The SEC has wrapped up its spring practices around the conference, completed its annual spring games, and is now ready to take preparation for the 2021 season to the next level.
Georgia, despite having nine players selected in the 2021 NFL draft, returns a loaded roster that many predict will be talented enough to take the Dawgs back to the College Football Playoff for the first time since 2017.
Kirby Smart lost his best offensive player, wide receiver George Pickens, to a torn ACL, but the concern it created about UGA’s weapons on the outside was minimal.
That’s in large part thanks to the play of wide receiver Adonai Mitchell, who USA TODAY Sports named UGA’s top emerging offensive player.
The former three-star out of Cane Ridge High School in Antioch, Tennessee turned a lot of heads at Georgia’s G-Day scrimmage in April. Mitchell caught seven passes for 105 yards and a touchdown during the spring scrimmage and has a lot of Georgia fans excited about his potential to fill in for Pickens.
Mitchell was certainly not a household name among those who closely follow college football recruiting. The 381st overall player in America, Mitchell was only considered the 64th best receiver in the class of 2021.
NEXT: Georgia’s breakout defensive star
USA TODAY Sports names defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt as UGA’s defensive breakout star…
On the defensive side of the ball, senior defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt, who recorded two sacks during G-Day, was named Georgia’s biggest breakout star from spring practice.
When Wyatt decided to return to Athens, UGA fans rejoiced at the fact that the Dawgs would not need to replace a 6-foot-3, 315-pound stud on the line. He could have entered into the 2021 NFL draft, but the Decatur, Georgia native opted to put his dreams on hold for another year. He wanted one last shot at bringing a national title to his home state of Georgia.
“In that room, when we decided to come back, it felt like we can do something this year together and make history,” Wyatt said.
“Go to the playoffs, win a National Championship. So, we [Wyatt and Jordan Davis] both decided to come back together and win one together.”
Last season, Wyatt started at defensive tackle in all 10 of Georgia’s games. Interior linemen often fly under the radar, so to let it be known how important Wyatt is to the Bulldogs, he was the team’s leading tackler among interior linemen with 25 total stops in 2020. He also had 14 quarterback pressures and 2.0 tackles for a loss.
