Ask Farrell: Can Kirby Smart pull off another No. 1 class at UGA?
MORE ASK FARRELL: Who wins big matchup between Mater Dei and St. Francis? | Who are contenders, pretenders in the top 10?
CLASS OF 2020 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Position | Team | State
CLASS OF 2021 RANKINGS: Rivals100 | Position | Team | State
Georgia coach Kirby Smart has established himself as one of the best recruiters in the country and it’s paid off with back-to-back team recruiting titles.
In the 2018 class, the Bulldogs obliterated everybody and put together one of the best classes in Rivals history dating back to 2002 with eight five-star signees, including running backs Zamir White and James Cook.
And then Georgia came back again in the 2019 class and topped Alabama in a nip-and-tuck battle to the end as both SEC powerhouses signed three five-stars. LSU, Texas and Oklahoma were also in the top five last recruiting cycle.
So here we are in the 2020 recruiting cycle and Georgia currently finds itself in fifth place overall behind Clemson, LSU, Alabama and Ohio State. It looks like the Bulldogs have too much ground to make up to make it three in a row, but it could be possible.
Georgia only has 16 commitments (all four teams ahead of the Bulldogs have 20 or more) and the Bulldogs remain in the running for five-stars Kelee Ringo, Arik Gilbert, Zachary Evans and Darnell Washington, along with four-star DE Zykeivous Walker.
FARRELL'S TAKE
We ask Rivals National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell if he sees Georgia finishing with the top-rated recruiting class for a third straight season or if another national power can hold off the Bulldogs leading up to signing day?
“I think Clemson wins this one, but Georgia will be right up there. The Bulldogs are recruiting at an elite level and I expect them to close on guys like Ringo, Walker and right now likely one of the tight ends and Evans. That’s a heckuva class if they pull that off, but Clemson is still in the mix for Justin Flowe, Jordan Burch and others and I just think they have too strong a class to lose out. They also don’t get decommitments, which is so rare these days. You can count on their current commits to be part of the class.”