Every time a major program loses a key recruit, Rivals.com takes a look at how big of a blow it is to the respective school, analyzing it from a local and national level. To quantify the “sting” of each decommitment, we assign a score from 1-10, with one being no big deal and 10 being a catastrophic hit.
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CLASS OF 2021 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Position | Team | State
CLASS OF 2022 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Position | Team | State
COVERAGE: Rivals Transfer Tracker | Rivals Camp Series
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THE SITUATION
When Elijah Jeudy visited Georgia in February, the four-star defensive end from Philadelphia (Pa.) Northeast moved the Bulldogs way up his list and by mid-April he was committed to the SEC power.
Everything was cruising along in Jeudy’s recruitment and rarely does Georgia lose out on big-time players like Jeudy, but recently he started to rethink his recruitment and in the last few days, the four-star backed off his pledge to the Bulldogs.
With Jeudy’s de-commitment, Georgia only has one defensive end pledge in three-star Marlin Dean, but coach Kirby Smart and his staff have a whole host of prospects they’re trying to land including the No. 1 player in the class, Korey Foreman from Corona (Calif.) Centennial. Georgia looks engaged in a battle with LSU for Foreman’s services right now.
Georgia will be able to make a run at other defensive ends as well and there’s no doubt the Bulldogs will also not give up on Jeudy, who could be leaning toward Texas A&M but isn’t expected to make his second commitment until National Signing Day.
The back-to-back-to-back team recruiting rankings champs, Georgia is currently ranked No. 12 this cycle with one five-star and 10 four-stars in the class.
LOCAL REACTION
For Georgia, the loss of Jeudy certainly doesn’t feel good, as four-star pass rushers are at a premium in today’s game, but it’s not exactly a class killer, either. His commitment also felt well thought out and the relationship over the summer was uneventful. In the absence of visits and given his location, it’s been some time since Jeudy has been on Georgia’s campus, but that didn’t appear to be something that was eliminating the possibility of the two parties maintaining their connection.
In the end, this appears to be more about what other schools did while Georgia may have been focused on wooing others. Texas A&M looks to have the steam for now, but with a decision not planned to come until Signing Day, even that feels a little presumptive for the time being. Will the Bulldogs loop back around? I won’t write it off just yet, and it’ll be worth watching until the commit list changes, assuming they add a replacement, or signing day nears. - Jake Reuse, UGASports.com
Sting Factor: 6
NATIONAL REACTION
This isn’t an in-state loss but it’s a loss in an area of the country UGA has recruited well and at a position of need. Edge rushers with athleticism are always needed and this year recruiting isn’t going like it has for UGA recently, so any loss like this hurts.
Sting factor: 7
