3 most glaring Georgia needs coming out of the transfer portal
By Josh Yourish
When a team routinely brings in the best or second-best recruiting class in the country and has a two-time national champion coach sleeping on a pile of NIL riches like a dragon in a castle, it’s hard to say they have any massive holes in the roster that haven’t been addressed.
If Kirby Smart loses his top two running backs to the NFL like he did with Daijuan Edwards and Kendall Milton this offseason, he can go pry Trevor Etienne away from Florida. If Ladd McConkey leaves he can go get his body double with an equally southern name, London Humphreys from Vanderbilt.
To say there are “glaring needs” is always a stretch with Georgia, but as we learned last season against Alabama in the SEC title game, this program is not perfect. The 2023 team had flaws and not all of those flaws have been rectified by six elite incoming transfers and the No. 1 high school class in the country.
Even after all that player movement, Georgia still could afford a few more additions. If Kirby stands pat during the May transfer portal window, then if Georgia does lose a game next year, these three position groups could be the reason why.
Offensive line
In the transfer portal, Kirby Smart was focused on replacing Brock Bowers, Ladd McConkey, Daijuan Edwards, and Kendall Milton at the skill positions rather than beefing up his offensive line. However, with the losses of Amarius Mims and Sedrick Van Pran to the NFL, the group up front could have used some reinforcements.
Xavier Truss and Earnest Greene II are back to play the tackle spots, Truss on the right and Greene on the left, and Tate Ratledge and Dylan Fairchild will return at right and left guard respectively. It’s a good unit, but the experienced depth is gone and Jared Wilson will be forced into the role of starting center after playing just 111 snaps there in 2023.
For a team that is still focused on the run game, a dominant center is crucial. It’s less important for pass protection with Carsen Beck more prepared to handle checks at the line in his second year as the starter, but there could still be some growing pains early in the year.
Last season, when Mims missed time, Truss could easily fill in at right tackle, same with Wilson taking snaps behind Van Pran, but now those experienced depth pieces are full-time starters and Georgia is forced to develop more versatile backups, who could find themselves in big spots in 2024.
There is enough talent on the roster for the Bulldogs to plug holes, but adding a veteran offensive lineman in the transfer portal wouldn’t have been a bad idea for Kirby and Mike Bobo.