Georgia football received a surprise commitment Thursday afternoon from three-star defensive tackle Tymon Mitchell.
Georgia football didn’t get the home run commitment it expected to get today, but the Dawgs are back on top anyways with the commitment of Nashville’s Tymon Mitchell.
The recruiting media and the Georgia fan base entered Thursday expecting the no. 5 junior college player in the country, D.J. Daniel, to sign with the Dawgs. During his scheduled announcement at 2 p.m., Daniel committed to South Carolina instead.
Mitchell’s commitment doesn’t draw as much attention as Daniel’s would have, but it’s still a big deal. For starters, Mitchell’s brings Georgia back to no. 1 in 247Sports’ rankings. Mitchell is ranked no. 446 in the national player rankings, no. 24 out of all defensive tackles and no. 14 in the state of Tennessee. He’s the second highest ranked three-star on Georgia’s 2019 commitment list behind Zion Logue, who’s also from Tennessee, just 30 miles away from Mitchell in Lebanon.
The second reason why this is a big deal, Mitchell carries offers from 21 schools, including seven SEC schools, one of which is Alabama. And being from Tennessee, Mitchell is the third player Smart has taken from rival Tennessee’s backyard. Defensive end Bill Norton is the biggest of the three.
Lastly, don’t let that three-star rating fool you. The kid can play and the Bulldog Nation has seen many three stars blossom into star players during their years in Athens. Tyrique McGhee and Brian Herrien are a pair of three-star players who have earned a lot of playing time from Kirby Smart. But defensive lineman David Marshall should encourage fans the most about Mitchell. Marshall was also just a three-star defensive lineman and he’s put together two very solid years at Georgia so far.
For the time being, Georgia’s 2019 class is back to no. 1 in the rankings, but it’s not time to celebrate yet. Alabama isn’t ready to relinquish their recruiting dominance. Programs like Clemson, Texas A&M and Oklahoma also have their eyes on a no. 1 class. There are still four months until the early signing period and six months until National Signing Day. Anything can happen.