ATHENS — At this point in his Georgia career, it’s becoming a bit of an August tradition to hear good things about junior defensive back Joenel Aguero.

He arrived as a highly touted freshman in Georgia’s 2023 signing class, and appeared as someone who could help at the star position.

But Tykee Smith put it all together that season and kept Aguero limited to special teams. Smith, after a stellar season at star, was a third-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.

A year ago, Aguero seemed poised to step in for Smith as the starter at the star position. But injuries — a leg and then a hand injury — prevented Aguero from developing into an impact player for Georgia. He appeared in 11 games and started five. But in big spots, Aguero was subbed out to put KJ Bolden, Dan Jackson and Malaki Starks all on the field.

“When I’m healthy, I just know that I’m a great player,” Aguero said last week.

Aguero is poised to be Georgia’s starting star this season, even with the Bulldogs adding Adrian Maddox, Zion Branch and Jaden Harris. Aguero has had a strong camp and feels he’s better positioned to handle the rigors of being a contributor at Georgia this season.

Part of that comes with age, as Aguero is now in his third season at Georgia. That’s how long it took Smith to develop into an impact player at the star position.

Like Smith, Aguero has been slowed by injury to this point in his college career.

He told reporters he feels as good as he can given how physical Georgia practice.

“Mentally, I feel like this is probably the best I ever felt,” Aguero said. “Just being here, because, you know, I understand I’ve been here for a minute now, so, like, I just understand how everything works. Physically, you know, you’re at Georgia. You’re always going to feel, you know, banged up, but, you know, it’s just how you push through it.”

With the safety position open, Aguero has spent more time competing at that spot as well. He feels it has helped him better understand his own position in the Georgia secondary.

As for the safety position, it seems Maddox and senior JaCorey Thomas are battling for that spot, with Branch factoring in as well. Maddox seems to have the edge coming out of the second scrimmage, but expect Georgia to rotate in games against Marshall and Austin Peay. The first real test comes against Tennessee on Sept. 13.

Aguero hopes to find himself on the field more often this season. He’s spent much of the offseason working to improve his man-to-man coverage abilities. That should help him see the field on third down in obvious passing situations.

Neither of the previous two seasons has ended the way Aguero would’ve liked. He’s hoping that things go differently in year three, just as they did for Smith.

“I feel like I came a long way understanding the defense,” Aguero said. “Right now, I feel like the position that I’m learning, I got everything now.”