California has long been known as one of the best states for high school football talent. This year in college football, the state has provided some of the premiere quarterbacks across the country. Players like CJ Stroud at Ohio State, D.J. Uiagalelei at Clemson, Bryce Young at Alabama and Georgia’s own JT Daniels all hail from the “Golden State.”
Since Kirby Smart took over as the Bulldogs coach in 2016, Georgia has recruited largely from the Southeast. Ahkil Crumpton, who was recruited by Smart in 2017, was the Bulldogs’ lone recruit from California over Smart’s first four years at the helm.
Crumpton was originally from Philadelphia and was recruited from L.A. Valley College, where he played junior college football.
The 2020 recruiting class, which had three players who hailed from California, showed a shift in recruiting and proved that the Bulldogs were not afraid to venture outside of SEC country.
“We definitely have a good California impact,” Daniels said. “You are seeing more California, more West Coast kids coming out to play SEC football.”
Daniels transferred to Georgia from the University of Southern California in 2020 after an injury led to the loss of his starting position for the Trojans. The quarterback is from Irvine, California, and went to Mater Dei High School.
Outside of Daniels, the Bulldogs 2020 class also included Kendall Milton, a running back out of Fresno, California, and Jermaine Burton, a wide receiver who finished his high school career in Calabasas, California. Running back Kenny McIntosh, who is from Florida, sees different traits in all of his teammates from out west.
“I feel like all of them got their own different kinds of California traits,” McIntosh said. “Because they’re all from different parts of Cali. They all have their own special traits and lingo and stuff like that.”
The 2021 class saw Georgia reach out west yet again to bring in tight end Brock Bowers, from Napa, California. Bowers and the rest of the California-based players have been key contributors to the Bulldogs offense this season.
Daniels has three starts at quarterback and has thrown for 569 passing yards so far this year. Two California pass catchers, Bowers and Burton, sit first and second on the team in receiving yards with 272 and 219. Milton is third on the team in rushing yards with 119 to date. It is safe to say the California players have impacted Georgia football in a large way in 2021.
Outside of California, the Bulldogs have also pulled in players from other Western states. Starting cornerback Kelee Ringo played in Arizona and tight end Darnell Washington is from Las Vegas.
Although Smart and his recruiters haven’t added a player from the West to the 2022 class yet, Georgia has shown it will go West for players.