Receiver Dominick Blaylock 'wired the right way' for Georgia

University of Georgia photo / Georgia redshirt junior receiver Dominick Blaylock has overcome two ACL injuries in his left knee during his career with the Bulldogs, which began with a promising freshman season in 2019.
University of Georgia photo / Georgia redshirt junior receiver Dominick Blaylock has overcome two ACL injuries in his left knee during his career with the Bulldogs, which began with a promising freshman season in 2019.

Spring football is often a time for fundamentals, learning a new system or switching positions.

In the case of Georgia redshirt junior receiver Dominick Blaylock, it's an opportunity to appreciate his lengthy road to recovery.

"This is my first spring practice since my freshman year," a smiling Blaylock said this week in a news conference.

The 6-foot-1, 205-pounder from Marietta had a promising freshman season cut short by a torn left anterior cruciate ligament in Georgia's 37-10 loss to LSU at the 2019 Southeastern Conference championship game. On the doorstep of the pandemic-delayed start to the 2020 season, Blaylock tore the same ACL, which wiped out the entirety of that season and much of last year as well.

Blaylock had two short receptions and two short punt returns last November in the mismatch with Charleston Southern and played sparingly against Georgia Tech, Alabama in the SEC title game and Michigan in the Orange Bowl.

"He's wired the right way," Georgia coach Kirby Smart said about the stepson of former Chattanooga Lookouts investor John Woods. "This kid came up tough. He's had two older brothers (2012 Kentucky football signees Daron and Zack Blaylock) who helped toughen him up. He didn't grow up soft, and he's not afraid of contact.

"He never complains, and if anybody had something to complain about, it would be him, but all he does is work."

The reigning national champions have conducted eight spring practices, with Saturday's ninth workout also serving as the first scrimmage. There is no media availability scheduled after the scrimmage.

Blaylock was a top-50 national prospect and a top-five receiver in the 2019 signing class, and he had 18 receptions for 310 yards and five touchdowns as a freshman. His 60-yard touchdown reception against Arkansas State was the longest pass play of that season for the Bulldogs, and his 3-yard score against Florida and 51-yard score at Auburn set the tone for Georgia's biggest league wins in what ultimately yielded a third consecutive SEC East title.

Nobody could have foreseen his impending gap in action between December 2019 and last November.

"After the first injury, I thought everything was going smoothly and good, and then it happened again," Blaylock said. "It kind of got rough a little bit with the second rodeo, but I'm just trying to keep a level head and not complain about a bunch of stuff."

Smart admitted Blaylock may not quite be 100% in terms of vertical speed, which he displayed on his touchdown at Auburn, but described him as a "very savvy route runner" who is performing well in the slot position. Blaylock said route running and contested catches have been two areas of focus as the Bulldogs creep closer to their G-Day spring game on April 16.

Whether or not Blaylock's fourth year in Athens will yield his first healthy season from start to finish remains unknown, but he certainly seems to have the right mindset to find out.

"I'm just going to keep moving forward and get back to the best ability that I can," Blaylock said.

Lynch arrested

Former Georgia tight end Arthur Lynch spent several hours at the Silverdale Detention Center last week after his arrest on two felony counts of sexual battery that stemmed from an alleged incident in Chattanooga last April.

The Athens Banner-Herald was the first to report that the 31-year-old Lynch, now a Knoxville resident, was arrested last week by the U.S. Marshals Service Smoky Mountains Fugitive Task Force on a warrant. Lynch had been indicted by a grand jury on the two felony sexual battery counts, according to Hamilton County Criminal Court records, after investigators with the Chattanooga Police Department presented the case.

According to the Banner-Herald, the indictment states Lynch last April "did unlawfully and intentionally engage in sexual contact with (the alleged victim) and the sexual contact was accomplished without the consent of the victim and the defendant knew or had reason to know at the time of the contact that the victim did not consent, and force or coercion was used to accomplish the sexual contact."

Lynch was at Georgia from 2009-13 and was an All-SEC selection as a fifth-year senior, when he amassed 30 receptions for 459 yards and five touchdowns. He was a fifth-round pick by Miami in 2014 and spent time with the Dolphins, New York Jets, Denver Broncos and Atlanta Falcons but never played in an NFL regular-season game.

Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524. Follow him on Twitter @DavidSPaschall.

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