Want to attack every day with the latest Georgia football recruiting info? That’s the Intel. This rep has the latest with 4-star QB commitment Ryan Puglisi. He ranks as the nation’s No. 12 QB and the No. 144 overall prospect for 2024 on the 247Sports Composite ratings. On3 has him as the nation’s No. 11 QB and the No. 143 overall recruit.

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Ryan Puglisi is coming back to visit Georgia this week. The long-time commitment also maintains that he’s not going anywhere.

While speculation abounds Georgia may now be the team to beat for 5-star QB Dylan Raiola, he is not wavering. It doesn’t matter if the ‘Dawgs do sign the nation’s No. 1 prospect to play the same position.

Puglisi is still going to double down on two things: His love for UGA and his belief in what he can do.

“I’m a big believer in when you say you are going to do something, you do it,” Puglisi said. “Nowadays sometimes a commitment doesn’t really mean a commitment. But I kind of like to stay to my word. I committed to the ‘Dawgs on October 16th [of last year] and I’m not looking to change anything because I fell in love with the program.”

“Everything they do. The culture. The coaches. The players. The people that would be there around me. It is just too hard to say no to. So I’m not looking to change my answer at all. I just think that Georgia is a special place and something that I definitely want to be a part of.”

“So I have no aspirations to change anything.”

There is a strong reservoir of mental toughness to appreciate there.

The 6-foot-2, 200-pound Puglisi has been clocked off the mound at 93 miles per hour. He told DawgNation he’s also launched a football 73 yards. He’s an athlete and can clock a 4.7-to-4.8 time in the 40. He’s also always been a worker.

Check out his junior film below.

He caught an early flight down today and will be in Georgia through Thursday.

This will be his first trip to check out UGA since the national championship celebration at Sanford Stadium on January 14.

4-star QB commit Ryan Puglisi made another return trip to check out UGA on Saturday, January 14, 2023, for the back-to-back national title celebration. (Jeff Sentell/DawgNation) (Jeff Sentell/Dawgnation)

Georgia football: The QB picture with two 2024 QB signees

With the class separation here, the ‘Dawgs do need to take a pair of quarterbacks in the 2024 class. That became clear after the back-to-back national champions did not sign a QB in 2023.

There is also expected attrition no matter what happens through the fall. Whatever happens over the ups and downs of the 2023 season, there is the belief that the ‘Dawgs will be down at least one QB from the three current scholarship QBs in the room.

Carson Beck and Brock Vandagriff will both be draft-eligible after the 2023 season. They will also have two more years of college eligibility after the fall, too.

There are a few likely scenarios to explore there:

No matter what happens, it looks like the ‘Dawgs will lose at least one scholarship quarterback from their room. That’s why Georgia needs to sign two very capable quarterbacks in the 2024 cycle.

Puglisi says his name will be there.

What will this visit be about?

“I will miss G-Day,” he said. “I have a funeral to go to, but I will be there from Tuesday to Thursday. So I will make it there for three practices and a walkthrough.”

This will be the first time he’s seen the ‘Dawgs practice in full pads. He will also get to sit in on meetings.

It will allow him to build his relationship with Mike Bobo. Bobo’s back in a most familiar role as offensive coordinator. This will be his ninth season coordinating the Georgia offense, but his first in that role since 2014.

Bobo spent 14 years on the Georgia staff prior to leaving to become the head coach at Colorado State in 2014.

“I was close with coach Bobo even when [Todd] Monken was there even though I never really got to see him in action,” Puglisi said. “Well, I did. But not to the extent that I saw Monken do it. Then obviously when the news broke that Monken was going to the Ravens, coach Bobo and I started talking. Now we have a great relationship.”

“We are talking almost every day. We were keeping each other up with the March Madness stuff. He and I have a really good relationship going. I’m just excited to go sit in meetings with him.”

That will also include more face time with Georgia offensive analyst Montgomery Van Gorder. “Coach Gummy” has slid into the role that Buster Faulkner had held at UGA for the last few seasons. Faulkner is now the offensive coordinator at Georgia Tech.

“I’m excited to go into meetings with Coach Bobo and Coach Gummy,” Puglisi said. “We are going to talk some football.”

Ryan Puglisi can throw a football 73 yards and a baseball at 93 miles per hour. The big-time arm in the 2024 class "loves" Georgia. (Jeff Sentell / DawgNation) (Jeff Sentell/Dawgnation)

Ryan Puglisi can throw a football 73 yards and a baseball at 93 miles per hour. The big-time arm in the 2024 class "loves" Georgia. (Jeff Sentell / DawgNation) (Jeff Sentell/Dawgnation)

Class of 2024 QB Ryan Puglisi has Georgia as one of his top schools. He will be in town to visit on Saturday for the Vanderbilt game. (Courtesy photo) (Courtesy photo/Dawgnation)

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What happens when other schools try to recruit Ryan Puglisi?

