Rara Thomas 'coming along' nicely, ready for next step
ATHENS, Ga. — When Georgia landed Dominic Lovett and Rara Thomas out of the transfer portal this past offseason, expectations were sky high for the proven pass catchers. Each had led their respective SEC squads in receiving last season and were on their way to Athens to build upon that success with the Bulldogs.
Through three games, one of those has been much more involved than the other. Lovett leads the team in receptions with 14 and has yet to be held to less than three in a single game. Thomas on the other hand has just five on the season, but that could be changing before too long based on the recent comments of Georgia head coach Kirby Smart and the improvement he’s seen in Thomas’ game.
“I thought he had his best week of practice last week,” Smart said on Saturday after Georgia’s 24-14 come from behind victory over South Carolina. “We’ve got to find ways to get him the ball and use him and his skillset. That second half, his number got called twice. He made both of the plays and did a great job.”
Thomas was in the game early and often against the Gamecocks, but it wasn’t until the second half he saw his first target. On an early 1st and 10 in the third quarter with Georgia at its own 39 yard line, quarterback Carson Beck took a shot downfield to the streaking Thomas. The two connected for 36 yards down to the South Carolina 25, setting up the Bulldogs’ first touchdown three plays later.
On the very next drive, Beck once again looked the way of Thomas. Narrowly missing him for what would have been a 51-yard touchdown and first score in a Georgia uniform, Beck found Thomas later in the drive at the sticks on 3rd and 7, coming up just short of the line to gain but helping continue the Georgia drive after Beck moved the chains himself the very next play with a QB sneak.
Thomas’ 42 yards on the day were good for fourth among Georgia receivers, and his 36-yard grab was the Bulldogs’ longest completion. It also moved him into second on the team this season in terms of receiving yards with five catches for 132 yards.
So, with Thomas seeing the field more and seemingly building a strong connection with his quarterback, should we expect to see more of him going forward? Probably so considering what Smart and his teammates have had to say about the skillset he brings to the table.
“He’s one of our elite wide receivers. What he does is amazing,” Georgia defensive back Malaki Starks said of Thomas. “He’s very competitive, he can go up and get the ball. Just to see him get better week by week, day by day, and him being able to showcase his talents is just awesome to see. I see him put in the work every day throughout the week.”
“Thought he did a really good job in the practices leading up to the game. He is getting more and more confidence,” Smart added at the start of this week. “Again, he was like a true freshman in terms of vocabulary of the offense, and that has gotten better. With every week he’s getting so much more confident with every week, and thank goodness he is, because we need him. We need him to keep coming and need him to keep coming along.”
No. 1 Georgia (3-0, 1-0 SEC) hosts UAB (1-2, 0-0 American) this Saturday in Athens. Kickoff time is set for 7:30 p.m. ET under the Sanford Stadium lights on ESPN2.
