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- 3/17/19 UPDATE -- We've updated the permissions for our "Football" and "Commit to the G" recruiting message boards. We aim to be the best free board out there and that has not changed. We do now ask that all of you good people register as a member of our forum in order to see the sugar that is falling from our skies, so to speak.
Arik Gilbert: The big reasons why he's leaving the state to play for LSU
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Arik Gilbert: The big reasons why he's leaving the state to play for LSU
Arik Gilbert, the nation's No. 1 TE for 2020, picked LSU yesterday. Why wasn't it UGA? When did his head start to turn away from the Georgia program? He supplied his thoughts on those matters to DawgNation.
Comments
On average, UGA has recruited better than any school in the country while Kirby has been in Athens. We will be top five again this year. The sky is not falling! Gilbert wants to catch the ball so he chose a school that is where QB careers go to die save Burrow who will not be around to throw one pass to Arik.
"Arik Gilbert woke up a full-fledged LSU Tiger today."
Yep, just like John Emery woke up a UGA Bulldog and George Pickens woke up as an Auburn Tiger.
Oh wait.
He hasn't signed with anyone yet. Commitments are little more than "leans" nowadays.
If he goes to LSU, great, good for him. We'll beat them with or without him.
Honestly, I actually DO wonder if this will (in the end) become a similar story for 2020 H.S. 5 star TE/WR/ATH Arik Gilbert.... to what eventually happened with the former 2016 H.S. 5 star WR Demetris Robertson, and his departure going off to play at California... only to "transfer portal" back to UGA a couple of years later (with a medical red-shirt as he had a broken leg in 2017), and also after D-Rob had the change of heart with a sick mother, and the strong pull of Georgia is "home"????
I'm going to say something here that kind of goes against the grain, and no, I'm not going to knock Gilbert. I don't buy all of that "LSU felt like home"crappola, because if their team ****, he still wouldn't be there. But I do buy his points that the Tigers have greatly upgraded their offense (although I heard something today on sports talk radio that the new OC is going to be one of the top Head Coaching candidates in both college and pros this season, so we'll see).
But beyond that, while I am concerned about UGA continuing its trend of losing the state's top-rated players to other schools (particularly in the SEC), I'm am not all that concerned that we're losing a top-rated TE. Why? Well, since CKS arrived the talk has been how we need a big-time tight end who can get open and catch passes and all of that. Then we get Isaac Nauta, who was supposed to do all that. he was serviceable but quite frankly, he did nothing that a 3-star TE couldn't have done. And what happened to him in the NFL draft? Where is he now?
Then along comes Charlie Woerner who was supposed to be pretty good. He's decent. He's serviceable but no one is game-planning for him and look what happened this year; he lost his starting job to a graduate transfer from Tennessee, Eli Wolfe.
Speaking of Wolfe, he started the season off like he was FINALLY going to be THAT GUY for us. But alas, since October hit he's really fallen off his game. Not sure why. And through all of those guys, Nauta, Worner, Wolfe, somewhat underperforming, we still managed to get to one National Championship Game, make two SEC championship games, and are currently ranked in the Top 10 in the country now with a legitimate chance to get back to another SEC championship game, maybe even the CFP.
Now would I like for us to sign a 5-star TE? Doggone right. Always better to have more toys than the other guys. But am I distressed over not getting one? Not really, because history shows that even when we do get the top-of-the-line model, we somehow manage to wreck it.
Go Dawgs!
Arik is very, very special. I personally hate that we lost him to LSU?! How in the world would someone want to play for Ed Orgeron??? Seriously? LSU's current OC will not be on their team in January.
Enough of the Gilbert articles! He didn’t pick UGA. Please stop writing about the guy.
Comments here aren’t acknowledging what the kid said: he just felt “it” at LSU. My son is doing visits now as just a regular student, and it’s so true: they can either see themselves there or they can’t. And no recruiting pitch can change that. We benefit a lot from this dynamic, otherwise we’d never beat Bama on the trail if the decision was only about football.
Oh....... He liked their offense.... Mum.
Never thought he was coming anyway! Wish him the best of luck.
Just add another tackle to the line and call him a tight end.
Bye. Once you leave the state, you'll never be a DGD again. Seeya.
Arik is a great recruit, but I personally prefer Darnell and Theo.....and I would have said that if Arik had committed to UGa. Too bad Arik was only able to compare his visit to UGa during the KY game (in a monsoon) to the LSU vs Florida game. Had he joined Darnell and Theo in Athens for the Notre Dame game I’m sure he would have had a better feel for the game day atmosphere. The good news is Darnell and Theo are just as good as Arik. They are both still on the board and have been more positive about UGa throughout their recruitment. Go Dawgs!!!