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Kamari Lassiter looking to lead as veteran in Georgia secondary

Palmber-Thombsby:Palmer Thombs•03/22/23•

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Palmer Thombs / DawgsHQ

ATHENS, Ga. — Kamari Lassiter has come a long way from where he was last spring. A native of Savannah, Ga. and product of Tuscaloosa, Ala.’s American Christian Academy, Lassiter played primarily on special teams as a freshman in 2021. In 2022, he started all 15 games at cornerback for the National Championship winning Georgia Bulldogs.

Needless to say, that’s a big change in the pressure that comes with the position. Now headed into year three as a presumed starter at one of the two cornerback spots, Lassiter says he’s trying to use the experiences he’s had to be a better leader for the rest of the secondary.

“My role this year, I’m trying to become a better leader, more of a vocal guy and leading by example,” Lassiter said. “We’ve got a lot of mid-years and young guys, so I’m trying to help bring some of those guys along.”

Lassiter was once one of those young guys. He said he learned the way from the likes of Derion Kendrick, Ameer Speed and Kelee Ringo – all three of whom started games for Georgia during the 2021 season, Lassiter’s first on campus. In 2022, Lassiter stepped into one of those starting spots and performed well, totaling 38 tackles including five for loss with four pass breakups. Still, guys in the secondary looked to Ringo, as well as veteran safety Christopher Smith, for leadership. With them both gone, it’s a guy like Lassiter that’s the prime example of the right way to do things.

“We’re trying to lead by example, approaching every day the same way, with the same motivation and the same tenacity that we did our first day, whenever we were trying to get a starting spot,” Lassiter said as a message from the returnees on defense like himself to potential replacements. “We’re just trying to bring the young guys along. Everybody is going to make mistakes. It’s all about how you learn from those mistakes and don’t make the same mistake twice.”

“Just trying to approach every day like it’s your last day, your last opportunity, treating the G with respect and doing the little things right, sweeping the shed and eating off the floor,” Lassiter added. “It’s kind of crazy because it really feels like just yesterday that I was coming in, I was a new guy on the block. Now I’m going into my third year and we’ve got some younger guys looking up to us to lead the way.”

Replacing Ringo at corner, guys like Daylen Everette, Nyland Green and Texas A&M transfer Deyon Bouie are names seemingly always mentioned. Then there’s early enrollee A.J. Harris and redshirt freshman Julian Humphrey. All five were top-100 players in their respective recruiting classes according to the On3 Industry Ranking, leaving defensive backs coach Fran Brown with no shortage of options and the players themselves with plenty of competition.

Everette, much like Lassiter as a freshman, played primarily on special teams last season. He and Green are considered to be front runners for the starting spot opposite of Lassiter while the likes of Bouie, Harris and other youngsters get established in the culture at Georgia and try to break through. Lassiter is doing his best to show what that looks like having been there just a year ago.

“Trying to lead from the start of the day to the end of the day, trying to bring guys in for extra film with me in the morning and after practice, we work on technique a lot in the DB group so working on certain things, and really just trying to be a vocal guy,” Lassiter said when asked what actions he’s taking to be a bigger leader. “Sometimes younger guys are going to mess up because they’re not really familiar with the playbook yet, so trying to help those guys learn and during walk-throughs, trying to show them that they’re important to work technique. Overall, just trying to be a good leader.”

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