Was The NFL Combine Further Confirmation that UGA Football Underperformed?
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ATHENS - The 2025 NFL Combine is complete and the former UGA Football players put on a show in front of scouts and general managers seven weeks ahead of the draft.
Not all fourteen of the invited players participated in drills, but the ones who did largely helped their draft stock. Some of the performances could have vaulted players up a few rounds in the upcoming draft, and Kirby Smart will continue to get a lot of credit for developing talent in Athens.
This begs the question again: Did Georgia underperform in 2024?
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That has been difficult to answer. One side believes the team finally dropped off in terms of the talent it had the last few years. Another thinks that Georgia fell short of what it was capable of.
With so many former Dawgs showing out in Indianapolis this past weekend, one could conclude that perhaps Georgia left a lot on the table in 2024. The skills that have been displayed did not equate to elite or even close to elite production.
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Defensive lineman Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins is a prime example for this. ESPN NFL Draft Analyst Mel Kiper Jr. tabbed him as one of his biggest risers after the combine. His vertical and broad jumps were the best out of all of the defensive lineman and his 40-yard dash time was one of the fastest for that group, coming in at a 4.86-second time.
The talent and the versatility is there, yet the production and the impact was not. Ingram-Dawkins, like a couple of other Dawgs that will be mentioned here, dealt with injuries in his time in Athens. Still, he had just three sacks and 19 total tackles during the 2024 season. He has a legitimate chance to be a second-fourth round pick in April’s draft.
In a similar light, running back Trevor Etienne had a nice showing at the combine himself. He was the sixth-fastest running back to test, running an official 4.42-second 40-yard dash. He also impressed people down in Mobile, Alabama a few weeks back during the Reese’s Senior Bowl.
The expectation for Etienne when he announced his transfer to Georgia from Florida over a year ago was that he was going to solve some of Georgia’s running back issues. That issue was a noticeable drop off in talent and depth that Georgia had at the position for a long time. Between dealing with a rib injury and a one-game suspension, Etienne had few moments where he elevated the team.
His biggest moments came in two of the biggest games of the year for Georgia (both against Texas and once in the SEC Championship), but it was true freshman Nate Frazier that edged him out in touches and production.
Offensive lineman Tate Ratledge and Jared Wilson showed off their speed and athleticism in Indianapolis. Ratledge is a two-time All-American guard who dealt with a handful of injuries in his time in Athens. Wilson waited four years for his turn to start, and had to miss a few games himself. Both were a part of an offensive line group that was supposed to be one of the best in the country, yet struggled mightily in key moments this past season.
Wilson’s impressive times have led Kiper to believe that he will be taken in the second round. That is after one year of starting and not even playing the full season.
The highest-ranked prospect for Georgia that tested was safety Malaki Starks. He’s been known as one of the best and most versatile defensive backs in college football the last three seasons. Starks made many jaw-dropping plays for Georgia, but many felt like his play teetered off in his junior season. At the combine, he looked like the most athletic defensive back on the board.
Georgia was able to win the SEC Championship and make the College Football Playoff. It is difficult to call that a failure. Perhaps it is fair to at least say that the talent underperformed, when you see how it stacks up against the rest of the country’s best players.