Morning, y’all! Happy Monday!
Thank you so much to everyone who has gotten me their thoughts on their sleeper picks for the 2026 season, and I hope you enjoyed the DawgNation’s picks.
If you missed it, here’s a recap from Friday’s newsletter.
And if you want to send me your pick of a player who may be a little under the radar but could have a big impact this year, send it to sarah.spencer@ajc.com and I may include it in an upcoming newsletter.
In the meantime, let’s talk about Georgia’s first scrimmage of fall camp:
What we’re hearing out of Georgia football’s first scrimmage
Georgia held its first full fall scrimmage on Saturday, and DawgNation is hearing the Bulldogs’ run game looked good but dropped passes were trending.
The on-field temperature approached 100 degrees, with the heat index escalating the “feels like” temperature 10 degrees higher, creating challenging circumstances for all of the players.
Tailback Chauncey Bowens had one of the hotter performances, running effectively throughout the scrimmage.
Nate Frazier, the projected starter, broke off a run of more than 30 yards near the start of practice but was limited in his action.
Bo Walker scored the only touchdown of the scrimmage after a catch and run.
Freshman tailback Jae Lamar also showed some impressive running skills but a late fumble after a pass reception was less than a highlight.
London Humphreys and Landon Roldan were two receivers who performed well, per observers.
Humphreys, however, took a jarring hit from preseason All-American candidate KJ Bolden after making a catch over the middle.
Other receivers didn’t fare as well.
Georgia coach Kirby Smart told his pass catchers at a practice open to Glory Glory NIL initiative subscribers last Sunday that “We’re going to start counting dropped passes.”
Smart might have that same sentiment after Saturday’s workout. Incoming transfer Isiah Canion and incoming freshman Kaiden Prothro both made nice catches, but even they were not immune to dropped passes.
Likewise for receivers Talyn Taylor and Sacovie White-Helton and tight ends Jaden Reddell and Elyiss Williams.
White-Helton and Roldan were returning punts.
Read Mike Griffith’s full story here.
Georgia freshman class ahead of schedule coming out of first scrimmage
For most Georgia freshmen, Monday is the first day of classes. They’ll be navigating the endless amount of hills, a new bus system and the general anxiety that comes with the transition to college life.
As for those on the Georgia football team, many of the 2026 recruits have been in Athens for months. All but five of Georgia’s 32 signees have been with the program since January.
While their fellow students were enjoying the final Saturday before class starts, those on the Georgia football team were putting in the work during Saturday’s scrimmage. More than a few of them helped make their case to be early contributors for the 2026 season.
Some have been making noise for months. Offensive lineman Zykie Helton is the front-runner to be Georgia’s starting right guard. Few Georgia freshmen in Kirby Smart’s decade-plus tenure have ever been this lauded before playing their first game.
“Obviously a hell of an athlete, a hell of a football player,” offensive tackle Earnest Greene said of Helton. “You wouldn’t be at this university if you weren’t, especially in the room that we’re in. I just like to speak to the type of person that he is, you know, the character.”
Then there’s Kaiden Prothro, who has the potential to make an immediate impact in the Georgia passing game. Even if he’s still trying to figure out his place in the offense.
“He is very unique as far as his ability to catch the football, and his matchup ability, but he has a long way to go, too,” tight ends coach Todd Hartley said. “He has a lot to learn about playing the position of tight end. He has a lot to learn about playing receiver as well. You know, coming in from Bowdon, Single-A, and they won a lot of state championships in a really good program with Coach (Rich) Fendley there. But that’s a big jump to playing SEC football.”
Helping in Georgia’s scrutinized passing game are wide receivers Craig Dandridge and Tre Shields. The latter was a top recruit, ranking as the No. 81 overall player in the class.
Shields was a late addition to the class out of Flowery Branch High School. Despite being a complete unknown to most invested recruiting fans, Shields has quickly shown why he belongs at Georgia.
“We’re glad he’s here,” Georgia offensive coordinator Mike Bobo said. “He’s a hard-working young man. He’s young. He didn’t get to go through the spring, so he’s still learning. I’m glad he’s a Bulldog.”
Trivia time
Who are Georgia’s three players that were named freshman All-Americans in 2025?
Defensively, Tyriq Green was the name to know coming out of spring practice. He came down with an interception in Georgia’s spring game.
Defensive lineman Valdin Sone has had some nice moments during fall camp after a rather quiet spring.
“With V (Valdin Sone), it’s awesome,” Georgia defensive line coach Tray Scott said. “Interesting story with him being from Sweden and being over here and just inserting himself into anything, everything that we have going on.”
One of the bigger winners coming out of Saturday’s scrimmage was offensive lineman Ekene Ogboko.
He was Georgia’s top-rated signee in the 2026 recruiting cycle and the lone 5-star prospect, using the 247Sports Composite rankings.
Ogboko is expected to be Georgia’s left tackle of the future. But he may end up playing his way into Georgia’s offensive line rotation this fall if he can sustain his gains.
Because of the current college football landscape, Georgia is always going to be a young team.
Smart and his assistants have long accepted this, leaning on the high school recruiting model compared to chasing veterans in the transfer portal.
It remains to be seen if that decision yields championships like Georgia won in 2021 and 2022.
But for now, Georgia accepts the yearly challenge on its hands when it comes to getting freshmen ready to go.
“You definitely have to get moving quick. I would say a lot of our guys coming in as freshmen play, too,” Georgia strength and conditioning coordinator Scott Sinclair said. “And so, 15 years ago, you had a developmental group, and almost every guy was redshirting. And you were lifting them multiple times a week. Now, that’s not always the case.”
Read Connor Riley’s full story here.
Trivia answer
OL Dontrell Glover, DL Elijah Griffin, DB Ellis Robinson IV
