Always be 'crootin'. That is the mantra of the Georgia Bulldogs. While the University of Georgia's football program has many distinct advantages over other strong ones in the country, being located within two hours of Atlanta might be its biggest. High school football has always been a massive deal in the region. No wonder why the Bulldogs are in the mix for Joshua Sam-Epelle's four-star services.
Dawgs247's Benjamin Wolk reported Georgia will be battling with Miami to land Sam-Epelle for 2027.
Georgia and Miami will battle it out for one of the biggest offensive linemen in the country: Joshua Sam-Epelle.
— Benjamin Wolk (@benjaminwolk) January 6, 2026
The 6-foot-9 offensive lineman broke down the ongoing push from the Bulldogs and the Hurricanes. Miami is making a big move here.https://t.co/GnHPPTdzFc pic.twitter.com/2fAl6KYq5E
According to the 247Sports Composite, Sam-Epelle is the No. 7 player from Georgia, the No. 8 overall offensive tackle, and the No. 70 overall recruit nationally. The 6-foot-8.5, 310-pound lineman from Douglasville has 31 official offers. Outside of Georgia and Miami, he has been tied to South Carolina quite a bit as well. Clearly, UGA offensive line coach Stacy Searels has some work to do to land him...
Let's unpack what it would mean for Georgia to land a player like Sam-Epelle in this recruiting cycle.
Georgia vying for Josh Sam-Epelle's four-star commitment with Miami
What is interesting is the part of the state where Sam-Epelle hails from. As it is with everything, where a high school player stars out of in this state can impact what programs out-of-state he could go to. Douglasville is located in the western part of the state, closer to the Alabama border than anything. While Georgia has a strong chance with everyone, would Alabama and Auburn not have more pull?
Overall, Georgia needs to continue to put in the work with all of these recruits for the 2027 cycle. This is even more noticeable now, as the Bulldogs lost an interior offensive line commit in Kyson Mallard on Tuesday afternoon. Georgia still has plenty of time to regroup and get whoever it wants in the 2027 recruiting class. However, Miami is still playing in the College Football Playoff, and UGA is not.
Ultimately, Georgia may have to come to grips that programs like Miami are not only winning, but will be more than willing to pay a premium to get top-flight players out-of-state to come to Coral Gables. The Georgia discount still exists in some capacity, but it is rapidly deteriorating with every passing recruiting cycle. It is why Georgia cannot beat around the bush and will have to secure this prospect.
While getting great players in state is preferred, losing them to out-of-state powers is never ideal...