One of the most impactful court rulings in college football history was just made a few days ago. A court decided that players in the 2022 recruiting class who used up four years of eligibility can return to college for one more season, and that left fans wondering if any undrafted players from the 2026 NFL Draft could return to school.
At this time it isn't 100 percent certain if this is allowed, but the NCAA has no backbone so players will probably get away with it. A handful of players are actually already planning on returning to college for one more year, and at includes ex-Georgia defensive back JaCorey Thomas.
A lot still has to unfold before any of these players can return, and with Georgia's season just five weeks away who knows if Thomas can be ready to play in time. Kirby Smart however will have to first decide if he will let ex-players return to college after exploring the NFL, and based on his track record this will be a tough decision to make.
New eligibility ruling forces Kirby Smart to question his ethics
Smart has made it abundantly clear that he wants to run Georgia's program as ethically as possible. He's shown that by preferring to pay his current players over buying as many transfers and top recruits as possible and by voicing his extreme displeasure towards coaches who force their players to leave to make room for new transfers.
Smart has proven that he wants to do right by his current players every chance he gets, so would allowing former players who attempted to make the NFL back into the program be in his current player's best interest?
The easy answer is no, it would not. These players returning would take playing time away from those who earned it all offseason. They had no clue they would have to battle any of these ex-NFL players, so to let them come back and steal playing time just doesn't seem right.
Smart however will have to make that decision for himself, and if he decides he wants to let players come back he could have a few options that would help make Georgia a lot better this season.
3 players Georgia could benefit from having back from the NFL
If undrafted NFL players are able to return to college football and Smart decides he is fine with them coming back to Georgia, there are three players who are obvious fits that he should target.
The first is running back Cash Jones. Georgia needs a new third down back this season after transfer running back Dante Dowdell tore his ACL this offseason. That is the exact role that Jones played last year, so he would be the perfect player to replace him.
The other area Georgia could really use some help this season is at wide receiver as they are missing a veteran leader. Both Noah Thomas and Dillon Bell would be perfect options to come back for one more season, but Bell would be the best option as he can play running back as well.
Based on Smart's previous actions and statements it seems unlikely that he will be fine with players in the NFL returning to college. But if for some reason he is okay with it he will have a couple options that would immediately make Georgia better this season.
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