ATHENS —
NFL scouts and coaches are set to preview what is expected to be Georgia’s biggest NFL draft class in school history.
Possible first-round picks Jarvis Jones, Alec Ogletree and Jonathan Jenkins will headline a large group of draft hopefuls who will be tested on Georgia’s pro day on Thursday.
Georgia could have 10 or more players selected in next month’s NFL draft. It had a school-record eight players drafted in 2002.
Jones, Ogletree and Jenkins were defensive starters. Georgia’s most recent first-round picks — receiver A.J. Green in 2011 and quarterback Matthew Stafford and running back Knowshon Moreno in 2009 — were offensive stars. The last Georgia defensive player to be drafted in the first or second round was cornerback Tim Jennings, a second-round pick in 2006. In 2005, Georgia safety Thomas Davis and defensive end David Pollack were first-round picks.
“It has been quite a while,” said Georgia defensive coordinator Todd Grantham. “Those are the complete players. When you’re a first-round guy you’ve got the size and measurements for a position but you’ve also got the production from a position. I’m really excited for those guys.”
Big draft classes are the norm for Georgia, which had 35 players on NFL opening day rosters in 2012 — tied for the fourth-most of any school. Georgia had seven players drafted last year.
Jones, an outside linebacker, and Ogletree, an inside linebacker, bypassed their senior seasons to enter the draft.
Jones recently dropped from the top spot on ESPN draft expert Mel Kiper Jr.’s list of top players available for the draft. Jones has had to answer questions about a neck injury he suffered when he began his career at Southern Cal before transferring to Georgia.
Jones played two seasons at Georgia with no recurrence of the injury. He led Georgia with 14 1/2 sacks last season.
Ogletree, who was suspended for the first four games of the 2012 season, had a DUI arrest before last month’s NFL combine. Despite missing the four games, he led Georgia with 111 tackles.
Jenkins (6-3, 351) has ideal size to play nosetackle in a 3-4 scheme.
Other members of the 2012 defense who will be working out for scouts are safeties Bacarri Rambo and Shawn Williams, cornerbacks Sanders Commings and Branden Smith, defensive linemen Abry Jones, Kwame Geathers and Cornelius Washington, and linebackers Christian Robinson and Michael Gilliard.
Wide receivers Tavarres King and Marlon Brown are Georgia’s most prominent offensive players in the draft.
Local Sports
Georgia draft hopefuls set to test for NFL scouts
- Local Sports
-
-
VSU softball wins South Region, headed to nationals
For the third time in four years, and second in a row, Valdosta State’s softball team will play in the national championship tournament.
The Blazers won their third South Region championship Saturday, beating Alabama-Huntsville 8-3 in game three of the best-of-three series at Steel’s Diamond at Blazer Park. -
VSU baseball season comes to an end
Delta State scored seven unanswered runs to defeat Valdosta State 7-2 in an elimination game of the NCAA South Region Tournament at the UT Baseball Field Saturday afternoon.
-
Blazers take 1-0 series lead
Angela O’Connor launched a pinch-hit two-run home run over the left-field fence, tying the game against Alabama-Huntsville in the bottom of the sixth inning, and sparking the Blazers and their fans along the way.
-
Blazer baseball stays alive, beats Stillman
Valdosta State scored five runs in the first inning to defeat Stillman 6-2 in an elimination game of the NCAA South Region Tournament at UT Baseball Field Friday morning.
-
Lowndes’ Harwell, Wortham sign with Valdosta State
Lowndes’ Ty Harwell and David Wortham won’t have to go far to play college baseball.
-
Blazers host respected rival UAH in Super Regional
One would expect a matchup featuring two of the top softball programs in Division II to come in the national championship game.
Unfortunately for Valdosta State and Alabama-Huntsville, who have combined to appear in four straight national championship games, they won’t be meeting in title game on Memorial Day in Salem, Va. -
Pop Warner Football coming to Valdosta
Pop Warner Football is coming to Valdosta.
The nationally known organization that puts an emphasis on education and developing American youth has been established in the Valdosta area and will begin playing football this August. -
Blazers lose to Delta State, fall to loser’s bracket
If the Valdosta State baseball team is going to win the South Region Tournament, the Blazers going to have to do it from the loser’s bracket.
The Blazers (33-17) dropped their first game of the tournament Thursday, falling to Delta State 4-2 at UT Baseball Stadium.
VSU will face Stillman College, which lost to No. 1 seed and tournament host Tampa Thursday, Friday at 11 a.m. to advance to the weekend portion of the tournament. The loser will be eliminated. -
Lowndes’ Willis, Breit named Region 1 Coaches of the Year
The All-Region 1-AAAAAA soccer teams were announced Wednesday and Lowndes was well represented.
Lowndes coaches Chris Willis (girls) and Jordan Breit (boys) were named the Region Coaches of the Year, after leading the Lowndes teams to region championships and going undefeated in region play. -
Vikings commit 4 errors, fall to Roswell, 5-2
The small things matter in baseball, especially in a winner-take-all game three.
On Wednesday, Lowndes’ baseball team made too many mistakes on the little things. The Vikings committed four errors that led to five Roswell runs and were eliminated in the Class AAAAAA state playoffs with a 5-2 loss to the Hornets. - More Local Sports Headlines
-
