Hey Bobo - Here's an answer at receiver

This caught my eye this morning. Brice Butler was a star at Norcross but chose to go across country to play for Pete Carrol and the USC Trojans. Apparently, he did not fit into Kiffin's system, only catching 9 passes this season. The article says he is planning to transfer to an FCS school so he can play immediately, but how hard would it be to convince him to come home to Georgia, sit out a season and then play for the Bulldogs?

Jarvis Jones was a member of the same recruiting class at USC and decided to come home after things did not work out in LA. Butler could come on campus as a walk-on this fall and not count towards scholarship limits until next season. I know Mike Bobo is tied up with Crowell and Drew right now, but I think this would be a phone call worth making.

Here's a look back at Butler's highlights from his high school career and his freshman season at USC:

Signing Day Wrap Up - A Look Back at Recent 5 Star Recruits

When Georgia lost Da'Rick Rogers to Tennessee, it left the Dawgs with only one commit, safety Alec Ogletree, who was rated as a 5 star recruit (I am using Scout.com ratings here and during the rest of this article). Since recruiting information became widely available on the Internet beginning in 2002, Georgia has received commitments from 19 five star recruits (through 2009). And while some of those players have turned in fantastic careers, some did not pan out the way most though they would. Here is a look at the 5 star recruits Georgia has had since 2002:

2002

Kedric Golston

2003

Sean Bailey

Leonard Pope (originally committed in 2002)

2004

Brandon Miller

Charles Johnson

2005

Kade Weston

CJ Byrd

2006

Darius Dewberry (originally committed in 2005)

Akeem Hebron

Matthew Stafford

Brandon Wood

2007

Caleb King

2008

Deangelo Tyson

Richard Samuel

AJ Green

2009

Orson Charles

Branden Smith

Aaron Murray

Marlon Brown

Signing Day - Why I am not worried about losing Da'Rick Rogers

As everyone knows by now, five star recruit Da'Rick Rogers from Calhoun switched his commitment from Georgia to Tennessee this morning. Rogers had been committed to Georgia for nearly a year and, according to Claude Felton, this is the first time a five star recruit has switched away from Georgia on Signing Day. While losing Rogers may make Georgia's 2010 recruiting class suffer in the rankings, is the loss of Rogers really that big of a deal?

While losing a 5 star receiver always sucks, wideout is one position where Georgia has enough young talent to make up for the loss. In case you have a short memory, Georgia picked up a commitment from Marlon Brown on signing day last year. Brown, who like Rogers was rated a 5 star recruit, appeared poised to sign with the Vols. (Maybe it is Karma?) While Brown did not make a huge impact in 2009, he did appear in a number of games and appeared to be solid in the run block department.

Rontavious Wooten enjoyed a successful first year in Athens, catching 10 passes, and scoring twice in the Kentucky game. His speed makes him a scoring threat every time he touches the ball. And many people forget that Tavarres King will only be a sophomore in 2010. He caught two passes in the '08 season, but received a medical redshirt from the NCAA.

With Wooten, King, and Brown all around for the next seasons and the addition of Michael Bennett, I think the Dawgs still have a bright future in Athens. Just as I did with Kirby Smart, I wish Da'Rick Rogers the best of luck at UT. I just hope he remembers that he could have been playing in red and black when Alec Ogletree lays him out over the next few years.

GO DAWGS!!!

Let's Get to Know: Jakar Hamilton

With the start of spring classes in Athens, Georgia officially welcomed two new members of the Bulldog nation. Offensive lineman Kolton Houston and junior college safety Jakar Hamilton enrolled early and will be with the Dawgs when they begin spring practice in March. Houston will be a true freshman and with a veteran line returning in '10, is most likely headed for a redshirt season. Hamilton on the other hand is expected to compete for one of the open safety positions left by the graduation of Bryan Evans and the decision by Reshad Jones to leave early for the NFL.

Hamilton will be starting his SEC career two years later than oiginally planned. Hamilton originally committed to the University of South Carolina as part of the class of 2007 following a stellar career at Strom Thurmond High School (Johnston, SC). During high school, Hamilton played defense and offense, where he was a scoring machine during his junior season in 2005 scoring 20 touchdowns. He led his team to the state championship that year, but missed most of his senior year to injury. Academic issues ultimately led Hamilton away from South Carolina. He spent the following two seasons at Georgia Military College, where he quickly became a Junior College All-American. During his two seasons at GMC, Hamilton totaled 88 tackles and 6 interceptions playing primarily safety.

Jakar comes to Athens after choosing Georgia over Alabama, making his announcement at the Wild Wing Cafe in Augusta. (You can watch the video here.) Hamilton will have two years of eligibility left to display his talents. He is described as a physical safety who excels in run support and is known for making big tackles. The only knock on Hamilton appears to be his coverage skills, so hopefully new DB coach Scott Lakatos can help him improve in that area.

Hamilton wore #10 during his playing days at GMC. Hopefully he can live up to the last Dawg that wore #10 at safety, Thomas Davis.

Go Dawgs!!!

