Kickoff Countdown: Who wore it best? #84

UGASports is counting down the days until the Bulldogs’ 2024 season opener. For each day in our countdown, we will reveal our opinion of the best player in Georgia football’s history to wear that particular jersey number.

With 84 days before kickoff, UGASports selects Leonard Floyd as the best Georgia player to wear jersey number 84.

Position: Outside Linebacker

Hometown (High School): Eastman, GA (Dodge County)

Height/Weight: 6-4, 231

Lettered: 2013-15

Stats: 184 tackles, 28.5 tackles for loss, 17 sacks, 6 forced fumbles

Career: Leonard Floyd was a four-star defensive end out of high school, who spent a season at Hargrave Military Academy prior to joining the Bulldogs. At Georgia, Floyd made Phil Steele’s Freshman All-American First Team in 2013. That season, he started eight games, amassed 55 tackles, and led the team in sacks with 6.5. As a sophomore, Floyd nearly duplicated those stats as he had 55 tackles and led the team with six sacks. As a junior, he was second on the team in tackles with a career-high 74 and for the third time led the team in sacks with 4.5. Floyd is one of four defenders to lead or co-lead Georgia in sacks in three separate seasons. As a junior, he was named a Butkus Award finalist and had one of the Georgia’s longest plays in history. Early in the game at Tennessee in 2013, Floyd found himself in the right place as he recovered a popped-up fumble as Tennessee was a few yards from scoring. He then darted 96 yards for a touchdown. It was the second longest touchdown on a Georgia fumble recovery in history (Damian Swann – 99 yards vs Georgia Tech in 2014). Floyd would forgo his senior season and enter the draft.

Post-UGA Career: Floyd was the ninth overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft by the Chicago Bears. He played four seasons with Chicago before playing three with the Los Angeles Rams, and last season with the Buffalo Bills. Floyd is one of the top sack artists in the NFL as he has totaled 58 in his career, including 39.5 in the last four seasons. He added another sack in the biggest game of them all back in February of 2022 as he was part of the Rams’ Super Bowl LVI win over the Cincinnati Bengals.

#84 Honorable Mentions: Richard Appleby, Clarence Kay, Ladd McConkey