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Ranking all the times Georgia football coach Sam Pittman has won Twitter
Georgia football fans get more excited than most fans when they land an offensive line commitment. Part of the reason is that no one has recruited as well as Georgia has on the offensive line in recent years. With Joshua Braun, the newest commit, in the fold, Georgia has landed 15 blue chip — 4 or 5-star — prospects along the offensive line dating back to 2017.
But another reason is because of the man who functions as the lead recruiter for the offensive line, Sam Pittman. The Georgia offensive line coach was one of Kirby Smart’s first hires when taking the Georgia job and there’s a case to be made that he’s the best Georgia assistant on the staff. Pittman is the highest paid offensive line coach in the country and he has proven to be well worth every penny.
Related: Sam Pittman is the gift that keeps on giving for Kirby Smart’s Georgia Bulldogs
When Georgia lands a big-time commitment from an offensive lineman, Pittman also celebrates the announcement like a fan. It’s part of what makes Pittman such a beloved Georgia assistant, as he shows a real human side.
His celebrations, which first began during the 2017 season, often are accompanied by the Georgia fight song, a red and/or black pom-pom and his classic “Yesssssiiiirrrr.” Below we’ve rounded up all the recorded versions of Pittman’s celebrations over the years and ranked them. We’ve taken things such as props, production value and special guests into accounts for these rankings. We did not factor in how talented the recruit was, and based the rankings solely off of Pittman’s reaction
Justin Fields — Prologue/The First celebration
Pittman’s first video celebration wasn’t actually for an offensive line commitment. It was for quarterback Justin Fields, who picked the Georgia Bulldogs in October of 2017. Fields was the highest rated prospect to ever sign with Georgia, and at the time landing Fields was seen as a massive recruiting win for Smart.
Pittman pitched in during celebrations with his first “Yessir” video. He also included his pom-poms here, which have since become a staple in his celebration videos. Seeing how this is the only video Pittman has made that wasn’t in regards to an offensive lineman, we have not included it in the official rankings.
9. Trey Hill — 2018 signing class
Hill was the first celebration for an offensive lineman. So in some regards, it deserves credit for being a pioneer of sorts. But when stacked up to what Pittman has done since, this video sticks out for how much it doesn’t have. No pom-poms, no music. Just a simple “Yessir.”
So far Hill has gone on to become a much better player than his video, as he started multiple games at right guard to close out the 2018 season and figures to be the starting center for Georgia when it opens the season against Vanderbilt.
This first Pittman celebration video is a lot like if Babe Ruth were transported to the present and tried to hit a Chris Sale fastball. We’d all recognize Ruth for what he did at the time, but compared to the improvements made in the videos that followed this one, it just does not age well.
8. Cade Mays — Class of 2018
This was a monster recruiting win for Georgia at the time, as the Bulldogs were able to land Mays, a Tennessee legacy. The 5-star offensive lineman started as a freshman at the revolving door that was right guard last season and figures to be a key piece of the offensive line in 2019.
From a production standpoint, Pittman essentially copied what he did with Jamaree Salyer’s commitment from earlier in the day. But unlike Salyer, Mays did not end up wearing the jersey that Pittman was wearing in the video. The pom-poms did return when Salyer and Mays both picked Georgia and have been a key element for Pittman ever since.
7. Jamaree Salyer — Class of 2018
Salyer is the best offensive line prospect Pittman has landed to date. But he only comes in at No. 7 in our rankings of Pittman celebrations. The blazer reveal of Salyer’s No. 69 — the jersey he has worn in college — was a nice touch. What’s most different about this video is how stiff Pittman comes off in the video. As his celebrations have gotten more elaborate, he’s developed a much better screen presence.
6. Akinola Ogunbiyi — Class of 2020
The Ogunbiyi commitment comes in at No. 6 not because it isn’t good. It is a clear step up from the three 2018 commitments celebrations. But the Ogunbiyi commitment does lose some points because there were not any new wrinkles added to the mix. Playing the fight song is something that has become pretty standard, and the pictures of Pittman’s former first-round picks hanging above his desk have been seen before as well.
