Editor’s Note: DawgNation will publish a periodic snapshot during each recruiting cycle which gauges where the Bulldogs are as a class. Consider it a big-picture November overview of how the next wave of Georgia football talent is coming together. 

UGA welcomed 13 early enrollees from its 2019 signing class back in January. That figure matched the highest of the modern era in Georgia recruiting. The 2013 signing class also had 13 mid-year enrollees.

Those two classes sandwich a trend that has seen the Bulldogs welcome 56 early members of each signing class to campus in January. Dating back to that 2013 class, we have seen an average of eight mid-year Bulldogs across each of those seven recruiting classes.

Those prospects (in some cases JUCO transfers) get a head start on the academic load, campus life, strength training, and sports nutrition on the other members of their class. That’s the reward for working to graduate high school early. Not to mention getting to be a full participant in spring practice. It usually leads to the best possible shot at early playing time.

That’s the trend, but it looks like Georgia’s 2020 class might dip a bit from last year’s tally. Here’s the most current information regarding the Bulldog commits for 2020.

Early Enrollee commits (6)

Commits who will not enroll early (10)

2020 targets who can enroll early 

2020 targets who cannot enroll early

Georgia football: Midyears by the numbers

(Source: DawgNation.com)

Want a speed read over the last week? Here are a few of the bigger DawgNation.com stories of late on the recruiting trail:

Check out the latest “Before the Hedges” on UGA recruiting

Did you see “Before the Hedges” last week? Brandon Adams hosts a weekly UGA recruiting show called Before the Hedges at 3 p.m. every Wednesday on the DawgNation Facebook page.

It also streams each Wednesday on the DawgNation YouTube channel.

If you watch that show every week, then you know that the DawgNation.com staff was reporting on the early enrollee picture for 2020 with segments all the way back in September.

Do you follow the “Hurry-Up Intel” thread on the DawgNation message board forum? That’s where we also drop some daily bite-sized recruiting info, too.

Where UGA recruiting ranks for 2020

Georgia has 16 public commitments for 2020. It if feels like the program hasn’t had a commitment in a while, that’s because it has been 81 days since 4-star OL Sedrick Van Pran-Granger committed to Georgia.

He is the most recent commitment to the G in the class of 2020. 

UGA sits at No. 5 nationally for 2019 in the 247Sports composite team recruiting rankings. That places the Bulldogs third in the SEC.

LSU and its 24 pledges rank No. 1 in the SEC. Clemson sits at No. 1 nationally, followed by LSU, Alabama, Ohio State, Georgia, Texas, Texas A&M, Notre Dame, Michigan and Florida.  

Georgia is the only school in the top 5 that does not have at least 20 commits. The top five teams in those rankings have 20, 24, 23 and 24 commits, respectively. The Bulldogs are the only program in the top 10 of those rankings that does not have at least 17 commitments.

How far away are the Bulldogs from taking over that No. 1 spot? It will take quite a lot.

If Kirby Smart and the Georgia staff can add three of its four highest priority 5-star recruits to the board right now, it would just be enough. That would give the Bulldogs a 304.81 score on the 247Sports Team Composite ratings. Clemson would be just behind with a 304.25 score.

Yes, that’s correct. Georgia could see its total of 5-star pledges rise to five for this cycle and it would barely be enough to overtake Clemson at this time.

The current UGA recruiting commits for 2020

(presented in order of their 247Sports Composite ratings)

Mekhail Sherman/5-star OLB/St. John’s College/Washington, D.C./– Speedy hybrid LB has the tenacity to play inside but the wheels and length to also work out on the edge with his 4.5 speed. The nation’s No. 2 OLB recruit chose UGA in May. Rates as the nation’s No. 14 overall prospect. Check out the essential DawgNation read on Sherman. 

Kendall Milton recently lost his fifth star on the 247Sports Composite ratings over the last month. He now rates as the nation’s No. 6 RB prospect for the 2020 cycle on the 247Sports Composite ratings. (Jeff Sentell/DawgNation)/Dawgnation)

Broderick Jones/5-star OT/Lithonia/Lithonia, Ga./–Rates as the nation’s No. 2 OT prospect and as the nation’s No. 23 overall recruit on the 247Sports Composite ratings. He can enroll early at UGA and play quickly at tackle. Check out the latest from DawgNation on Jones. 

