It’s not as if tight end Charlie Woerner hasn’t played an integral part in Georgia’s offense. But according to offensive coordinator James Coley, there’s still a bit more about the senior’s game that he’s still trying to learn.
Despite playing in 39 collegiate games, including five starts, in many ways, Woerner is still a bit of an unknown. With just 23 career games for 271 yards and no touchdowns, the former Rabun County standout, who came to Georgia with Isaac Nauta, has always been a second fiddle to the former five-star.
That’s since changed with Nauta’s decision to leave Georgia a year early for the NFL, leaving Woerner to head up a position group consisting primarily of unproven players.
In Woerner, Coley feels there’s a lot of potential that remains untapped.
“We’re just tapping into his skill set, because we're probably just going into pads today. We’re going to figure out some more about their skill sets,” Coley said. “He does move well; he was a wide receiver coming out of high school. He has the ability to run routes. He has good hands. So we'll see. We'll see where he goes. But yes, that that was very intriguing for us after seeing Isaac (Nauta) go to the NFL. It opens the opportunity for a lot of catches for whatever five guys can fit those roles to get that. But he's definitely in competition.”
However, as Coley explains, it’s still going to be a few days before Woerner gets that chance.
Considering the Bulldogs are still in shells (helmets and shoulder pads) and won’t be donning the full pads until later this week, it won’t be until all the gear comes on that Georgia’s offensive coordinator will start to get a better idea.
“I think the potential part is hard for us right now, because we're not in a potential mode in camp. We're in the grind mode,” Coley said. “Right now, we have Charlie in different situations, wearing multiple hats and just seeing how much he can do. I think Charlie has a really good skill set. I think who he is as a person makes him a better competitor, because he wants to be that good.”
Of course, Woerner isn’t the only tight end looking to make his mark.
Tennessee grad transfer Eli Wolf has made a positive early impression, and is competing with redshirt freshman John FitzPatrick, along with freshmen Ryland Goede and Brett Seither for playing time.
At 6-foot-5 and listed at 245 pounds, Coley says Woerner compares well to other tight ends he’s coached during previous stops at Miami and Florida State.
“Comparing him to the other guys, he's a little different from a lot of these other guys. (David) Njoku is very different from (Chris) Herndon. It’s very different from Clive Walford, is very different from Nick O'Leary,” Coley said. “Those are all guys that are different, and Charlie is probably a bigger guy than most of those guys. I think Charlie has the right mindset after day three. We're going to see where he's at toward the end of camp. We know who he is as a person and we know how he competes. He's probably the highest percentage catcher for us last year at 90 percent, so we’ll see.”
