Georgia lands legacy forward, Clemson transfer RJ Godfrey
Georgia Basketball has another transfer coming on board, and this one is a Bulldog legacy. Clemson forward RJ Godfrey announced his commitment to Mike White and company on Wednesday. Godfrey stands at 6-foot-8, 228 pounds.
A two-year player for the Tigers, he helped Clemson make a run to the Elite Eight this past season, scoring 12 points against Alabama, a rematch of a regular season matchup between the two teams – one in which he had 11 points. The two strong outings versus the Crimson Tide were among the nine double-figure performances for Godfrey, averaging 6.1 points per game in 2023-24. Godfrey had a season-high 19 in a win over Queens University, pulling down 10 rebounds once against TCU.
As a freshman the season before, Godfrey made his lone career start against NC State. Averaging 9.4 minutes per game in the 33 he played, Godfrey scored 3.2 points per game while pulling down 2.1 rebounds. He reached double figures once with 10 points versus Virginia Tech.
Both seasons did Godfrey shoot above 50% from the field, shooting 59.7% (43-for-72) in 2022-23 and 59.4% (92-for-155) this past year. Godfrey only attempted 16 3-pointers across the two campaigns, making three in each. He had however total 39 blocks and 25 steals to make an impact on the defensive end.
Godfrey chose Clemson out of high school over Georgia along with Ole Miss, Texas Tech, Georgia Tech and Utah. He was a three-star prospect ranked No. 170 overall coming out of North Gwinnett High School in Suwanne, Ga. He averaged 16.0 points, 9.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 3.0 blocks per game as a senior for the Bulldogs.
Godfrey’s father Randall played football at Georgia 1992-95. He won SEC Freshman of the Year while becoming the first freshman to lead the team in tackles with 114 and followed that up with back-to-back seasons being named to the All-SEC squad. Godfrey spent 11 seasons in the NFL playing for the Dallas Cowboys, Tennessee Titans, Seattles Seahawks, San Diego Chargers and Washington Redskins, retiring in 2007.
Godfrey will have two years of eligibility remaining as he joins a Georgia team that returns Silas Demary, Blue Cain and Dylan James after a run to the NIT semifinals. The Bulldogs won 20 games for the first time in eight seasons and add to their roster five-star plus+ Asa Newell and former Kentucky commit Somto Cyril in the Class of 2024 along with MAAC Rookie of the Year De’Shayne Montgomery (Mount St. Marys), Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Year Justin Abson (Appalachian State) and All-MAAC first teamer Dakota Leffew (Mount St. Mary’s) from the transfer portal. With Godfrey’s addition, Georgia has four open spots remaining.
Georgia Basketball Roster Tracker
Returnees (3): Blue Cain, Silas Demary, Dylan James
Additions (6): Justin Abson (Appalachian State), Somto Cyril (Class of 2024), RJ Godfrey (Clemson), Dakota Leffew (Mount St. Mary’s), De’Shayne Montgomery (Mount St. Mary’s), Asa Newell (Class of 2024)
Departures via Portal (7): Frank Anselem-Ibe, Jabri Abdur-Rahim (Providence), Jalen DeLoach (Loyola Chicago), Justin Hill (Wichita State), Mari Jordan, RJ Melendez, M.A. Moncrieffe (Seattle)
Out of Eligibility (3): RJ Sunahara, Russel Tchewa, Noah Thomasson
