Georgia Fall Camp Position Preview: Wide Receiver/Tight End

We’re less than 10 days away from the start of fall camp in Athens, Ga., and what better time to take a look at what the Bulldogs bring to the table this season? Georgia is the two-time defending national champions and going for a three-peat in 2023, something that hasn’t been accomplished since the 1930s. If that’s to happen, it’ll take a total team effort.

Over the course of the final few days leading up to the start of fall camp, we’ll be doing a deep dive into each of Georgia’s position groups, breaking down players to watch and all the biggest storylines as the season quickly approaches. After discussing running backs yesterday and quarterbacks the day before, we move onto the Bulldog pass catchers today with the wide receivers and tight ends.

Wide Receiver

In the Room: Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint (Senior), Dominic Lovett (Junior), Ladd McConkey (Junior), Jackson Meeks (Junior), Rara Thomas (Junior), Arian Smith (Junior), Dillon Bell (Sophomore), DeNylon Morrissette (Sophomore), Cole Speer (Sophomore), CJ Smith (Redshirt Freshman), Anthony Evans (Freshman), Yazeed Haynes (Freshman), Tyler Williams (Freshman)
Position Coach: Bryan McClendon

Georgia’s wide receiver group is as deep as it’s been in recent memory. With two players that finished top five on the team in receiving in 2022 returning, plus a pair of transfers that led their respective SEC squads last season, Bryan McClendon has reason to be happy.

It starts at the top with Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint, Dominic Lovett and Ladd McConkey. Expected to be the top three receivers on the team, the trio brings a little bit of everything to the table.

You’ve got two guys that have been around the team for four seasons now in Rosemy-Jacksaint and McConkey. They finished fifth and second on the team last year respectively with career-high totals for both guys. Rosemy-Jacksaint hauled in 29 passes for 337 yards and two touchdowns while it was 58 catches, 762 yards and seven scores for McConkey – also adding a trio of rushing touchdowns too.

Then, in Lovett, you add by way of the transfer portal a player that gave your defense fits last season when Georgia played Missouri. Lovett, who left the game early with an injury, had six catches for 84 yards in the first half against the Bulldogs, part of his impressive 56-reception, 846-yard season for the Tigers. Four times did he top the 100-yard mark, and just was three times was he held below 35 yards.

After Georgia’s expected top three, there’s not much drop off. Rara Thomas finished first in receiving yards last season at Mississippi State. Arian Smith and Dillon Bell are both players that Georgia coaches believe have more to show. It’s that depth that has fans thinking that this year’s offensive unit could end up relying a little bit more on its passing game than in years past, especially with a quarterback that’s got a strong arm.

Tight End

In the Room: Brock Bowers (Junior), Oscar Delp (Sophomore), Lawson Luckie (Freshman), Pearce Spurlin (Freshman)
Position Coach: Todd Hartley

Talking tight ends, the conversation nationally begins with Brock Bowers. No player at the position has been better than him the last two years, and arguably even longer. He’s a special type of guy that doesn’t come along that often.

In two seasons at Georgia, Bowers has totaled nearly 2,000 yards. He won National Freshman of the Year in 2021, helping the Bulldogs break a 41-year drought without a National Championship, before have an arguably even better sophomore season statistically on UGA’s way to a second straight title. Bowers topped the 1,000-yard total in 2022 with 942 yards receiving and another 109 rushing. He found the end zone 10 times, winning the Mackey Award as the nation’s top tight end.

Without Darnell Washington around this year, don’t expect to see as much two tight end offense out of Georgia. That’s also due to the depth at receiver you can see above. But, Washington’s departure does put pressure on everybody in the room to take a step forward as a blocker. There aren’t any 6-foot-8, 280-pound options, but Oscar Delp, Pearce Spurlin and Lawson Luckie are all still incredibly talented.

Delp, a sophomore, stepped in for an injured Washington and played in the second half of the Peach Bowl College Football Playoff semifinal. A former four-star rated the No. 2 tight end for his class, Delp caught five passes for 61 yards, including a 28-yard touchdown against South Carolina, in 2022.

As for the freshmen, both Spurlin and Luckie ranked in the top-10 tight ends nationally coming out of high school. Both enrolled early and were on campus this spring, but only one was able to go through drills. Spurlin suffered a broken collarbone during the first week of the spring and missed the remainder while Luckie created some buzz, flashing with three catches for 48 yards on G-Day.