We are one week away from the national championship game in Atlanta. Georiga fans have grown accustomed to playing in big games, especially at the Mercedes-Benz stadium. Unfortunately, Georgia (and the rest of the SEC) will not be playing on January 20th for the national championship. Instead, the Big Ten will send Ohio State (to find Lou Holtz) to see if the conference can win back-to-back titles for the first time in over sixty years. They will face another team from the great white north, Notre Dame. The team is responsible for ending Georgia’s season in 57 seconds…err, the Sugar Bowl. Georiga’s roster has gone through significant changes since the Sugar Bowl. Here is a quick overview of where the Bulldog roster is now. We’ll analyze the additions more in-depth as we continue in the offseason.
Between the Hedges: Georgia Roster Changes
Georgia Roster Offensive Additions
Georgia brought in eleven players last year in the Transfer Portal. Trevor Etienne was the prize and rated the top running back in the country. Unfortunately, Etienne really never materialized into that dominant back that we’ve come to expect from Georgia. The Dawgs had the 102nd-ranked rushing offense in the country, averaging just 4.01 yards a carry. Three wide receivers and a tight end weren’t enough to really transform the passing attack. Georiga led the nation in drops with 36 on the season. Too often Carson Beck’s deep shots fell to the turf rather than kickstarting the offense or the team into high gear.
On Tuesday night, Etienne announced he was declaring for the NFL Draft. The move may push Georgia to look to add another running back, building on their already impressive wide receiver additions.
Kirby Smart has added two new receivers so far to the Georiga roster in 2025. Each brings a dynamic and big-play skill set that should help Gunner Stockton and the offense in 2025.
- Noah Thomas (WR) Texas A&M. Thomas is a big-bodied receiver who led the Aggies with 34 catches for 545 yards and six touchdowns this year. Colbie Young and RaRa Thomas’s absence left Georgia without a true outside presence in 2024. Thomas should fill that need in 2025.
- Zachariah Branch (WR) Branch provides Georgia with a homerun threat at receiver and in the return game. He was USC’s first-ever true freshman First Team All-American in 2023. If he lives up to his potential, he could help fill the void left by Ladd McConkey’s departure to the NFL last year.
Georgia Roster Defensive Additions
Graduations and early entries into the NFL Draft have Smart looking to replenish the defensive secondary. KJ Bolden showed that he is a Damn Good Dawg in his first season in the red and black. Georiga has added four players from the transfer portal that should help replenish and reinforce the Bulldog’s secondary.
- Adrian Maddox (S) UAB
- Jaden Harris (S) Miami (Florida) Was the Hurricane’s starting safety all season, finishing with 40 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks and one interception.
- Zion Branch (S) USC Twin brother to Zachariah.
- Micah Bell (DB) Vanderbilt
What “The U” Carson?
Georgia has had 14 players enter the transfer portal since the end of the season. The biggest and most confusing of all is Beck, our former QB1. Beck announced less than two weeks ago that he was forgoing his eligibility and entering the NFL Draft. While some questioned the move, many thought it was the next logical step for Beck. Georgia had seemingly moved on, preparing Stockton to take over in the Sugar Bowl and 2025. Then, last weekend, Beck announced that he was indeed staying in school. What was surprising was that Beck decided to hit the portal and join his girlfriend, Hanna Cavinder in Coral Gables. Cavinder is a basketball player for the Hurricanes.
The move makes sense for Beck, even if it angers Dawg fans. Miami has one of the best offensive coordinators in college football Shannon Dawson. Beck will no doubt be able to put up big numbers like Cam Ward did this year. Those numbers will help reestablish Beck’s draft stock. The alleged 3-4 million in NIL money doesn’t hurt either. Plus, Beck will have the opportunity to lead Miami to it’s first ACC conference championship.
Other Outgoing Players on the Georgia Roster
- Collin Gill (CB)
- Damon Wilson II (Edge)
- Anthony Evans III (WR)
- Jaden Rashada (QB)
- Rara Thomas (WR)
- Jake Pope (S): Tranfered to UNLV. Now, he can finally celebrate with the Rebels without scrutiny.
- Troy Bowles (LB) Transferred to Michigan.
- Sam M’pema (Edge): Transferred to Texas A&M
- Jusyn Rhett (S): Transferred to Nebraska
- David Daniel-Sisavanh (S): Transferred to Temple
- Michael Jackson III (WR)
- Julian Humphrey (CB): Transferred to Texas A&M.
NFL Draft Bound Bulldogs
The Transfer Portal wasn’t the thing that impacted the Georiga roster. Four players have announced that they were declaring early for the NFL Draft. We’ll have more in-depth coverage as we get closer to the Draft.
- Arian Smith (WR)
- Jalon Walker (LB)
- Warren Brinson (DL)
- Tate Ratledge (OL)
- Malaki Starks (DB)
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