Apparently, it’s happening: Justin Fields is transferring out of Georgia after one season. Albeit mostly in mop-up duty in 2018, the true freshman quarterback threw for 328 yards on 27 of 39 passes, four touchdowns and no interceptions, while rushing for 266 yards (6.3 yards per carry) and four touchdowns. Notably, with the reserve signal-caller coming off the bench, Fields’ 100 rushing yards against UMass marked only the third time since 1976 that a Georgia quarterback had a 100-yard rushing outing.
Where would Fields’ lone season as a Bulldog stack up against others who played at Georgia for only a single season before leaving for whatever reason? Based solely on how each player performed, the impact they made, etc., while a Bulldog—and nothing to do with any efforts after Georgia—my opinion of the all-time top five “One-and-Done Bulldogs” prior to Fields’ transfer:
No. 5—Cleveland Gary (1984): A Parade All-American from Indiantown, Fla., Gary rushed for 240 yards as a true freshman in 1984 at Georgia, 221 of which were gained between the second and fifth games of the season. With stiff competition from fellow tailbacks Lars Tate, Tron Jackson, and freshmen Tim Worley and Keith Henderson in 1985, Gary went from the Bulldogs' top tailback in the spring, to third-string in the summer, to finally the No. 5 tailback when the season opened against Alabama. In the opening game, he dressed out but didn't see the field and, just days later, decided to transfer to Miami (Fla).
At Miami, Gary was part of a national championship team in 1987, led the Hurricanes in rushing and receiving as a first-team All-American in 1988, and was a first-round pick in the 1989 NFL Draft. Gary played six seasons in the pros, primarily with the L.A. Rams. Yet, you could say, his big-time football career began with a season as a Bulldog—still, it’s a stage in his life that even Gary himself has apparently forgotten:
No. 4—Shaq Wiggins (2013): After sub-par play from another true freshman, Brendan Langley, through the first four games of the 2013 season, Wiggins stepped in at a cornerback position, starting each of the eight games he would appear in for the rest of the year. His eight starts were the most by a Bulldog freshman defensive back in more than 30 years (Tony Flack, 1982)—and, although he totaled just two interceptions, Wiggins toted one back 39 yards for a touchdown at Vanderbilt. His two picks actually led the Bulldogs in 2013, as he became the first true freshman in Georgia's modern era to lead the team in annual interceptions.
Entering the spring of 2014, Wiggins appeared to be maybe the only Bulldog in the secondary to have a starting position secured. Nevertheless, following spring practice, he left the team seeking a program who’d "embrace [his] personality." In two years at Louisville (2015-2016) and one at Tennessee as a graduate transfer (2017), Wiggins was a starter for only one season. He recently became part of the Atlanta Legends of the upstart Alliance of American Football league.
No. 3—Armin Love (1995): After redshirting as a true freshman, Love started all but two games for the Bulldogs at strong safety in 1995. That season, the native of the Houston, Tex. area totaled 61 tackles and was named to the SEC's All-Freshman team. In addition, after recording none during the regular season, he tallied one-and-a-half sacks against Virginia in the Peach Bowl. However, by that time, Love was beginning to demonstrate character issues both on and off the field which would eventually lead to his demise as a Dawg. In the spring, he reportedly landed in first-year head coach Jim Donnan's doghouse for a poor attitude and was demoted to fourth string; however, he was battling for his old starting safety spot by the end of fall camp. Nonetheless, Love merely practiced with the team through the first few games of the season—and never played a snap.
In mid-October of 1996, Love was suspended indefinitely for violating unspecified team rules and was dismissed about a week later after being charged with battery for hitting a bouncer. He transferred to Stephen F. Austin, where he lettered in 1997 and 1998.
No. 2—W.F. McClelland (1910): UGA's incoming freshman class of the 1910-11 academic year consisted of 145 students: 138 native Georgians, four from Florida, one Californian, Hsung-ting Hwang from China, and W.F. McClelland from Freeville, New York. The one-of-a-kind northerner promptly tried out for the school's football squad, eventually starring on what could be considered Georgia greatest team prior to the 1920s. As the Red and Black's starting fullback, McClelland scored eight touchdowns in the team's first three games with only legendary Bob McWhorter totaling more (13). The quick and, at times, unstoppable back, who also had quite the arm, McClelland passed for a 30-yard touchdown in the season's fifth game against Mercer.
Following the sixth contest versus Sewanee—and with three games still remaining on the schedule—McClelland was dismissed from the University "for conditions in his studies." Thus, he became the first of a number of standout Bulldogs whose poor studies abruptly halted an aspiring athletic career.
No. 1—Isaiah Crowell (2011): Crowell, one of the most highly-touted running backs the Bulldogs had ever landed, began his Georgia career with a bang, rushing for more than 100 yards in three of his first five games. However, after the freshman tailback scored two touchdowns at Tennessee, disciplinary issues began to surface. Crowell was benched for the beginning of the Vanderbilt game and suspended altogether two games later for reportedly failing a drug test. He reemerged to rush for 132 yards on 24 carries against Auburn but, while supposedly hampered by an ankle injury, totaled just 29 yards on 15 carries in the final four games of the 2011 season. Two days after being booed by Georgia fans as he limped off the field during a defeat in the SEC title game to LSU, Crowell was named the conference's freshman of the year. Arrested on weapon charges prior to the start of the 2012 campaign, he was promptly dismissed from the team.
Transferring to Alabama State within a week of his arrest, Crowell rushed for nearly 2,000 yards, averaged six yards per carry, and scored 30 touchdowns in just two seasons with the Hornets. An undrafted free agent in 2014, he has rushed for at least 600 yards in each of his five seasons in the NFL despite being primarily a part-time starter.
Again where would Justin Fields’ lone season at UGA stack up against other “One-and-Done Bulldogs?" And, can you think of any other worthy examples?
