Dawgs Got Him...Who's Next, Coach?

For those that don't know, Drew committed to being a Dawg today (none of it is official until National Signing Day this coming Wednesday). Good for him and good for the Dawgs. Every bit of momentum helps as the Dawgs make their final push to reel in a Top 5 recruiting class.

Go to Rivals or Scout to check out the tremendous list of commitments already promised to the Dawgs. The list already includes the #1 weakside defensive end, the #1 and #3 cornerbacks, the #4 quarterback, the #4 tight end, the #5 safety, and the #8 strongside defensive end in the country, not to mention some seemingly solid four-star guys at other key spots like linebacker and wide receiver and nice depth provided by plenty of three-star guys. Most importantly, it looks like a lot of needs are being filled. Here's a quick summary of the last few big targets on the Dawgs' radar, roughly in order of likelihood (as I understand it from bloggers that follow recruiting much closer than me):

Isaiah Crowell: Considered by many to be the #1 running back in the country this year. From Columbus, GA, he's down to Georgia and Alabama. Most of what I've read has him leaning toward the Dawgs, but then again, I'm mostly reading Georgia blogs. I'm sure there are as many Bama blogs insisting he's coming to them. Between the fact that Ealey and King have underwhelmed and the fact that Georgia doesn't have a commitment from a running back yet (though Ken Malcome, redshirted last year, is supposed to be talented), Crowell could supposedly contribute immediately. Obviously, nobody is a sure thing, but this is a guy everyone seems to really want. I'm sure there's a reason. He's expected to make his official announcement on National Signing Day at 1:30 on ESPNU.

Johnathan Jenkins: Already playing at Gulf Coast Community College, this 340-pound monster of a defensive tackle would fit PERFECTLY into Grantham's 3-4 defense. Simply because there is no one close to his size on Georgia's roster at this time, he might be more important to Georgia's immediate future (and therefore Mark Richt's immediate future) than anyone in this class. He's choosing between Georgia, Florida, Miami, and Oklahoma State next Saturday (three days after National Signing Day) at 1:00.

Jeoffrey Pagan: The #4 strongside defensive end in the country just de-committed from Clemson and supposedly Drew (today's commit, UGA's only 5-star commit so far, the #1 weakside defensive end in the country, and the #9 player overall in the country...according to Rivals anyway) was helping to "recruit" him to Georgia just before he backed out of his Clemson commitment recently. He'd be a great addition to the class and you can never have too much talent. That said, we already have Sterling Bailey (the #8 strongside defensive end in the country), so that may make Pagan less likely to sign and frankly, less crucial. As far as I can tell, he'd be a nice bonus at this point. His decision is scheduled for 9 a.m. Wednesday.

Antonio Richardson: The #7 tackle in the country and not one the Dawgs were thought to be seriously in the hunt for until recently. If I had one nit to pick with this year's "Dream Team" (as the coaches have taken to calling this year's UGA recruiting class), it is a lack of big-time offensive line prospects. To be fair, the Dawgs have commitments from six offensive lineman (a huge step in the right direction over some classes that even lacked quantity) and one of them is the #9 center in the country. That said, while the number of stars by a kid's name doesn't guarantee productivity, it is a solid predictor of the likelihood of success. Even when Georgia supposedly has an "experienced" offensive line like this past season, they more often than not underperform. Look where these guys were ranked coming out of high school and you find that most of them didn't even crack the top 25 at their position. If we can get top talent everywhere else, why not along the line? Obviously, there's a lot more to it than stars or career starts, but there is no doubt in my mind that we have not pulled in the talent (according to Scout, Rivals, etc....professionals in the area...goodness knows I'm not one) on the offensive line that we have at the skill positions and it shows. All this is to say that Richardson, the only four star offensive lineman we're pursuing that I know of, would be a very comforting addition to the class. Though he was thought to be a likely Tennessee recruit, he took a visit to Athens recently and the Dawgs are trying to land him pretty seriously. We still might not be the front runner, but his will be one of the more interesting decisions for me when he signs somewhere on Wednesday.

Kent Turene: Three-star inside linebacker (#18 in the country) is already a "soft" commitment to USC (Trojans, not Chickens). Dawgs have apparently been recruiting him pretty intensely lately though. With only a couple of linebackers committed (though both are four-star guys), the depth added by Turene would be nice. Not holding my breath, but we'll see.

Marcus Roberson: #2 cornerback in the country and already a "soft" commitment to Texas Tech. Even though we already have commitments from Mitchell and Swann (#1 and #3 cornerbacks in the country), the Dawgs can never have too much talent in the secondary. The thought of the Dawgs having too much talent in the secondary just made me laugh a little to myself. I just can't even fathom such a thing. In any case, he's probably the longest shot on this list for the Dawgs and for obvious reasons, not critical. But a Dawg can dream, can't he?

Realistically, based on previous recruiting classes, the Dawgs should be thankful to land just a couple of these remaining six. Heck, this class already appears to be as good as or better than most in the Richt era (on paper at least). In a perfect world, we land all six (though I'm not sure we have enough scholarships for them all). Crowell and Jenkins are the most important and most likely in my mind, but I'd really like to get Richardson as well (I'm not getting my hopes up though). While he may be the least highly touted on the above list, we might need the depth added by Turene more than Pagan or Roberson. Pagan and Roberson would just be the icing on the cake. There is something to be said for momentum though and if the last couple of weeks are any indication, the Dawgs could close REALLY strong next week.