ATHENS — Given his 5-star status as a recruit and that he plays wide receiver, Zachariah Branch has naturally garnered a lot of interest after transferring in from USC.
But he isn’t the only USC transfer making waves at Georgia this spring. He also isn’t the only Branch brother doing so either.
Zion Branch, Zachariah’s older brother, is doing his best to push for playing time in Georgia’s secondary.
And while Zachariah Branch is known mostly for his speed, Zion’s size stands out in Georgia’s defensive backfield.
“We look at them as separate players,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said. “So we don’t bring them in...it’s like we’re looking at Zion and say, where does he fit in our safety roster? We look at Zach and say, where does he fit in our receiver roster? And then they’re both good players. They’re both in positions of need. We need depth. We need good players.”
Zion Branch is listed at 6-foot-2 and 210 pounds, giving him the versatility to play either safety or star in Georgia’s defense.
Injuries limited Branch’s impact at USC, where he never broke through as an every-down contributor. In 10 games last season, Branch had 19 and 2.0 tackles for loss.
Given Georgia has to replace Malaki Starks and Dan Jackson in the secondary, Branch has ample snaps to possibly earn.
“Zion’s my guy. I think he’s fit in very well around here,” defensive back Kyron Jones said. “I would say, like, me and him became close as soon as he got here. And, you know, he loves football. And I’ll say, like, he’s just a good guy to be around. And I’ll say he brings a lot to our football team, you know, as a player and as a person. So I say he’s a really good addition to this team.”
Branch isn’t just competing with Jones, Joenel Aguero and JaCorey Thomas for playing time, but fellow transfers Adrian Maddox and Jaden Harris.
It’s no guarantee that Branch finds himself as a starter on Georgia’s defense. The competition for playing time figures to be intense and Branch is in the middle of making a big adjustment coming from USC to Georgia.
Branch, like his brother, craves the challenge of playing and making an impact at Georgia.
And it helps to have his younger brother, who is going through the same challenges on the other side of the ball, to lean on as he tries to carve out a role on Georgia’s defense.
“He’s been settling in pretty good as well,” Zachariah Branch said. “You know, just getting a chance to learn everything knowing the ins and outs of the defense, just getting a chance to get reps versus the best players every day, you know, get a chance to really compete. Everybody on the team gets a chance to compete 100 percent. So, I feel like he’s doing real good so far. Me and him are both holding each other accountable, getting all the extra film in, recovery, extra work. We’re just making sure that we’re taking advantage of everything that has given to us.”
