
players to participate in as many as four games with- out losing a season of eligi-
bility. Knowing that, players that have stayed under that
threshold may decide they’d be happier elsewhere.
“It’s part of college football now,” Georgia coach Kirby
Smart said. “It’s probably one of the most important things in a program now in major college football. … There’s not one guy that comes in here that’s not highly touted, that’s not given 1,000 accolades by the media or the recruiting sites. So, they go through tri- als and tribulations and real- ize they have work to do.”
The Bulldogs aren’t immune to the process. They’ve had several players leave via the transfer portal, including a
few high-profile instances after last season with quar- terback Justin Fields (now at Ohio State) and tight end Luke Ford (Illinois) and outside linebacker Brenton Cox (now at Florida) a week into preseason camp.
Where UGA has flourished is retaining prospects that
might need a little more time to develop. Two players that made major impacts in the Bulldogs’ win over Tennessee fit into such a category. Line- backer Tae Crowder returned a fumble 60 yards for a touchdown, and running back Brian Herrien led Georgia with 88 yards rushing and a score in the 43-14 victory.
Both seniors stuck it out even though they weren’t fill- ing prominent roles early in their careers.
“I don’t think you look for greener pastures at Georgia,” Smart said. “You continue to work and get better . ... We sell
the players on that we’re going to develop them.”
Senior defensive end Justin Young is another player who chose staying over going. A 6-foot-4, 275-pound product of Grayson High, Young had
been on the scout team his entire career, appearing in just 14 games in backup roles and just one last season. But after entering the transfer portal before last season, Young was convinced by Smart and defensive line coach Tray Scott to stick it out at UGA.
Fast forward to this week and Young has played in every game this season and enters Saturday’s game with four tackles, a tackle for loss, a quarterback pressure and a pass deflection.
“After talking with family and friends and God as well, I just felt like sticking it out here was best for me,” Young said. “Just getting an education here is an unbelievable achievement, while still putting as much value as I can on the field.”
Asked how often he meets with players to discuss their future prospects, Smart said, “Oh, all the time.”
He said he generally urges them to stick it out.
“You’re going to develop better at Georgia, where you’ve got more in nutrition, a weight room, an unbelievable support staff, coaching staff, facilities, than you are somewhere else where you might not have those facilities,” Smart said. “You’re also going to develop better here than you are in the NFL because they don’t run a developmental league. They only have a 53-man roster, so they can’t develop players, they cut them.”