Dillon Bell, Darris Smith make it official and ink with the Dawgs
National Signing Day is in full swing, and the wait is over for a couple of long-time Georgia commits. After watching their class-mates put pen to paper back in December, the next wave of Bulldogs is set to be welcomed with open arms in Athens.
Dillon Bell
Bell is a 6-foot-2, 205 pound receiver with a $26K NIL Valuation. Before committing to the Dawgs on August 1st, 2021, his other top schools were Michigan and Texas A&M.
On3 Consensus Ranking: No. 412 overall, No. 66 WR, No. 63 Texas
Hometown: Houston, Texas
High School: The Kinkaid School
After committing to the Bulldogs last August, Bell caught up with On3’s Chad Simmons and told him why he knew that Georgia was the school for him.
“I see great opportunities for me at Georgia, and I get to play for great coaches. The players are very welcoming, the coaches welcomed me with open arms, and I know Georgia is the school for me.”
To say that Georgia would be welcoming him with open arms would be an understatement. Cell continued, citing player comparisons that the Bulldog coaching staff had for him.
“They were so excited to have me. They love how I move, how strong I am, and what I can do on the field. They compared me to AJ Brown and Chris Godwin, so they really like my game a lot.”
Although Bell’s primary recruiter, Cortez Hankton, has left the program for the same position at LSU, the wide receiver from the Lone Star State has held firm in his commitment.
Bell is one of Georgia’s four receiver signees in it’s No. 3-ranked Class of 2022, joining De’Nylon Morrissette, C.J. Smith and Cole Speer.
Darris Smith
Smith is a 6-foot-5, 225 pound edge with an NIL Valuation of $20K. Similar to Bell, Smith’s primary recruiter, Dan Lanning, is no longer with the Bulldogs coaching staff after agreeing to become the University of Oregon’s head coach.
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On3 Consensus Ranking: No. 113 overall, No. 12 EDGE, No. 9 Georgia
On300 Ranking: No. 80 overall, No. 12 EDGE, No. 9 Georgia
Hometown: Baxley, Georgia
High School: Appling County
After Smith committed to the University of Georgia, Appling County head coach Jordan Mullis couldn’t help but draw comparisons between Smith and two former Georgia players.
“When you’re dealing with a guy like [Darris], they never realize how good they can be. In high school, we’re trying to teach him to run routes, but he’s Adam Anderson and Leonard Floyd when they were in high school. That’s who he is. There’s no doubt about it. He may even be faster.”
Georgia is set to return two edge defenders from the 2021 defense in Nolan Smith Jr. and Robert Beal, but the addition of Smith could be huge for the Bulldogs, and according to Mullis, the high school senior is ready for the challenge.
“The workload is going to be a shock, because it’s Georgia, but he’s not coming out of the locker room late or skipping out of the weight room early,” Mullis said. “He runs every sprint and works out hard. He’s got the grinder mentality. I don’t know that he’s been absent from practice the last two years he’s been here.”
Smith is one of Georgia’s two EDGE signees in the 2022 recruiting cycle, joining five-star Marvin Jones Jr. who signed with the Bulldogs back in December.
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