ATHENS — Georgia brought in nine transfers this offseason. It was done so to bolster depth and add talent to the roster.
Clemson, conversely, brought in zero players via the transfer portal. The Tigers are the only Power 4 program in the country to not bring in any one. It’s hardly an anomaly that Clemson acted this way, as Dabo Swinney’s is the most portal-averse program in the country.
And while Kirby Smart has no qualms about the players he brought in, he does have a respect for the way Swinney runs his program.
“I’m like Dabo,” Smart said. “If I could keep my entire roster my roster, I’d be all for keeping my roster my roster. I believe in the kids we sign, I believe in the kids we recruit. I want to grow them to get better. It’s not realistic to think you’re going to keep all your players right now. What is realistic you need to be operating with as much depth as possible and it’s made it tougher to do that.”
Georgia famously imported Derion Kendrick prior to the 2021 season, after Kendrick had been dismissed from the Clemson program that spring. He went on to start every game for Georgia and won defensive MVP honors of the Orange Bowl.
But for every Kendrick, there has been an Arik Gilbert or Smoke Bouie who haven’t been worth the investment for the Bulldogs. And Georgia didn’t bring in any players from the transfer portal prior to the 2022 season. That was a point of pride for Smart, with Georgia winning the national championship that year.
Entering this week, Georgia is wondering if some of those transfers will be available. Running back Trevor Etienne is dealing with a possible suspension following an offseason arrest, while Colbie Young has been limited with a hamstring injury.
Smart was much more confident that Young would be able to play, but Georgia will likely be without South Carolina transfer Xzavier McLeod due to an unspecified injury.
Of the nine transfers Georgia brought in, seven came prior to the end of the winter portal window in January. Six of them — Etienne, Young, McLeod, safety Jake Pope, wide receivers London Humphreys and Michael Jackson — were able to go through spring drills with Georgia, helping the acclimation period.
Tight end Benjamin Yurosek, quarterback Jaden Rashada and defensive back Collin Gill all arrived prior to the start of fall camp. Of those three, only Yurosek is expected to play a role for Georgia this season.
“I think that’s much ado about nothing,” Smart said on the transfer portal. “You have who you have, right? So in the spring you have I’m going to guess 90, 95 percent of your roster. You might pick up some after that. I think everybody makes a big deal about that.”
Georgia did pair its transfer portal haul with the No. 1 high school recruiting class in the country. Clemson, even without leaning on the transfer portal, has still been able to recruit the high school ranks at an elite level. The Tigers signed the No. 14 class in the country, landing three 5-star prospects.
Georgia recruited a number of players on Clemson’s roster, such as Barrett Carter and Sammy Brown. Georgia would not be surprised to see either of them making plays on Saturday.
“As far as evaluating the opposing team, whether they have kids or don’t have kids, one thing you know is they’re going to know their system because they’ve been in it,” Smart said. “They’re not new to it. They’re ingrained in it. They know their culture, they know who they are, they know how they play, they know what their standard is, that to me is you can be envious of that. The fact that they have the guys that have been in their program are in their program.”
There are only three active college football coaches with national championships, with Smart and Swinney making up two-thirds of that triumvirate. It’s clear both coaches share the same viewpoint when it comes to the transfer portal in general.
But they do differ when it comes to using it as a tool to add to the roster. Georgia has won two of the last three national championships, while Clemson has not been to the College Football Playoff since the 2020 season.
Saturday’s game won’t be a referendum on the transfer portal, even if some in the national media treat it that way. Smart and Swinney share a similar vision for how college football should be, even if it’s outdated in the age of the transfer portal and NIL.
“I don’t think anybody really lets NIL come into the locker room,” Smart said. “I think our culture is better than that as far as the money aspect. I don’t think anybody thinks that they’re above anybody. We really don’t discuss that type of stuff in the locker room”
