ESPN.com - Weekend Rewind: Georgia

ESPN.com: Georgia Bulldogs

Monday, December 17, 2012
Weekend Rewind: Georgia

By Radi Nabulsi

ATHENS, Ga. -- As the dead period in college football approached, the Georgia coaching staff tried to make the most of this past weekend.

Assistant head coach and recruiting coordinator Rodney Garner and offensive line coach Will Friend were dispatched to the Georgia Dome to see and be seen by the Bulldogs’ targets playing in the Georgia state championship games.

Between them they witnessed cornerback commit Shaq Wiggins (Tyrone, Ga./Sandy Creek), offensive line commit Josh Cardiello (Buford, Ga./Buford), running back target Alvin Kamara (Norcross, Ga./Norcross), linebacker target Korie Rogers (Buford, Ga./Buford), athlete target Myles Autry (Norcross, Ga./Norcross) and wide receiver target Demarre Kitt (Tyrone, Ga./Sandy Creek) win state titles. They also saw defensive tackle priority Montravius Adams and his Dooly County (Ga.) High School team come up short in their championship game.

Meanwhile in Athens, the remainder of the coaching staff hosted an early junior day, having invited many of the top players in the Southeast. Some of the prospects in attendance included defensive tackle Elisha Shaw (Tucker, Ga./Tucker), running back commit Stanley Williams (Monroe, Ga./George Walton), safety Cortez McDowell (Locus Grove, Ga./Locus Grove), offensive guard Jake Sanders (Carrollton, Ga./Carrollton) and athlete Terry Godwin (Hogansville, Ga./Callaway). This junior day focused on the football side of the Bulldogs’ program with the recruits taking in a Georgia bowl game practice and touring the athletic facilities. Future junior days will focus on the academic and campus-life aspects of the university.

Georgia also had three official visitors on hand. Defensive tackle Chris Mayes (Griffin, Ga./Mississippi Gulf Coast), defensive end John Atkins (Thomson, Ga./Hargrave Military) and outside linebacker Leonard Floyd (Eastman, Ga./Hargrave Military) are all committed to the Bulldogs and trying to enroll in January. Mayes expects to do so without issue but Atkins and Floyd have yet to qualify.

Atkins told DawgNation Sunday night that he has retaken the ACT and feels that he will get the score he needs to qualify. He will find out Dec. 26. Floyd is finishing a course but the semesters at Hargrave run later into January than does Georgia’s semester system. He will meet with the Hargrave dean on Monday to see if he can leave school early to enroll at Georgia.

The three defenders were hosted by nose tackle Jonathan Taylor and outside linebacker James DeLoach, both of whom are freshmen. The group discussed rebuilding Georgia’s defensive line next year as graduation and likely the NFL will take a heavy toll on the defensive front.