Redshirt Review: Xavier Truss

There are a lot of things you can say about Georgia head coach Kirby Smart. One, he’s not afraid to give a true freshman an opportunity if he proves he’s ready.

Take 2019.

Of Georgia’s 23 freshmen signees, only linebacker Rian Davis and quarterback D’Wan Mathis (who was held out to due injury) failed to play. The rest appeared in multiple games under NCAA guidelines, allowing players to take part in as many as four contests without losing a season of eligibility.

Last year, 12 of the Bulldogs’ 2019 signees qualified for redshirts under that scenario.

In this annual series on UGASports, we’ll take a look at the players whom you glimpsed without seeing featured on a regular basis.

Hometown: Warwick, Rhode Island

Height: 6-7

Weight: 330

2019 Rivals Ranking: A former three-star player, Truss was not ranked in the final Rivals250, but was listed as the 40th-best offensive tackle.

Truss was considered a project by many, but started to turn heads as the season progressed.

The Rhode Island native ultimately got in three games for the Bulldogs, seeing action against Murray State, Arkansas State, and Georgia Tech.

Truss saw a season-high 22 snaps against the Racers, followed by 16 the following week against Arkansas State.

That would be the last time Truss would see the field until the regular-season finale against Georgia Tech, when he was in on six.

Truss projects as a tackle, and when spring practice gets underway next month, it’s believed he’ll get the first shot at replacing Andrew Thomas at left tackle.

Talk about some big shoes to fill.

Just don’t sell him short. Truss began training at left tackle the latter part of last year, and apparently made enough strides to earn himself the opportunity he’ll receive this spring.

Truss can and probably will receive looks at right tackle, but the left side should ultimately be his home. He’s expected to get some competition from fellow redshirt freshman Warren McClendon as well as redshirt sophomore Owen Condon.

Come fall, however, keep an eye on freshman Broderick Jones. The 2020 five-star figures to be Georgia’s left tackle of the future. As of today, though, Truss appears to have the early edge.

His battle for the starting job is expected to be one of the key competitions to watch for the Bulldogs this spring.