Kirby Smart’s Georgia Hunt Down 10 Top Recruits for National Signing Day Radar

Guess who is making the most use of his setback? It’s none other than the Georgia Bulldogs HC Kirby Smart. The 2024 season exposed the Dawgs as their playoff journey came to a halt after the 23-10 Sugar Bowl mishap. But Smart is not willing to brood over the past anymore. Rather, he comes off as the Dark Horse in the recruiting race. The Georgia HC is now in hunting mode. Looks like Smart has already mesmerized a lot of players with his charm. Wanna know the exact number? TEN! Yes, you read that right. So, the National Signing Day is going to be a grand one for Smart.  

Well, David Pollack had already sounded an alarm for Smart. On his podcast, he gave a grim picture of how the Bulldogs would lose nearly 35 players to poaching. Well, in January itself, Georgia lost 11 players. In the winter window in December, too many players had hit the portal as well. However, time is very costly for Smart. After all, the National Signing Day scheduled for February 5 is already knocking on the door. Right now, Georgia is the No. 2 recruiting class in the 2025 cycle behind Texas. As per the 247 Sports reports, the Bulldogs nabbed four 5-stars and 18 other blue-chip recruits. Buckle up, folks! Smart is on his way to hunt down 10 top recruits. 

Kirby Smart

As the On3 Recruits podcast reported, the Bulldogs really impressed Northwestern 2025 CB J’Vari Flowers, who is rated as the 91st-best player in the class and the 12th-best cornerback in the class. As host Steve Wiltfong noted, Smart “is making a fast and furious push here as they battle local Miami, Florida, Florida State and Syracuse.” The next one in line is the nation’s four-star safety, Jireh Edwards. The player has already gone head-over-heels for Smart’s program because of their prominence in the league. “He said the experience was like no other at Georgia being on campus was amazing seeing how the players get sent to the league from Georgia is crazy he said Georgia is definitely a top school in his recruitment,” stated Wiltfong. 

They are followed by the four-star 2026 offensive lineman Carter Scruggs from Leesbury. However, it’s going to be a tough fight for Kirby Smart and Co. as he “has a lot of Penn State, Michigan, Clemson smoke around him.” The Dawgs are reportedly “setting the pace” for Haywood CB Caden Harris, also known as Mr. Gamechanger, who led the Tomcats on offense with 37 receptions for 782 yards with 11 trips into the end zone. That too in just 11 games.  

Along with this, Smart has his eyes on Westlake High School’s 6’3 195 lbs receiver Deion Thomas and Narbonne’s LB Kenneth Goodwin. Georgia State safety JJ Johnson, North Augusta OL Malcolm Gaston, Norcross DL Carter Luckie, and WR Brandon Bennett have Smart as their top suitor. Already, the Georgia HC has been making waves in the recruitment race. 

How Kirby Smart’s strategy is standing out

The Bulldogs now have a record number of in-state prospects. Thanks to Smart. The 22 high school signees and transfer portal additions from Peach State mark the highest tally during HC’s tenure. The last time the program could boast such figures was back in 2017, when the Dawgs bagged 18 signees from Georgia. Now what makes Smart revolve around Georgia?

Well, coming off with this strategy and producing more Georgia-bred legends, they are able to tap a rich vein of local talent and bring in players and families with inherent emotional ties to the program. So, Smart won’t have to bother about getting a deeper commitment from the players. But what gives the HC an added advantage in the high school recruiting landscape? Well, not to forget, his late father, Sonny Smart, was a high school coach in the state for a long time.

In that way, over the years, Kirby Smart has developed tremendous relationships with the high school coaches in Georgia and is tapping into those. If the Georgia HC looks back, the Bulldogs 2025 class is already in place. During the winter window, they had 27 recruits send in their national letters of intent, 24 of whom have since enrolled in the school early. The National Signing Day is waiting for the final touch. Let’s have our fingers crossed!   

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