Todd Hartley credits recruiting success to Georgia brand, Kirby Smart

ATHENS, Ga. — Georgia has an impressive history when it comes to recruiting and developing the tight end position. Going all the way back to the days of Jim Donnan, the Bulldogs have put plenty of tight ends in the NFL and many have had sterling college careers. But Todd Hartley, now in his fifth year of his fourth stint at Georgia, has taken things to a different level.

Hartley went out to Las Vegas to land mammoth tight end Darnell Washington, a third-round pick of the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2023 NFL Draft. He went to Napa Valley to grab Mackey Award winner Brock Bowers and has kept the cupboard stocked with in-state talents Oscar Delp and Lawson Luckie.

The Bulldogs also have highly-touted prospect Pearce Spurlin on the roster plus two commitments in the 2024 class — elite prospect Jaden Reddell out of Missouri and high-upside playmaker Colton Heinrich out of Florida. When Hartley zeroes in on his guy, he rarely misses but he’s not willing to take all or even most of the credit for his success on the recruiting trail

“There’s not a better recruiter in the country than Kirby Smart, I’ll tell you that,” Hartley said on Tuesday. “When you have Coach Smart’s influence, it’s not as hard walking into a living room when you have Coach Smart behind you. The other thing is the power of the logo. When you have that G on your chest and you walk into a school, you get instant credibility and respect. The fact that you have Georgia on your shirt and you have Coach Smart as your head coach, that makes the job not as hard.”

Being back home certainly helps…

Hartley also has a touch-to-match passion for the University of Georgia. The Jones County (Gray, Ga.) native grew up a Bulldog fan. He knew from an early age that he wanted to attend college at the University of Georgia. When he enrolled at his dream school, Hartley joined the football program as a student assistant under Mark Richt, a man Hartley credits with significantly impacting his life.

After a few years in Georgia’s program as an undergraduate, Hartley left to join former Georgia assistant coach David Johnson at West Virginia. He was a graduate assistant for the Mountaineers in 2008 before coming back home to UGA. He had worked with the offense during his first stint at Georgia and at WVU, but it was then-defensive coordinator Willie Martinez that brought him back to Athens. Hartley flipped over to the other side of the ball.

After two full seasons at Georgia, one where he helped fill in as an on-field coach for the Independence Bowl in 2009 because Martinez, John Jancek, and John Fabris had been fired, Hartley went back out on his own. This time it was for an on-field job at Marshall where he coached safeties for one season. A move back to the offensive side of the ball followed in 2012 where Hartley was also given the recruiting coordinator title by Thundering Herd head coach Doc Holliday.

After two years of that, he came back to Georgia for a third time as the Director of Player Personnel in Richt’s final season. Hartley joked that when he brought up the possibility of coming back to Athens with his wife, Jessica, that she had her bags packed and was ready to go before he could get the words out of his mouth. When Richt was let go, Hartley had to make a choice. He could follow Richt to Miami as an on-field coach or he could stick around and remain in the Director of Player Personnel role at Georgia. He chose the former.

But when Smart needed a tight ends coach in 2019, it didn’t take him long to settle on Hartley. By that time he had developed into a formidable recruiter and had experience coaching special teams. He’s not the only Georgia alum on the staff. Mike Bobo, Bryan McClendon, Will Muschamp and Smart all played at UGA. There are plenty of others on the support staff. The notion that those who choose to be Bulldogs are Bulldogs for life is something that Georgia puts at the front and center of it’s recruiting pitch.

“What that illustrates is Georgia’s willingness to welcome people back,” Hartley said. “The University’s willingness to say it’s not a four-year decision, it’s a 40-year decision. I’m not just going to take care of you in your time in Athens but it does have the ability to help you find a career. 

“It also shows recruits and parents that once you leave Athens, a lot of people want to come back to Athens. It’s a great place to raise a family. Build a career, it’s a great place to go to school. You guys know this, there is no place like this anywhere in the country. I’m very thankful to have the opportunity to coach at my alma mater. Coach Smart has afforded me that, Josh Brooks has afforded me that. I’m very thankful for that.”