Georgia football 2021 offensive line recruiting will rely heavily on in-state talent

In Georgia’s 2020 offensive line recruiting class, Matt Luke was able to reel in prospects from New Jersey, Louisiana and Texas.

In 2021, Luke won’t have to look nearly as far to land some of the top prospects in the country along the offensive line. He can do all of his proverbial grocery shopping right in Georgia’s backyard.

Georgia doesn’t figure to sign quite as many offensive linemen in the 2021 recruiting class as it did compared to the 2020 cycle, as the Bulldogs signed seven in 2020. The Bulldogs figure to take at least three and possibly four offensive linemen depending on how the rest of the class fills out.

The Bulldogs already have one commitment in the form of 4-star offensive tackle Micah Morris. He’s from Kingsland, Ga. and plays for Camden County High School. He’s rated as the No. 71 overall player in the 247Sports Composite rankings and the No. 11 offensive tackle in the country.

Morris has the versatility to play either guard or tackle at the next level, much like Cade Mays did for the Bulldogs these past two seasons.

It had long been speculated that Morris would end up with the Bulldogs. He originally planned for a Dec. 17 commitment but when former Georgia offensive line coach Sam Pittman left to become the head coach at Arkansas, he adjusted his timeline.

But he still ended up committing to the Georgia program, in part because of Luke’s strong development track record.

“Coach Luke knows how to take players and develop them from high school in college to make them into NFL stars,” he said. “As far as any other position goes it is pretty much the same, you saw that from the time he was the head coach at Ole Miss.”

Morris is the second-highest rated prospect that is currently committed to Georgia for the 2021 recruiting class. But if the Bulldogs land some of their other top targets at the position, that will change.

The biggest fish out there for Luke is 5-star offensive tackle Amarius Mims. He’s from Cochran, Ga., and plays for Bleckley County. He’s the No. 8 overall prospect in the country and the No. 2 offensive tackle. He also happens to be the highest-ranked recruit in the state of Georgia for the 2021 recruiting cycle.

While Georgia did land 5-star offensive tackle Broderick Jones in the 2020 cycle, Georgia is very much in the market to add another one. Guys like Mims — listed at a towering 6-foot-7, 315 pounds — don’t come around all that often.

The Bulldogs have found themselves among Mims’ leaders throughout the process. In his most recent update, he has only Alabama ahead of the in-state Bulldogs. But expect Georgia to be a serious contender for Mims’ services up until he makes his final decision, which is tentatively set for Oct. 14.

The next name to know is 4-star offensive tackle Terrence Ferguson. He’s rated slightly higher than Morris, as he’s the No. 51 overall player in the country and the No. 5 ranked offensive tackle. Like Morris, though he does have the ability to possibly play guard at the collegiate level.

Ferguson is from Fort Valley, Ga., and plays for the same Peach County program that has produced the likes of Kearis Jackson and Tyrique McGhee in recent seasons. Ferguson did make multiple visits to Georgia during the January recruiting period, an indication that there is strong mutual interest between the program and player.

A third uncommitted name to know that also plays his high school ball in the Peach State is 4-star offensive guard Dylan Fairchild. He plays for West Forsyth High School in Cumming, Ga.

While plugged in recruiting experts have known of Morris, Mims and Ferguson for a while, Fairchild has seen his stock really jump in recent months. He made a huge move up in the recent 247Sports’ rankings, as he’s now the No. 211 ranked player in the country.

Fairchild only recently received an offer from Georgia, as the Bulldogs extended a scholarship in March. And it had almost an immediate impact on Fairchild, who is also a state wrestling champion.

“We were blown away,” Fairchild told DawgNation’s Jeff Sentell. “It was like drinking from a fire hydrant with all of their academic support and everything. We were kind of just blown away.”

At the moment, the Bulldogs have seven commitments and the No. 7 recruiting class in the 247Sports Composite rankings.

More Georgia football 2021 recruiting stories

More Georgia football stories from around DawgNation