This was one Friday the 13th that was filled with anything but horror.
Georgia’s hopes for a special 2012 football season intensified Friday afternoon when several junior defenders announced they were staying for their final college season. The Bulldogs had more than half of their starting defense request paperwork to the NFL’s draft advisory board, but the only player leaving early is tight end Orson Charles, who announced his intention Wednesday.
“It started out scary, because there were so many talented guys that had very good reason to think about the NFL,” Georgia coach Mark Richt said. “I think they’re all going to end up in the NFL one day, and it’s kind of scary to think you will lose two, three, four, five or six great players potentially. Now that it’s over and most everybody stayed, it gives me tremendous confidence that these guys really want to be here.”
The Bulldogs finished 10-4 this past season, winning their first SEC East title since 2005, and wound up 19th in the Associated Press poll after ending the previous two seasons unranked.
Safeties Bacarri Rambo and Shawn Williams announced Wednesday that they were returning, while outside linebacker Cornelius Washington and cornerbacks Sanders Commings and Branden Smith waited until Friday. Nose tackle John Jenkins said he was coming back days before the Bulldogs lost the Outback Bowl to Michigan State, and outside linebacker Jarvis Jones, the team’s most heralded player, said he never requested paperwork.