Kendall Milton/4-star RB/Buchanan High School/Clovis, Calif./– Rates as the nation’s No. 6 RB prospect and No. 34 overall prospect. Interesting to see his rating dip as Milton looks to be having a fantastic senior season. Check out the latest DawgNation piece on Mr. Milton. 

Marcus Rosemy/4-star WR/St. Thomas Aquinas/Fort Lauderdale, Fla.: The nation’s No. 5 WR has seen his stock rise slightly over the summer. He’s now the nation’s No. 35 overall prospect for 2020. Great size (6-2.5 and 195) and is also a polished route runner. Rosemy took his official visit to Georgia for the Kentucky game.

Tate Ratledge/4-star OT/Darlington School/Rome, Ga.: Physical athlete is listed as the nation’s No. 3 OT recruit for 2020. That places him at No. 36 overall in the class. His ratings have gone up two spots as far as his positional and overall rank over the summer. Still hard to believe the near 6-foot-7 bruiser also punts for his high school team. Check out his commitment day overview story. 

Jalen Carter/4-star DT/Apopka HS/Apopka, Fla.: Impressive size athlete who has put together a ton of highlight dunks on the basketball court. The 6-foot-4, 300-pound prospect rates as the No. 6 DT and No. 61 overall for this cycle on the 247Sports Composite. The pure 247Sports rating even pegs him as the nation’s No. 2 DT and at No. 20 overall.

Jalen Kimber/4-star CB/Mansfield Timberview/Arlington, Tex.: Kimber continues to climb up the prospect ranks. Now all the way up to the nation’s No. 6 CB and No. 84 overall for 2020. The 6-foot-1, 170-pound Texas resident has true 4.4 speed in the 40. Kimber is a driven young man motivated to honor his grandmother’s memory. 

Sedrick Van Pran-Granger/4-star OC/Warren Easton HS/New Orleans, Lou./– The nation’s No. 3 center prospect for 2020 will be a Bulldog. Georgia was his first SEC offer and the first big-time program he traveled to for an unofficial visit for the Austin Peay game in 2018. Line coach Sam Pittman was a big reason why Sedrick Van Pran-Granger will be a Bulldog. Also rates as the nation’s No. 104 prospect overall.

Chad Lindberg/4-star OT/Clear Creek HS/League City, Tex. — Big-time Texas hoss in all things. The 6-foot-6.5, 325-pounder throws the shot put at a state championship level and also had a sterling 5.38 grade-point average heading into his senior year. That placed him among the top 30 in his class. He wants to bring back a master’s degree and will arrive at UGA academically as a sophomore because of his high school credits from AP classes. Currently ranks as the nation’s No. 14 OT and at No. 130 overall. Can play guard or tackle at UGA. He chose UGA back in late July. 

Carson Beck has rebounded to throw 15 touchdowns to just one interception over the last few games of his senior season. (Jeff Sentell/DawgNation)/Dawgnation)

Carson Beck/4-star QB/Mandarin HS/Jacksonville, Fla./The nation’s No. 5 pro-style QB has fallen to No. 149 overall across the last few months. Beck wields a strong and accurate arm and good size at 6 feet, 4 inches. The latest DawgNation offering on Mr. Beck breaks down his down-and-way-up senior season. 

Warren Brinson/4-star DT/IMG Academy/Bradenton, Fla.: Brinson de-committed and re-committed back to the UGA class in June. He did so a day after naming Florida and Georgia as his top two schools. The Savannah native rates as the nation’s No. 23 DT and the No. 264 overall prospect for 2020. He holds the honor of being the UGA commitment who has increased his 2020 rankings the most over the course of his senior season. He’s climbed seven spots on his positional ranking and 66 slots overall.

Nazir Stackhouse/4-star DT/Columbia HS/Decatur, Ga.: Nation’s No. 24 DT prospect also checks in at No. 273 overall. Stackhouse was the first pledge for the 2020 class back in December of 2017. He chose UGA on the day the Bulldogs toppled Auburn for the program’s first SEC title since 2005.

Joshua Braun/4-star OT/Suwanee High School/Live Oak, Fla.: This 6-foot-6, 350-pound mauler is as versatile as it gets for his position. Expect him to play guard and tackle in Athens. He doesn’t do camps but still rates as the nation’s No. 21 OT and No. 280 overall prospect. This young man has a 33 on his ACT, a 4.0 GPA and is on the No. 1 doubles and No. 2 singles slots for his varsity tennis team.

