Georgia 2017 recruiting class: The signees share why they chose UGA on National Signing Day
Georgia’s 2017 recruiting class is in the books. Who signed? Where did all the sites rank the prospect haul? What did Kirby Smart think about all of that?
Let’s hit on all of that.
RELATED: Grading Georgia’s 2017 National Signing Day Class
The Bulldogs didn’t own National Signing Day, but this year was different. There was a no need for a “Big Bang” on National Signing Day. The grand finale played out across November and December when nine players committed to Georgia from Nov. 4 to Jan. 1.
Georgia’s recruiting efforts then landed the final three commits/signees of the class on National Signing Day. That was three cornerbacks that each carried a 3-star rating.
RELATED: The 5 UGA football signees that deserve more attention
But before we do all of that, let’s do a little journalism first.
Why They Signed with Georgia
(a few signees shared why they chose the Bulldogs)
4-star DE Robert Beal: “I am a homegrown guy,” Beal said. “I want to make Georgia great again and bring national championships back to Georgia.”
4-star WR Trey Blount: “I’ve been a fan of Georgia and I love the university and what’s better than bringing a national championship back home. Also, I’ll be receiving a great education through it all.”
4-star DE Malik Herring: “I picked UGA because that’s where my heart was. The coaches made me feel like I can make a big impact there.”
3-star WR Matt Landers: “I chose Georgia because I feel it would be a great fit for me. I have a great time every time I visit Georgia, the communication has always been good and I felt like Georgia was the right place for me.”
4-star OLB Jaden Hunter: “I chose to be apart of something bigger than myself and to bring a Natty back to Athens.”
4-star OT Andrew Thomas: “UGA is a great institution that will develop my character and my talents on and off the field.”
Let’s take a look at the finalized list of signees:
Georgia 2017 recruiting class, rankings
| Pos. | Name | Positional rank | Hometown |
| 5-star S | Richard LeCounte III | 2 | Hinesville, Ga. |
| 5-star OT | Isaiah Wilson | 5 | Brooklyn, N.Y. |
| 4-star QB | Jake Fromm | 3 | Warner Robbins, Ga. |
| 4-star S | DeAngelo Gibbs | 4 | Loganville, Ga. |
| 4-star WR | Jeremiah Holloman | 18 | Covington, Ga. |
| 4-star OT | D’Marcus Hayes | 2 | Perkinston, Miss. (JUCO) |
| 4-star RB | D’Andre Swift | 4 | Philadelphia |
| 4-star OT | Andrew Thomas | 9 | Atlanta |
| 4-star OG | Netori Johnson | 7 | Ellenwood, Ga. |
| 4-star DE | Robert Beal | 8 | Suwanee, Ga. |
| 4-star WR | Mark Webb | 22 | Warminster, Penn. |
| 4-star OLB | Jaden Hunter | 9 | Atlanta |
| 4-star CB | Tray Bishop | 19 | Dawson, Ga. |
| 4-star DE | Malik Herring | 4 | Forsyth, Ga. |
| 4-star ILB | Nate McBride | 6 | Vidalia, Ga. |
| 4-star CB | William Poole III | 25 | Atlanta |
| 4-star OLB | Walter Grant | 11 | Cairo, Ga. |
| 4-star OT | D’Antne Demery | 20 | Brunswick, Ga. |
| 4-star DT | Devonte Wyatt | 16 | Decatur, Ga. |
| 4-star WR | Trey Blount | 47 | Atlanta |
| 3-star OG | Justin Shaffer | 22 | Ellenwood, Ga. |
| 3-star WR | Matt Landers | 97 | St. Petersburg, Fla. |
| 3-star CB | Latavious Brini | 42 | Hialeah, Fla. |
| 3-star CB | Eric Stokes Jr. | 63 | Covington, Ga. |
| 3-star CB | Ameer Speed | 41 | Jacksonville, Fla. |
| 3-star ILB | Monty Rice | 19 | Madison, Ala. |
RELATED: By the Tweets: Signature tweets for 10 UGA signees
Where was Georgia’s recruiting class ranked?
Early enrollees: 6
5-star commits: 2
4-star commits: 18
3-star commits: 6
247Sports Composite team rank: No. 3 in the nation (No. 2 in the SEC)
Scout.com team rank: No. 2 in the nation.
ESPN team rank: No. 3 in the nation.
Rivals team rank: No. 3 in the nation.
Georgia National Signing Day Quotable
What did coach Kirby Smart say?
“We think we attacked a lot of areas of concern for us. I think it’s a good group. I think we did not deviate very far from our size criteria. When you look at certain positions you want to get certain sized guys. We were able to do that. We were able to hit some areas, especially on the offensive line, the defensive secondary, that we had some guys leave that we needed to replace”
“All in all, it was a good class. Where we didn’t succeed probably last year on the offensive front, we were able to succeed this year with a full recruiting cycle. In this day and age, you’ve got to do it again next year. We’ve already started on that, and we spent a lot of time in January targeting younger guys so that we can get ahead.”
“We’re excited. I really am excited about the guys we’ve got coming. I’m really excited about the guys we’ve got here. Just to think about the six young men that are already here and to see them work out each day, it fires me up. I’m fired up about this team because there’s a lot of good football players and good character kids in it.”
