AD Mitchell Georgia legacy tarnished in the portal? No way, man

AD Mitchell should go down as one of the most important Georgia Bulldogs of all time. And that’s even if his transfer portal decision ultimately takes him away from Athens.

Yes, he could theoretically return after dipping his toe in the purifying waters of the portal. Amarius Mims has been there and back.

No matter what happens from here, some Georgia fans already showed their true emotions toward Mitchell on the internet.

I don’t blame any of you for feeling disappointment with AD Mitchell‘s decision.

He followed up an amazing true freshman season with a dud of a regular season due to injury.

But boy, did Mitchell show up when and where it mattered most.

He caught a touchdown in a semifinal blowout win over Michigan, and a game-winner in a semifinal nail-biter against Ohio State.

He caught a touchdown in a National Championship blowout win over TCU, and a game-winner in a National Championship slugfest against Alabama.

And now, he’s in the portal.

That’s hard. It hurts.

But bitter don’t look good on anyone, especially not members of a fanbase who are flirting with that entitlement Kirby Smart warned you about.

Frustrated that AD Mitchell ‘turned his back’ on Georgia for a potential NIL payout? That’s just part of how College Football works right now

Some early indications point to Texas bringing Mitchell back home to the Lone Star State. Maybe he’ll go to Southern Cal.

Fans will allege tampering until the NCAA steps in (it probably won’t).

This is part of College Football now, even if you wish it would stop changing (it definitely won’t).

It’s been changin’ for a while. This ain’t a surprise. You just can’t get too comfortable with your depth chart anymore.

Nope, not even in the offseason after back-to-back National Championships.

College football is all about roster management and development these days. As of right now, it seems like Georgia has those things figured out.

Whatever Mitchell’s motivations for this decision may be – family, financial, football or all of the above – I still can’t see eye-to-eye with anyone who tries to knock his Georgia legacy.

I just don’t see the point of spending so much precious energy trying to convince people that you’re right about this one on the internet.

He made a choice to attend Georgia.

Then he made plays that helped Georgia win back-to-back titles when it hadn’t won any in the previous 41 seasons.

Georgia fans are entitled to feel however they'd like about A.D. Mitchell

He made plays that helped your team win back-to-back National Championships. To me, that speaks for itself no matter what he does from here

one more thing to keep in mind: Bitter don't look good on anyone

— Wes Blankenship (@Wes_nship) January 18, 2023

AD Mitchell closed a chapter on two wonderful, storybook Georgia football seasons

Now he’s off for a third College Football season somewhere else.

Maybe you can’t stomach calling Mitchell a DGD (Damn Good Dawg, for those of you not up on the Georgia parlance) because of that.

That’s your prerogative about a totally subjective measure of Georgia greatness, and that’s ok.

His statistical and historical accomplishments with a ‘G’ on his helmet still stand.

There’s a time and place to discuss the erosion of commitment in our society and ‘your yes being your yes’ and the pursuit of financial security no matter the cost.

But those discussions aren’t unique to College Football or millennials or Generation Z.

People are people, and they get to make choices. Some work out, some don’t.

Ladd McConkey made a choice to return. Rara Thomas and Dominic Lovett chose to transfer in.

That portal works both ways.

Georgia will miss Mitchell, but it won’t lack talent next season no matter where he goes from here:

Personally, I choose to believe AD Mitchell earned the title of DGD

And I won’t choose to take it away from him (unless he transfers to a Georgia rival, naturally. Just kidding. I think).

AD Mitchell may benefit from an unregulated system that many of us aren’t crazy about. That doesn’t mean I’m not crazy about what he did for Georgia.

But what do I know?

I’m just a guy who hadn’t ever seen a Georgia player impact meaningful Georgia football games the way he did over the past year-plus.

If that isn’t enough perspective, Mitchell’s soon-to-be-former teammate – National Championship defensive MVP Javon Bullard – shared some as well.

Bullard commented on Mitchell’s legacy after that Ohio State win, and before the National Championship game against TCU:

“AD deserves everything that he’s gonna get. AD is an extremely hard worker. And I came in with AD. So our friendship goes beyond the football field. And I just love watching him play. He’s an emotional player, cares about this game, and he cares about his team and he cares about winning,” Bullard said.

“Like I say, AD deserves everything he’s going to get, not only coming up, but in life in general.”

Even a made-up title like a DGD?

Yes, I think so.