{"id":57462,"date":"2024-01-16T13:00:18","date_gmt":"2024-01-16T18:00:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/?p=57462"},"modified":"2024-01-16T12:34:41","modified_gmt":"2024-01-16T17:34:41","slug":"georgia-climbs-above-cfb-chaos-in-three-moves","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/2024\/01\/16\/georgia-climbs-above-cfb-chaos-in-three-moves\/","title":{"rendered":"Georgia Climbs Above CFB Chaos in Three Moves"},"content":{"rendered":"

“Chaos isn’t a pit. Chaos is a ladder.” College football was chaotic last week with Nick Saban’s<\/strong> retirement from Alabama. Game of Thrones fans may have recognized the quote at the start of the article. It is from a conversation between Varys<\/strong> and Littlefinger<\/strong> during Season 3<\/a>. In the show, the quote highlights that chaos can create opportunities for those ready to seize them. Saban’s retirement has led to the reopening of the transfer portal, initiating a coaching carousel that has affected Tuscaloosa<\/a>, Seattle<\/a>, and Tucson<\/a>, with more changes expected. Amidst this chaos, Kirby Smart<\/strong> and the Georgia Bulldogs have skillfully navigated the situation, continuing to ascend to the top of college football’s elite. Here are three moves that show Georgia is ready to take the next step.<\/p>\n

Georgia Rises Above CFB Chaos in Three Moves<\/h2>\n

Move 1: Recruiting Dominance<\/h3>\n

Georgia’s 2024 recruiting class is ranked number one nationwide by 247Sports and On3. Smart learned well that Saban’s success at Alabama hinged on an unrelenting pursuit of excellence and adaptability when it came to recruiting. Alabama signed 73 5-stars and 262 4-stars in Saban’s 16 full recruiting classes. The Class of 2024 is Smart’s third top-rated class since coming to Georgia in 2016. Smart and his staff have done so by taking a national approach to recruiting.<\/p>\n

While this approach has irritated some in the Georgia Coaches Football Coaches Association, only nine of the 28 players in the class are from Georgia. The national strategy has enabled Georiga to take the next step in becoming one of the elite programs in the nation, bringing in Georiga legends like\u00a0 Kelee Ringo<\/strong> (AZ) and Brock Bowers<\/strong> (CA). Looking at the 2024 class<\/a>, Georgia has seven players who are either the #1 ranked player at their position or the #1 ranked player in their state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<\/colgroup>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
#1 Position Ranking<\/strong><\/td>\n#1 State Ranking<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Name<\/em><\/td>\nPosition<\/em><\/td>\nState<\/em><\/td>\nName<\/em><\/td>\nPosition<\/em><\/td>\nState<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Ellis Robinson IV<\/strong><\/td>\nCB<\/td>\nFlorida<\/td>\nChris Cole<\/strong><\/td>\nLB<\/td>\nVirginia<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Justin Williams<\/strong><\/td>\nLB<\/td>\nTexas<\/td>\nOndre Evans<\/strong><\/td>\nCB<\/td>\nTennessee<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
KJ Bolden<\/strong><\/td>\nS<\/td>\nGeorgia<\/td>\nJordan Thomas<\/strong><\/td>\nDL<\/td>\nNew Jersey<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Drew Miller<\/strong><\/td>\nP<\/td>\nIowa<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

That number climbs to eight if\u00a0 Dylan Raiola<\/strong><\/a> doesn’t flip to Nebraska. Smart laid out the reality of his national approach to recruiting on signing day. “I love getting kids from the state of Georgia. If I could sign every kid from Georgia, I would love to do that. That would be great. That’s not realistic. It’s just not.” Smart and his staff showed the state’s importance with their #FirstDayOut tweets last week. Each of the staff hit several schools across the state of Georgia. The conversation at Buford High School must have been interesting.<\/p>\n

\n

#FirstDayOut<\/a>#GoDawgs<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/2baB6ZOhFT<\/a><\/p>\n

— Coach Kirby Smart (@KirbySmartUGA) January 12, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n