Pittman can be forgiven though, given that the Ogunbiyi commitment occurred on the same day as G-Day. Ogunbiyi was the first commitment video Pittman did for the 2020 recruiting class, which may end up being Pittman’s most talented recruiting haul yet.
5. Joshua Braun — Class of 2020
Much like the Ogunbiyi commitment, this Pittman’s most recent celebration video does lose some points for lack of originality. But Pittman’s video should be forgiven because Braun’s commitment did come as a small surprise in terms of timing and it marks the return of Pittman’s beautiful Bulldog, Lucy.
Related: Impressive 4-star OL Josh Braun couldn’t wait for his OV to commit to UGA
Given that Pittman likely put this commitment video together at the last minute, it’s still a great bit of content.
4. Clay Webb — Class of 2019
The Webb commitment was arguably Pittman’s biggest win, as the Bulldogs were able to pull a 5-star prospect from the state of Alabama away from the Crimson Tide and Auburn Tigers.
Webb’s celebration video also let Pittman show off some of his creative muscles. This was the first celebration video to include the Georgia fight song, a very welcome addition. This video was also the first one filmed in Pittman’s office, where he had pictures framed of the first round draft picks that he helped mold and coach — Isaiah Wynn from Georgia and Frank Ragnow of Arkansas.
The two pictures are a not so subtle flex that we very much enjoyed. It won’t be long before there a lot more picture of first-round offensive linemen hanging in Pittman’s office.
3. Warren McClendon — Class of 2019
Pittman really stepped his game up with the 2019 class. McClendon was the second of the three Georgia offensive line commitments in the class.
This one slots just ahead of Braun and Webb because it gives Pittman a chance to show off his wonderful bulldog, Lucy. Picking up and holding the bulldog must not have been an easy task for Pittman. But when a prospect commits to the G, you have to fully commit to the bit.
And I just want it on the record that Lucy — dressed in a Georgia sweater — is a very good doggo.
2. Tate Ratledge — Class of 2020
In terms of production value, this is Pittman’s best work. Not only does he bring in the pom-poms and fight song, but Pittman also adds a very personal touch going with a purple blazer and playing “Purple Rain” to start the video. The main color for Ratledge’s high school team — the Darlington Tigers — is purple.
Ratledge rates as the No. 38 overall prospect in the 2020 recruiting class. In the month since joining the class, Ratledge has been a very vocal recruiter for the Bulldogs and could end up being a big reason why the Bulldogs end up landing either 5-star running back Kendall Milton or Zachary Evans.
1. Xavier Truss — Class of 2019
There were no pom-poms, bulldogs or fight songs. In terms of production value, only the Hill commitment video had fewer external factors.
But none of those other videos had Kirby Smart in them. For Truss’s commitment, the Georgia football coach popped up with Pittman and dropped a “Yessir.” And like most Georgia fans, Smart was cracking up at Pittman’s efforts.
The Georgia offensive line coach is truly a one of a kind and must be protected at all costs. He is one of the best assets — and more importantly people — the Georgia football program has to offer.
Best Georgia football stories from around DawgNation
- Georgia football podcast: 5-star RBs Zachary Evans, Kendall Milton take note of UGA commit
- Suzanne Yoculan steps away (again) from Georgia gymnastics program
- Georgia opts to keep alcohol sales out of general seating areas
- Predicting a breakout player at each position for Georgia football
- College GameDay’s David Pollack: Jake Fromm and Justin Fields better off apart
- Georgia football opens season favored to blowout Vanderbilt in Nashville
- WATCH: Sam Pittman celebrates Georgia’s latest commitment with live bulldog
- Georgia football lands commitment from 4-star offensive lineman Joshua Braun