All Quiet on Home Front

With the Dawgs awaiting their bowl date with Texas A&M and Coach Richt keeping mum about who will be the next DC, things are pretty quiet for the Dawg nation right now. Some have speculated that the lack of an announcement regarding the defensive coordinator position means that Georgia may already have their man lined up.

Many Georgia fans hope the role ultimately goes to Kirby Smart. If he ends up being the man for the job, there will definitely not be an announcement prior to the BCS Championship. Kirby Smart is currently a hot name in the coaching world, not simply because of his on field success, but because of the number of teams currently looking for defensive coordinators. In addition to Georgia, Florida is also looking for the right man to replace Charlie Strong and Brian Kelly is looking to fill his staff at Notre Dame. The only downfall of bringing in Smart is that we may be back hunting for another defensive coordinator in a few years. While you would love to bring in a coach who could be with Georgia for years, you can’t pass up bringing in the best available candidate for the job.

Do I honestly think Smart will end up the man in Athens? No. I imagine a huge raise from Alabama will keep him in Tuscaloosa. Only time will tell who the new coach will, but whoever it is, I am sure Coach Richt will make the best choice for the program.

The recruiting season is in full swing, but the biggest news concerning the Dawgs right now revolves around the quarterback position. Lassiter QB Hutson Mason will announce his decision on Monday and I fully expect him to accept the scholarship from Georgia. I have read a number of places that he was waiting on the offer and I will be very happy to keep the record setting QB in the state. The other quarterback news involves Wilcox County junior Nick Marshall. I saw this kid play in the Class A state championship game on Saturday and I was impressed. Besides being a good QB, the kid is rated as one of the top junior basketball players in the country. My brother-in-law’s father is friends with the athletic director at Wilcox County and when Marshall was asked about potentially handing the ball off to Washaun Ealey, he said he would rather not hand the ball off to a guy who beat him in the State Playoffs last year. In the end, he will most likely end up playing basketball at a major program, but I am glad we are continuing to go after the best this state has to offer.

Georgia Offers Hutson Mason: A Sign of Gray Moving to Receiver?

The AJC is reporting that Georgia has offered a scholarship to Lassiter quarterback Hutson Mason. Mason led Lassiter to a 12-1 record and an appearance in the state quarterfinals. He set the single season Georgia state record for passing yards and touchdowns this year, throwing for over 4500 yards and 54 touchdowns. Mason has scholarships to other programs including Iowa and Virginia, but it looks like he was waiting on the offer from Georgia.

It originally looked like Georgia would not offer scholarships to any quarterbacks this year, with 3 quarterbacks on the roster for the '10 season. The news of the offer to Mason today coincides with rumors that sophomore quarterback Logan Gray will be moving to wide receiver in the spring. If Gray moves to receiver, the quarterback job will most likely fall to Aaron Murray (who I expect would win the job out of spring from Gray anyway).

Recruiting 2010: Competing with Florida and Bama

It is July and news is slow right now, what better a time to talk recruiting. With the commitment of Brandon Burrows yesterday, the Georgia recruiting class for 2010 is starting to look really impressive. Georgia has already picked up 7 commitments in state and another 6 in the state of Florida. What is most impressive about this class is how well Georgia has fared going head-to-head with Florida, Alabama, and other southeastern schools. Here's a look at the commitments the Dawgs have so far and other offers each player had from schools in the southeast:

Brandon Burrows - Florida, Alabama, Tennessee
Ken Malcome - Florida, Alabama, Clemson
Alec Ogletree - Alabama, Auburn, LSU
Deon Rogers - Florida International
Demetre Baker - Miami, South Carolina, East Carolina
Michael Bennett - Southern Miss
Brent Benedict - Florida, Alabama, Clemson
Da'Rick Rogers - Florida, Alabama, LSU
Kolton Houston - Auburn, Tennessee, South Carolina
Marc Deas - Kentucky, Ole Miss, UCF
Jalen Fields - Florida, Alabama, Tennessee
Derek Owens - Florida, South Carolina

While Alec Ogletree is no doubt the prize of the class so far, I really think that the combination of Da'Rick Rogers, Marlon Brown, and AJ Green will be a lot of fun to watch in the Georgia passing game in 2010.

GO DAWGS!!!

Dawgs Pick Up Calhoun Receiver

Georgia picked up a verbal commitment from Da'Rick Rogers, a 6-3 receiver from Calhoun High School today. Rogers is currently ranked as the #4 wide receiving prospect in the class of 2010 and had 66 catches for 1300 yards and 11 touchdowns in 2008. Rogers had narrowed his choices down to Georgia and Florida, and I sure am glad he has decided to stay in state. Scout.com had this to say about Rogers:

Overall, Rogers is an impressive physical specimen and at times looks like a Calvin Johnson-type player. He is aggressive, makes plays and presents some difficult one-on-one mismatches for opposing defenses. Excellent prospect. - Read the rest of the evaluation here

I saw Rogers play in the AA State Championship game last fall. Buford was clearly a better team than Calhoun, but Rogers made some amazing plays that kept his team in the game. Welcome to the Dawg nation, Da'Rick. I look forward to see you catching passes in Sanford Stadium beginning in the fall of 2010.

****UPDATED: Now with Video!

AMP: DaRick Rogers picks Georgia @ Rivals Video