During Saturday afternoon’s 26-23 Black victory over the Red in Georgia’s 78th annual G-Day game, the play of this year’s freshman early enrollees was on the mind of many Bulldog faithful—and rightfully so. This spring, a staggering 18 recruits enrolled early, topping the previous school record of 16 which was set last year.
Notably, five of the 18 early enrollees sat out the spring game because of injuries: defensive lineman Bear Alexander (labrum), offensive lineman Jacob Hood (ankle), linebacker C.J. Madden (labrum), offensive lineman Griffin Scroggs (shoulder), and linebacker C.J. Washington (neck).
Of the 13 healthy early enrollees, Red tight end Oscar Delp, who was considered the nation’s No. 3 tight end out of high school, had arguably the top performance. The newcomer from Cumming’s West Forsyth High School made a game-high seven receptions—two more than anyone else—for 91 yards. Delp demonstrated reliable hands, as a few of his catches were either juggled first or were made in traffic. In addition, Delp showed excellent route running skills—very fluid.
“I thought he didn't get too caught up in the moment and played well,” head coach Kirby Smart said of Delp in his postgame press conference. “I thought he had a decent scrimmage today. He caught the ball well. He ran after the catch well.”
Worthy of mention, Delp’s Red team was considered to feature Georgia’s first-team defense and second-team offense, whereas the Black displayed the first-team offense and second-team defense. Therefore, fittingly, all of the Red’s five early enrollees were offensive players, whereas nearly all of the Black’s eight early enrollees were defenders.
The lone quarterback in the group, Rabun County’s Gunner Stockton, or the country’s No. 2 dual-threat quarterback for the 2022 class, played for just one series—the Red’s seventh possession of the game. Considered likely the team’s No. 4 quarterback, Stockton completed his first pass attempt—a 9-yard gain to running back Cash Jones—but threw two incompletions during the possession, and the Red was forced to punt.
Red receiver De’Nylon Morrissette, a Rivals250 prospect who appeared in the game as early as late in the opening quarter, was targeted four times. Although Morrissette didn’t make any receptions, he did have a remarkable catch of an errant pass thrown by redshirt freshman quarterback Brock Vandagriff that was ruled out of bounds.
Besides Delp, massive lineman Earnest Greene III of Bellflower, California, was the only other early-enrollee starter for the Red. Greene, who was rated as the second-best offensive guard in the nation, started at left tackle on Saturday. Beginning with the Red’s opening offensive play—a 60-yard pass from quarterback Carson Beck to wideout Arian Smith—Greene was impressive, making several key blocks during the contest while not allowing a sack, although often playing opposite of Black defensive lineman Mykel Williams, who was regarded as the country’s No. 8 overall prospect for the 2022 class.
“Earnest (Greene) has come a long way, from getting here and having to lose 25 to 30 pounds. He did that before spring, and then once he got on the field, because of his conditioning level, he was able to handle the number of reps we gave him,” Smart said. “He took almost every rep with the twos and the threes for all spring, and just think he's going to be a talented player that's extremely tough, does things the right way. We're very fortunate to have Earnest in the program.”
Among those singing Greene’s praises was fellow offensive lineman Sedrick Van Pran, who remarked following the game that the early enrollee has “very twitchy feet—really good feet.”
“[Greene] is also really good with his hands. He understands football,” Van Pran added. “So, he’ll continue to keep growing. One day he’s going to be a superstar for this team.”
Aliou Bah, a Rivals250 prospect from the IMG Academy, also saw time along the Red’s offensive line, but in a limited capacity.
Wide receiver C.J. Smith was the lone early-enrollee offensive player for the winning Black squad. Targeted twice, Smith was held without a catch, although he displayed excellent speed, especially considering he’s coming off meniscus surgery.
The Black team received mixed results from Australian freshman punter Brett Thorson. With little pressure was applied by the Red special teams unit, Thorson averaged just 37.5 yards on four punts, although he punted a long of 48 yards while one of his attempts was meant to be short, as it was downed inside the opposing 10-yard line. Yet, none of Thorson’s punts displayed the lengthy hang time often demonstrated the last four seasons by Georgia’s departed punter, Jake Camarda.
Five of the Black’s 11 starting defenders were early enrollees, including three of the four members of the secondary. Besides Williams, who had one tackle, Rivals100 linebacker Jalon Walker of Salisbury, North Carolina, got a starting nod. Walker stood out amongst the defenders, totaling two solo tackles, a pass breakup, and recorded the Black’s only sack of the game.
As part of a speedy defensive secondary, local product Malaki Starks of nearby Jefferson tied for the team lead with five tackles. At the other Black starting safety spot, JaCorey Thomas was even more impressive, recording four tackles, including a leveling of Delp following the tight end’s initial catch on the final play of the first quarter, and a pass breakup.
Following the game, Starks and Thomas were recognized as “great, young players” by veteran defensive back Christopher Smith.
Still, perhaps outperforming them both was Daylen Everette, the No. 42 overall recruit, including No. 7 cornerback, for the last class. Everette, who made five tackles—all solo—demonstrated his sub-4.4 40 speed while displaying good pass coverage skills.
“The thing about Daylen Everette, we learned in the spring he can tackle you,” Smart said. “He's not afraid of contact. He's going to be a good football player.”
Finally, defensive lineman Shone Washington of New Orleans, who happened to be the lowest rated (5.6) of Georgia’s 15 defenders in its 2022 class, stood out to UGASports in a reserve role. Although Washington wasn’t credited with any tackles, the 6-foot-4, 300-pounder was part of a Black defensive line which was able to penetrate the Red offensive line at times in the game’s second half.
As a whole, what does the future hold for the newcomers who made their official Sanford Stadium debut at Saturday’s G-Day? Only time will tell. Still, if the spring game is any indication—even in the slightest—the future should be bright for Georgia’s latest bunch of early enrollees.
