Want a daily lap through Georgia football recruiting? That’s what the Intel will bring at least five days a week. We’ll cover the news and which way this 4-star like dual-threat QB Dakereon Joyner might lean plus add some perspective to help fans figure out what it all means.

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The latest on South Carolina QB Dakereon Joyner is going to be very interesting for Georgia fans.

It will remind you of those choose-your-adventure stories. No doubt. Just pick any of the story arcs which might interest you. There’s bound to be one for the discriminating UGA fan.

  • Georgia assistant coach Shane Beamer has been in touch with the 4-star QB daily. It ranks as one of — if not the highest-rated — targets Beamer has worked on that heavily for the Bulldogs.
  • Alabama offered on March 9. Joyner’s recent tally includes the Tide plus Notre Dame, Oregon and Michigan State.
  • South Carolina is the perceived team to beat. Joyner has cast aside an outdated December 2016 Top 5 and will now focus on Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina State, Oregon and South Carolina.
  • 5-star QB Trevor Lawrence’s decision to choose Clemson opened the door for the 2016 Gatorade South Carolina Player of the Year to consider Georgia, among other schools.
  • Joyner is rated as the nation’s No. 8 dual-threat QB for 2018. He also showed why on the field with his 3,642 passing yards and 44 touchdowns. The Fort Dorchester star added another 1,089 yards and 12 scores on the ground.
  • This decision only has about three more months to mature. Joyner will commit on June 9. That day is significant and he will use it to honor his late father. He passed away when Joyner was nine years old.

Georgia’s push for Dakereon Joyner

Attack the day? That’s Georgia’s motto for recruiting Joyner, too.

“I talk to coach (Shane) Beamer every single day,” he told SEC Country’s Chris Kirschner. “I like Coach Kirby Smart, too. They are recruiting me hard every single day. They have two pocket passers. I kind of want to change the game and be that dual-threat quarterback. There’s a bit of pressure there knowing that coach Smart is looking at going the dual-threat route. They are looking for a guy that can change that offense.”

Joyner knows he is one of Georgia’s top QB targets for 2018.

“That’s special to me,” he said. “Any opportunity that I have is special and I appreciate it. I’m very thankful.”

 

Kereon Joyner is rated as the nation’s No. 8 dual-threat QB in the Class of 2018. (Hale McGranahan / SECCountry.com)/Dawgnation)

He also addressed the speculation he might be a South Carolina lean.

 

“I’m an in-state guy,” Joyner said. “I can’t say what I exactly want to say on Twitter, but that’s what everyone thinks. If I do go out of state, then some people may be sad. I would love to get out of state, too — I’m not saying that I am — but I would love to get out and explore.”

If he does leave the state, he said his mother was already warming to the idea of moving near where he will enroll in January of 2018.

He’s also keenly aware that Alabama, UGA and South Carolina all started freshmen QBs last season. Does that matter?

“Yes, but at the same time it doesn’t,” he said. “I can always redshirt my freshman year. If they are good enough as they are now, then they would probably leave after three years. So, I could redshirt my freshman year and be fine.”

He elaborated on that.

“My expectation is to go wherever and win that job,” Joyner said. “If they have a great year, then so be it. That’s their job to do that. But I’m going anywhere to win that job.”

The Trevor Lawrence connection

When a big-name QB makes his decision, the ripple effects are felt across the country.

Joyner shared an interesting example of that with The State’s Phil Kornblunt in December. That narrative emerged when 5-star Cartersville QB Trevor Lawrence chose Clemson over Georgia.

In short, that move ended Joyner’s consideration of the Tigers. Clemson had offered him as an athlete but started to mention him as a possible quarterback as the months went by.

Could the decision made by Trevor Lawrence actually help Georgia find its next dual-threat QB in an indirect way? (Jeff Sentell / DawgNation.com)/Dawgnation)

Joyner seems savvy to the game. He knew why.

“As they started losing ground with Trevor Lawrence, because everybody thought he was going to Georgia, which I thought, too, I kind of made up my mind,” he told Kornblut. “They kind of started throwing the quarterback situation in my ears and giving me what I wanted to hear. But it’s all a business and I can understand that. At this time I feel like there’s no room at Clemson for me to play quarterback.”

That opened the door for South Carolina to become a major contender. It also gave a program like UGA a fighting chance. A lot of the schools on his list had holstered their offers because the word was he was all Clemson.

“That kind of was true,” Joyner told Kornblut. “They were at the top of my list, and when it came down to it that’s where I would have ended up.”

4 really quick things 

  • Georgia continues to be in very good shape with junior college DT Emmit Gooden. Gooden told DawgNation yesterday the Bulldogs remain his biggest offer and they continue to recruit him heavily. He said to look for him to take an unofficial visit to check out Georgia’s spring practice on March 21. Gooden’s decision will be one to watch. He goes back years with new UGA defensive line coach Tray Scott. Gooden rates as the nation’s No. 2 DT prospect among the junior college ranks.