Georgia DB William Poole will miss rest of 2022 season
Georgia will be without a defensive back for the rest of the 2022 season. Kirby Smart told reporters on Monday that fifth-year senior William Poole III is no longer with the team.
“William Poole is not going to be with us for the remainder of the season,” Smart said in his Monday press conference. “He’s dealing with a personal matter and he’s going to focus on that and his health and well-being. He will not be with us for the rest of the year, unfortunately.”
Poole did not travel with the Bulldogs to South Carolina last week. He also didn’t appear in the Samford game in week two. He played 11 snaps in UGA’s season opening victory over Oregon.
In 2021, William Poole missed the first four games because of academic issues. He didn’t really make a move until the postseason where he started three straight games. He got the start against Alabama in the SEC Championship game and then started against Michigan in the Orange Bowl for the College Football Playoff Semifinal. He also started the rematch vs. Alabama in the National Championship game.
“William is ineligible for the first four games due to academics,” Smart said last season. “But he did a tremendous job to get himself in that position to get back. He was not going to be able to play this year, he was able to get a waiver and he is now eligible after the Vanderbilt game he’ll be back with us. So we’re looking forward to getting his depth back to help us out”
He finished the 2022 season with 14 total tackles, a half tackle for loss, and four pass breakups. Two of those pass breakups came when they were needed most, in the National Championship game.
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William Poole was a projected starter at the STAR position coming into the 2022 season. He battled with Javon Bullard, a sophomore, during preseason camp. Bullard emerged victorious in that position battle and Poole started working more at cornerback to help the Bulldogs build some depth.
William Poole signed with Georgia in the 2017 class as a four-star prospect. When the dust settled on that class, he was ranked as the nation’s No. 181 overall prospect and No. 21 cornerback per the On3 Consensus. He was the No. 16 player in the Peach State.
He went on to appear in at least three games in each of the 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021 seasons. He saw action in eight games as a redshirt freshman in 2018, tallying 10 tackles and a tackle for loss. He also started two games that year. He had three tackles in 2019 and a quarterback hurry in 2020 while appearing in nine games combined in those two seasons.
With Poole out, Smart says that very little changes in the secondary. The Bulldogs have been “chugging along” without him to this point. Bullard and Tykee Smith will battle each week for the duties at STAR/nickel.
