The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Safety Smith back as several other stars choose to depart
Add Nakobe Dean, George Pickens and Travon Walker to Georgia’s list of underclassmen declaring for the draft.
Dean, the Butkus Award-winning linebacker; Pickens, the Bulldogs’ star receiver sidelined by a knee injury this season; and Walker, the Bulldogs’ star defensive end, were long expected to make this move. They joined junior safety Lewis Cine and junior running back Zamir White in making that decision Friday.
Dean and Walker are the top pro prospects among the Bulldogs to have declared so far, drawing potential top-10 draft grades. Dean led the
Bulldogs with 143 tackles over the past two seasons. Dean and Walker each had six sacks this past season.
Pickens led Georgia in receiving each of the past two seasons before going down with a knee injury one week into spring practice in March. Pickens surprised a lot of people by making his way back to the field this season. He first played Nov. 27, barely eight months after ACL reconstructive surgery.
Christopher Smith declared he was coming back for another season — extremely good news for a defense that otherwise will have to be almost completely rebuilt. As it is, the senior safety will be one of only three returning starters from the 2021 defense.
Cine — an ALL-SEC safety and junior from Cedar Hill, Texas, by way of Boston — led the Bulldogs with 73 tackles this past season. He started every game the past two seasons at strong safety.
Smith, a senior, would have started every game at free safety this past season if he hadn’t been sidelined by a knee injury. As it was, Smith started in 12 of the 13 games in which he played and finished with 35 tackles and three interceptions, including seven stops and an interception Monday in Georgia’s 33-18 win over Alabama in the College Football Playoff Championship game.
Barring unexpected transfers, the Bulldogs should be getting back starters in second-year defensive tackle
Jalen Carter and cornerback Kelee Ringo.
Smith, a 5-11, 190-pound graduate of Hapeville Charter School, started the first six games of 2021 before having to sit out the Auburn game with a shoulder injury. Smith came back for three more starts before injuring a knee and missing two games, then played hurt in the SEC Championship game. Smith’s comeback for the postseason was for the Bulldogs’ wins over No. 2 Michigan in the Orange Bowl and No. 1 Alabama. Smith’s block of Alabama quarterback Bryce Young was key for Ringo’s 79-yard interception return that secured the victory.
“This year was nothing short of amazing,” Smith said.