Justin Robinson/4-star WR/Eagles Landing Christian Academy/Stockbridge, Ga./Nation’s No. 59 WR despite having just played one season of varsity football up to this point. Big upside for this young man. He’s 6 feet, 4 inches and a solid 210 pounds now. It looks like he’s playing the best football of his career at this point during his senior season. He also plays both ways for Eagles Landing Christian.

Corey Wren/3-star ATH/John Curtis/New Orleans, La.: The nation’s No. 26 ATH is explosive in the open field and it is all because of his rare speed. He’s been timed this spring at 10.41 seconds in the 100 meters. He chose the Bulldogs over Arizona State largely because of his relationship with receivers coach Cortez Hankton and his desire to play around a roster flush with NFL talent. The 5-foot-9 Wren now ranks as the nation’s No. 514 overall prospect.

Jared Zirkel/3-star/Tivy High/Kerrville, Tex: The 3-star kicker now rates as the nation’s No. 4 prospect at his position on the 247Sports Composite. The recruiting services which only rate kickers offer up a more comprehensive view here. Zirkel already has an NFL-caliber leg on kickoffs. He was able to drill a 59-yard field goal as a junior.

The 2021 crop for UGA recruiting

There was a long lull, but Georgia has seen two commitments join this class over the last few months. South Carolina DB Brayln Oliver joined the class on Aug. 22. “Jack G” rates as a 3-star prospect and shows up as the nation’s No. 410 overall prospect for 2021.

Georgia resident David Daniel (Woodstock High/Woodstock, Ga.) stands as the most recent Georgia commitment regardless of class year. The big 6-foot-3, 190-pound safety chose the Bulldogs on Sept. 13. He rates as the nation’s No. 2 ATH and No. 41 overall prospect for 2021.

The Bulldogs and their two pledges currently rate as the nation’s No. 20 class for 2021.

David Daniel chose UGA back on Sept. 13 of this year. He’s the nation’s No. 2 ATH for the 2021 cycle. (Jeff Sentell/DawgNation)/Dawgnation)

The 2020 UGA recruiting class timeline

The big 2020 targets for UGA recruiting

DawgNation rates the 5-star CB Kelee Ringo as the top remaining target for Georgia in the 2020 class. (All-American Games/Courtesy photo)/Dawgnation)

The Bulldogs can still sign up to four more recruits with a 5-star rating for 2020. That’s for those who judge classes by the number of elite players at the very top of the board.

Let’s look at a roll call of several names for the class as it sets up right now. The big thing to comprehend here is that these are not the highest-rated targets with offers but more like a trickle of names with mutual interest who would fill major needs for the 2020 class.

4 BIG 2020 recruiting targets

Big misses for 2020: 5-star DT Bryan Bresee (Clemson); 5-star OT Myles Hinton (Stanford); 5-star DE Myles Murphy (Clemson); 5-star ATH Arik Gilbert (LSU); 4-star RB Don Chaney Jr. (Miami); 4-star DT Gervon Dexter (Florida); 4-star OG Andrew Raym (Oklahoma);

UGA recruiting by position in 2020

Which positions are the major priorities for 2019? The running back and tight end spots are clearly two of the biggest left for this class.

Here’s a quick snapshot as to how DawgNation expects the position-by-position breakdown to go down the stretch:

That projected class slants to the offensive side of the ball. Bear in mind the Bulldogs signed two more defensive players in its 2019 class than they did for James Coley’s unit a year ago.

Here’s a glance at what DawgNation sees as the positional priorities for the class:

2020 UGA recruiting offers by the numbers

(as published by 247Sports)

Geographical UGA recruiting breakdown

5-star OT Broderick Jones is the highest-rated commitment for Georgia from The Peach State in its 2020 class. (Jeff Sentell/DawgNation)/Dawgnation)

The current UGA commits broken down by state:

The end-of-the year grind recruiting note 

Check out the recruiting ratings on the 247Sports Team Composite ratings right now for Georgia and the closing kick of its 2019 schedule.

There was a time about five months when the Yellow Jackets were right there with the Bulldogs for this cycle. That’s a nod to the strong recruiting efforts for first-year coach Geoff Collins and his staff.

Needless to say, the market has corrected itself in regard to this sample size over time. Tech has just a trio of 4-star commitments and 20 more pledges that currently hold a 3-star rating.