Nolan Smith picked No. 30 overall by Philadelphia in 2023 NFL Draft
Yet another Georgia linebacker is headed to the NFL as a first-round pick as Philadelphia picked Nolan Smith No. 30 overall in the 2023 NFL Draft. The Savannah, Ga. native is the third Bulldog to be selected on the evening.
Georgia has had four linebackers or edge defenders taken in the first two rounds of the NFL Draft under Kirby Smart. Nolan Smith joins the likes of Roquan Smith and Quay Walker as first round picks. Azeez Ojulari was a second-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.
The former five-star prospect was an emotional and look-to leader for the Bulldogs the past two seasons, even when he missed seven games in 2022 due to a torn pectoral muscle suffered in the Florida game. Smart continually pointed to him as a guy who only knew how to do things the right way. The Bulldog head coach believes those traits will take him a long way at the next level.
“He’s going to make their organization better, he’s going to make their community better,” Smart stated this spring. “First of all, he’s a very bright individual. He’s a huge personality. He’s a hard-worker. He’s coachable. That’s why they draft those guys in the first round, they want to look and say, ‘Where are the pitfalls?’ When you look at Nolan Smith, you’re not going to get many. His character stands out. He’s got a great mom and grandma at home. They raised a bright, young man. He’s fun to be around. He texts me all the time.
“You can tell he’s just, I miss him. Because when you walk in the team meeting room he’s sitting there smiling, loud as hell. Always talking. They’re going to get a great personality, that I think he’ll represent whatever organization picks him, he’ll represent them the right way.”
As a Bulldog, Smith piled up 110 total tackles (63 solo) with 20 tackles for loss and 12.5 sacks in 46 career games. He also had 23 quarterback hurries, three forced fumbles, and a handful of pass breakups.
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The NFL Combine is where Smith really took off as an NFL Draft prospect. There he ran the 40-yard dash in a blazing 4.39 seconds.
Smith as a high school prospect…
While Smith is originally from Savannah, he finished his high school football career at IMG Academy, a boarding school in Bradenton, Fla. There he blossomed into a blue-chip prospect.
Smith committed to Georgia in January of 2017 and took full advantage of the recruiting process for most of the next 23 months. He took unofficial and official visits but never really wavered in his commitment to the Bulldogs.
By the time the dust settled on the 2023 class, Smith was the nation’s No. 1 overall prospect per the On3 Industry Ranking. He signed with Georgia in December of 2019 and joined the program less than a month later.
