If you were to ask those around the Georgia football program who is the most likable or charismatic player, odds are a popular answer would be Eric Stokes. The redshirt sophomore cornerback exudes positivity and a pronounced love for life. On the field, he has reason to be positive: Stokes has evolved into a lockdown corner. But that was not without an extensive period of development.

As a recruit, Stokes was not a highly touted player. He had to transform from a running back and track star into a cornerback—and do it during his junior year. After his position change, Stokes started to garner more and more attention.

At one point, he was dead set on taking his talents to the Magnolia State.

“I was planning on going to Ole Miss, being a Rebel. I hadn’t committed, but my whole goal was going to Ole Miss,” Stokes said. He then received a scholarship offer that changed everything.

“I got the Georgia offer right after my last game. Then everything just started trickling down, and I was still a Rebel. Then, like two weeks before signing day, I was a Dawg.”

The Georgia coaching staff brought in Stokes during the 2017 recruiting cycle. Former Georgia defensive coordinator and current Colorado head coach Mel Tucker helped the cornerback become the player he is today, and Stokes hasn’t forgotten.

“I give him a lot of credit,” he said of Tucker. “He was the one who took a chance on a three-star speedster whom a lot of people just looked at as a track guy. He looked at me as a football player.”

The football player Tucker saw is now the leader of Georgia’s cornerbacks, and according to head coach Kirby Smart, a player with endless potential.

“Eric works as hard as anybody on our team. He’s very intelligent; he takes notes in the meetings; he understands things. He has made himself into a good player. And I’ll say it wasn’t natural to him. He didn’t grow up playing corner. He’s a guy who has developed and gotten better through hard work and habits. With his length and his speed, the sky's the limit for him.”

Smart was also appreciative of the work that Tucker put in with Stokes.

“Coach Tucker did a tremendous job with him, developing him from a young age—the guy was raw. He has improved himself through hard work and habits. He still has room to improve. He’ll be the first to tell you that, but he works every day and gives you everything he’s got. He’s a great asset to our program.”

The evolution from underrated recruit to star corner has been a treat for Stokes to live out, and for Georgia fans to watch. But the player he used to be hasn’t been lost on him.

“It’s just a tremendous journey. Where I’m at now to where I was at last year, it's just a big flip. I’m shocked. I’ve got people back home who are shocked for me,” he said. “I remember I wasn’t a star player—and I know somebody underneath me is even more hungry. They’re trying to get to where I’m at, so I can’t slip up.”

What is Stokes like off the field?

“He’s charismatic. He cares about his family. He’s a great person. He’s a joy to be around,” said Smart.

Stokes is always complimentary of his teammates and coaches. He’s a self-proclaimed “mama’s boy,” yet an overall pleasant person to be around. And none of that goes with him when he sets foot on the field.

“It’s just a totally different person,” he said. “Once I get the helmet on, it’s game time. All this smiling and stuff, you don’t really catch it unless you come to the sideline, and I’m just chilling, like ‘I really just did that.’ There’s a different side to me on game day. Once we’re in between the lines, all this smiling and goofiness is out the window.”