UGA trying some new ideas as it has to replace key personnel in its secondary

ATHENS — Georgia’s defensive backfield is going to look different in 2024. And not just with the on-field personnel.

The Bulldogs knew they were always going to have to replace Dan Jackson after this season. His six incredible years had come to an end, as he is now off to the NFL. He’ll be joined by Malaki Starks, who was a multi-time All-American in his time at Georgia.

To offset those departures, Georgia brought in three defensive backs via the transfer portal. It added USC’s Zion Branch, UAB’s Adrian Maddox and Miami’s Jaden Harris.

All three bring different skill sets to the defensive secondary.

Maddox is the most experienced of the bunch, albeit largely doing so at a lower level. Harris has starting experience from his time at Miami, along with multiple years of eligibility to continue to grow his game.

“We had Dan and Malaki leaving with a tremendous amount of snaps there with those guys going out,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said. “We needed to make sure we’ve got depth at the secondary and growth. We’ve signed some good young ones who are here now. They’re working with us. Some of us were with us in December. Then we were able to get the two guys out of the portal that we think are going to help us, as well.”

Branch is the most physically imposing of the trio. Among Georgia’s safeties and slot cornerbacks — known as stars in Georgia’s system — he stands out. And that’s with former touted recruits KJ Bolden and Joenel Aguero.

Branch transferred in with his brother Zachariah this offseason. He is a wide receiver and someone who has the potential to raise the floor and ceiling of the Georgia offense.

But Zion Branch wasn’t just some throw-in to get the Zachariach Branch to come to Georgia.

The Bulldogs have plans to use him on the defensive side of the ball as well.

Both those guys are high-caliber athletes, but they’re high-caliber people," Smart said. “I’ve enjoyed working with them. The Branch brothers have been a great injection into our offseason energy and workouts. They love working out. Their father trains guys, so they love training. The culture and work ethic that it requires to be successful here, they jumped right in and done a great job.”

In Georgia’s base defense, it will normally have three safeties on the field. A season ago, Starks, Jackson and Bolden did so, with Starks largely playing the star position.

Only Bolden returns, but he’s not the only returnee who will factor into the equation for Georgia. Joenel Aguero is back for Georgia as well, as he enters his third season at Georgia.

When he first arrived at Georgia, Aguero was seen as someone who could contribute right away. But the excellence of Tykee Smith kept Aguero off the field.

Last season, Bolden proved plenty capable of playing a major role for Georgia. In order to get him on the field, Georgia slid Starks to the star position. That got Bolden on the field, but often at the expense of Aguero.

Aguero played in 11 games, missing time late in the year due to hand/wrist surgery. He finished with 26 tackles and a pass breakup, but he was nowhere near as impactful as Smith had previously been at the star position.

Georgia hopes that Aguero — who has noticeably bulked up this offseason — and some combination of Branch, Maddox and Harris can fill the holes in the secondary. Georgia also has JaCorey Thomas, Chris Peal and Kyron Jones as options as well.

The Bulldogs also have some coaching changes in the secondary as well. While on-field coach Travaris Robinson returns for his second season with the program, the support staff around the secondary will look different.

Andrew Thacker will take on a larger role, following his promotion as the team’s nickels coach. He previously served as the defensive coordinator at Georgia Tech and was with the Bulldogs last season as an analyst.

“His role’s changed. He’s taking on a position,” Smart said. “He’s going to be working almost primarily with the secondary, specifically the stars. He’ll be with those guys, the nickels. Those guys are kinda a quasi-position now. They’re half outside linebacker, half linebacker, half DB, a little bit safeties. They’re special teams players. He’ll take on a role with those guys and spend time with them.”

Thacker will work closely with Aguero, while also cross-training Maddox, Branch and Harris. As Starks showed a season ago, the ability to play multiple positions can go a long way in unlocking the best version of Georgia’s defense.

As for what that looks like, spring practice will go a long way in determining that.

What is unknown though at the moment is what hand Will Muschamp will play in shaping the secondary. He was previously Georgia’s co-defensive coordinator and last season served as an analyst. He was spotted with the team during games against Texas and Notre Dame.

When asked last week about what role Muschamp would have on this year’s team, Smart gave a rather cryptic answer.

“We’re probably going to decide that at a later time,” Smart said.

Muschamp was not spotted at last week’s practice, but as Smart indicates it’s still early to tell what kind of impact he’ll have on this year’s team.

The same could be said for how important the transfer safeties will be for Georgia. It’s worth remembering that expectations were high for Smith but he didn’t become an impact player for Georgia until his third year in the program.

Georgia won’t be able to be as patient with its new transfers as it was with Smith. If it’s going to get the help it was looking for in the transfer portal, it’ll need it to pay off right away.