When Puglisi chose UGA, there was a defining story to share in regard to his makeup. Puglisi is motivated in life by the example set for him at an early age.

“I obviously have a ton of motives about why I want to be great,” he said last fall. “But I had a close friend pass away from cancer. She battled. She never gave up. So when I think it comes to the motives and not giving up, she is a big piece of it for me here.”

Beth O’Rourke was his friend’s mother. She was also a neighbor and a “super close” family friend. Puglisi shared the story of her approximate 10-year-fight with pancreatic cancer.

“She had a huge impact on everybody,” he said. “My whole family. It was a huge community shock when she passed away.”

O’Rourke had kicked it. Only to see that awful C-word return. Puglisi said she was like a “second Mom” to him.

“She had the worst of it and kept going when times were tough,” Puglisi said. “When I think about it and sit back, I think my life isn’t too bad. I’m going to keep pushing because I know she would.”

He saw how hard she fought to live. It makes him want to make the most of every day. Puglisi lost a “second Mom” but gained the perspective that life is too short to not spend it seeking the things we really want.

“She helps me be great,” he said. “I think that helps me throughout the process and throughout the game when times get tough and times get hard with the sport.”

When that Puglisi-Raiola talk comes up, I always think of that story. I don’t think about Puglisi seeing Raiola commit and then look for an easier path to a starting job.

He knows the competition will be in the way at any school. Might as well go lace them up at a place where he’s wanted to be from the first few times he saw Athens.

“100 percent,” he said. “I think Georgia is really the example of iron sharpens iron. You are going to go against the best. That’s the way you’re going to learn. I just talked to Coach Bobo and [about] how many reps each guy gets reps. Whether you are a walk-on quarterback or the starter or the number one quarterback in the nation, you’re going to get reps no matter what. I think that’s a big deal.”

Alabama just signed two top 10 QBs last fall. While this is very rare, it has happened at a big-time program. That’s a data point.

The real data point is the conviction with which Puglisi shared that story. We don’t see many elite QBs sign together in the same class, but we see even fewer QBs with a life-changing experience like that one.

Puglisi is also clearly invested in Georgia. He’s already wisely got Chuck’s Fish and Marker 7 as his favorite spots to eat in Athens.

When the subject of ‘Dawgs from the Northeast came up, he knew all about Joenel Aguero and Lewis Cine in Massachusetts.

He knew about Xavier Truss in Rhode Island and the late Devin Willock out of New Jersey.

He’s from Massachusetts himself but goes to a boarding school in Connecticut. That’s the same state the 5-star 2024 CB commit Ellis Robinson IV hails from. Robinson even goes to a boarding school himself down at IMG Academy in Florida.

Puglisi is still getting attention from other schools. He’s heard from big names like Alabama and Ohio State.

“They still call and I say thank you for taking the time to recruit me,” he said. “Stuff like that. To this day, everyone is still calling but they know that I’ve made my decision. So I just try to tell them thanks for everything they are doing and just thank them for recruiting me.”

He lets them know he’s very much looking forward to he’s honoring his UGA commitment.

Puglisi is also an active recruiter for the class. He knows the current receiver commits Ny Carr and Sacovie White already.

“We’re starting to know those guys really well,” Puglisi said. “Obviously we have a group chat with Coach [David Cooper] with all the commits. But other than that, we have our own group chat with just the commits. No coaches. That way we are all talking, with no coaches, just to kind of get to know each other.”

“Ny and I have a really good relationship. We talk a lot. Sacovie [White] as well. [5-star TE] Landen Thomas and all the guys.”

He also wants to see Georgia sign 5-star in-state standout Mike Matthews Jr. in the 2024 cycle.

“I think he’s a really good player,” Puglisi said. “I think he’d be someone that would really benefit to come play with us.”

The Puglisi list goes further than that.

“I’m trying to get everyone,” he said. “I want to make this the best class that Georgia has ever had. Ellis Robinson and I are always just shooting it like that with all the guys. Having him like that in the class already, it is good to be able to hang out with him. Just trying to use our resources to get the best kids.”

“I think that it will be big this weekend, too. To sit down with Coach Bobo and see who we are really going after so we can all try to go after them harder.”

The ‘Dawgs have his heart. Clearly.

“Just an unreal culture,” he said. “Success. Excellence. Then just a program where everyone is bought in, you know? No matter what your role is, they are going to do it one hundred percent. They are going to do it as hard as they can. Which is really cool to be around. It is easy to thrive in that type of environment.”

“It is hard stuff to do, but you really have no way to no success when you are surrounded by the people that they have at Georgia.”

Have you subscribed to the DawgNation YouTube channel yet? If so, you will be able to see special 1-on-1 content with key 2024 prospects like Daniel Calhoun, Dwight Phillips Jr., Dylan Raiola and Sacovie White.

SENTELL’S INTEL

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