The state of Georgia has become a battleground for elite football players, but the Georgia Bulldogs have maintained a stranglehold on a lot of the top prospects from going elsewhere.
The numbers are actually quite staggering.
When evaluating the last four recruiting classes of committed or signed players from the 2021, 2020, 2019 and 2018 classes in terms of the top-20 players in each class, Georgia has landed 20 of them, double any other program. That list includes five-star quarterback Brock Vandagriff and four-stars offensive tackle Micah Morris, safety David Daniel and defensive tackle Jonathan Jefferson in the 2021 group.
Border wars are definitely heating up though. Clemson has come in and landed five-star players, Tennessee is getting its fair share and then Auburn and Florida are doing well, too.
Here’s a look at which out-of-state programs have done the best coming into Georgia to get top 20 players over the last four cycles including 2021.
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CLASS OF 2021 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Position | Team | State
CLASS OF 2022: Top 100
1. CLEMSON
Top-20 Georgia signees/commitments: 10
Breakdown: Clemson has done really well pretty much everywhere it recruits, but the state of Georgia has delivered some significant players over the last few recruiting cycles, none more important than former No. 1 overall prospect Trevor Lawrence, the probable No. 1 pick in next year’s NFL Draft.
The Tigers also landed the top player in the state last recruiting cycle when five-star defensive end Myles Murphy signed with the national power, another huge win for the Clemson coaching staff out of Georgia. And Clemson is doing great already in the 2021 group with early commitments from four-star running back Phil Mafah, four-star receiver Dacari Collins and four-star defensive back Jordan Hancock.
Farrell’s take: This is obviously a huge reason for Clemson’s run to national titles with Deshaun Watson first and now Trevor Lawrence. Clemson can go into any state and compete, but in Georgia, the Tigers are clearly the biggest threat to the Bulldogs out of anyone. The state of South Carolina doesn’t have enough talent to sustain Clemson and the Tigers obviously have to hit states like Georgia, North Carolina and Florida to make up for it. And they clearly have.
2. TENNESSEE
Top-20 Georgia signees/commitments: 7
Breakdown: Navigating through a state that is owned by Georgia and which has tons of other national powers dipping in for top players could be difficult, if not impossible, but Tennessee has done a great job landing elite players from there in the last few recruiting cycles. No one is bigger than five-star quarterback Harrison Bailey, who could lead the charge in the Vols’ resurgence in the SEC.
But others are great additions as well like four-star offensive lineman Wanya Morris and Tennessee is off to a hot start in the state by landing commitments from four-star running back Cody Brown and four-star receiver Julian Nixon.
Farrell’s take: Surprised? I am. Yes, Tennessee borders Georgi,a but you’d expect Auburn to be here as the Tigers have had more traditional success. This speaks to the recruiting job that Jeremy Pruitt has done and Tennessee will continue to hurt SEC programs like Georgia, Auburn and others.
3. AUBURN
Top-20 Georgia signees/commitments: 6
Breakdown: For Auburn, quality has outpaced quantity when it comes to top recruits from the state of Georgia in recent years and there are some potential superstars among the group. Last recruiting cycle had some big victories but none more important than four-star running back Cartavious Bigsby, who could be the next superstar in Auburn’s backfield. Four-star defensive end Zykeivous Walker and four-star receiver Kobe Hudson were big additions as well.
The Tigers have already seen an impressive contribution from former four-star linebacker Owen Pappoe, who finished with 49 tackles this past season, good for sixth on the team.
Farrell’s take: This number is low for Auburn and should be a bit disturbing for the fans as the Tigers rely on the state of Georgia quite heavily in recruiting. Players like Bigsby will be great but Auburn needs to hit the state harder and pull more upsets than it has and get difference-makers like Derrick Brown like it used to.
4. FLORIDA
Top-20 Georgia signees/commitments: 5
Breakdown: Florida has had success getting into its northern-bordering state and getting some players, but the Gators are still looking for that breakout star among the group. Former top-rated quarterback Emory Jones could still be that player but Kyle Trask has emerged as the favored one at that position so Jones is still in waiting mode.
Trey Dean, Tyron Hopper and Rashad Torrence II have also signed with Florida and their careers are underway and then in the 2021 class four-star Daejon Reynolds out of Loganville (Ga.) Grayson who’s the top-rated committed receiver out of Georgia right now.
Farrell’s take: The Gators have done a nice job hitting Georgia, but the quality hasn’t been there like it was many moons ago. If they want to get past the Bulldogs they need to keep Georgia out of their state and land more difference-makers from the Peach State. That will happen the more the Gators win under Dan Mullen.
Notes: The other programs to land commits or signed players from the top-20 players in the state of Georgia over the last four recruiting cycles are Alabama (4), Michigan (4), LSU (3), Notre Dame (2) and then Florida State, Georgia Tech, Texas, Miami, North Carolina, Ohio State, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Stanford, all with one each.
