Plenty of Youngsters Are Making Waves

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Plenty of Youngsters Are Making Waves

Natrez Patrick
Natrez Patrick
Photo: Rob Saye/Bulldawg Illustrated
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They’re mere sophomores- to-be but all avid Georgia football fans are well aware of the major impact that Nick Chubb, Lorenzo Carter, Dominick Sanders and Jeb Blazevich had on the Bulldogs as true freshmen in the 2014 season.


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Now, as Georgia has come through spring practice and is involved in the summer conditioning workouts while looking ahead to the start of preseason camp in August, who are the other youngsters that made their presence felt in the spring drills and could also become household names among Bulldawg Nation when the ‘15 season arrives this September?

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Both among the early midyear enrollees and the returning reserve players from last year’s team, there were Bulldogs that caught the eyes of their teammates as well as the coaching staff.

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Making their presence felt quickly on the depth chart after finishing their high school requirements early and arriving at UGA following the Christmas break were such names as Jonathan Ledbetter, Natrez Patrick, Jarvis Wilson, Johnathan Abram and Jackson Harris.

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Ledbetter is a 6-4, 265-pound defensive tackle from Tucker High School; Patrick is a 6-3, 255-pound inside linebacker from Mays High in Atlanta; defensive backs Wilson (6-2, 197) and Abram (6-1, 202) both hail from Mississippi, and Harris is a 6-6, 250-pound tight end by way of Columbia, Tenn.

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In the spring drills, all five incoming freshmen displayed the skills and knowledge to see the playing field sooner, rather than later.

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“All the young guys are doing well right now,” said senior nose tackle Chris Mayes. “I’d like to say Jonathan Ledbetter, he’s standing out to me with his fight. He’s a feisty little guy, always working hard. He has an attitude about him that he can’t be beat, won’t be denied and that’s what I like about him.”

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“Defensively, little Jon Ledbetter’s been doing well, working hard,” chimed in sophomore outside linebacker Lorenzo Carter. “And Natrez (Patrick), that’s my boy so I have to give him kudos to how hard he’s been working and taking coaching. The two Mississippi boys (Abram, Wilson) have been playing well … pretty much every freshman that came in early has been doing a great job.”

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From the other side of the line of scrimmage, senior offensive tackle John Theus has likewise been impressed with Ledbetter and Patrick’s early showings.

“Young Ledbetter, Jon, he’s a good player and a good guy,” said Theus. “It’s crazy how young those guys are, they’re still seniors in high school. But there are definitely some playmakers … Natrez is another. They’re coming in and being able to get reps with the 1’s and 2’s right away. It’s pretty special to see those guys do that.”

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And says junior inside linebacker Reggie Carter: “Natrez Patrick can play any of them (LB spots), inside or outside. That kid there, he’s a baller. You can tell he loves football. Even today, the feel he has for it is natural. He was unreal (in an early scrimmage).”

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In the G-Day game April 11, Patrick proceeded to lead the Red team in total tackles with eight and that included a sack and tackle-forloss from his inside ‘backer spot.

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Georgia head coach Mark Richt said at the conclusion of the spring sessions that Patrick may have made the most impact of any of the Bulldogs’ early enrollees.

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“It’s hard to say, but Natrez looks like he found a home,” Richt said. “I think he’s got a good body type and a good disposition to play that middle linebacker position. He’s got good instincts. Sometimes he was flat-out unblocked and made a play in the hole, but he brought the wood,” Richt said. “He brought the wood to people. He’ll strike, he’s a pretty good athlete, a pretty sharp kid. Again, he’s got a ways to go but if you’re asking who of the group, he probably made the biggest impression.”

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Senior tight end Jay Rome has been notably impressed with his freshman understudy, Jackson Harris, who in one of the three spring scrimmages caught three passes for 37 yards and two touchdowns.

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“I’m really, really proud of Jackson and what he’s doing,” said Rome. “The way he’s picking up everything. I was telling him, man, you were just in high school three months ago and now he’s out here picking up everything in Schotty’s (offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer) offense really well. He’s making catches, getting up-field and he’s blocking well.”

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Not only did a number of the mid-year enrollees make their marks in spring practice but so did a couple of guys who, while not exactly youngsters, are still new to the team. That would be transfers Jake Ganus and Chuks Amaechi. Senior inside linebacker Ganus (6-2, 220) enrolled at Georgia when the UAB football program was terminated while junior outside linebacker Amaechi (6-3, 220) came to Athens from Arizona Western Junior College. Ganus was the Bulldogs’ leading tackler in the first two spring scrimmages and Amaechi also showed a nose for the football throughout spring and recorded eight total tackles including three sacks in one of the Saturday morning scrimmages in Sanford Stadium.

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“Jake Ganus, with his ability and toughness, he’s really playing hard,” said nose tackle Mayes. “That guy’s a beast, man.” “I expect a lot out of Jake,” offered outside ‘backer Lorenzo Carter. “He’s a great player, came from UAB. We’re going to have to see what he does in the season because he’s been balling out this spring.” Yes I will feed him and

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“Chuks is a fast cat,” said senior outside linebacker Jordan Jenkins of Amaechi. “He’s not the tallest but he can bend, and he is quick as ever,” Jenkins said. Richt thinks all of the early enrolling players are capable of helping the team this coming season.

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“The young safeties (Abram and Wilson) have been hot and cold and making some plays,” he said. “Jackson Harris I think is a guy who has got the skill set to play well and he’s learning pretty quickly. He had a real solid spring. (Jonathan) Ledbetter is learning a lot. Chuks (Amaechi) and (Jake) Ganus, those guys are going to help us win. Chuks and Ganus are older guys, a junior college guy in Chuks and Ganus coming from UAB. I think they all got a lot of solid work in.” Among the young players returning from last season’s team, you would do well to keep your eye on such names as Reggie Wilkerson and Tramel Terry in the autumn of 2015.

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Wilkerson is a 5-11, 181-pound redshirt sophomore who rebounded from a torn ACL last season to move into a starting role in the “Star” position this spring. Playing for the Black team No. 1 defensive unit in the G-Day game, Wilkerson notched three tackles along with a sack and tackle- for-loss.

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“Reggie’s been great since he’s come back from his whole knee injury and stuff like that and this year is kind of like a breakout year for him,” said junior safety Quincy Mauger. “I know he’s been working his butt off day in and day out. You should expect some big things from him.”

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“Oh man, Reggie is making big strides, like tremendous strides,” said inside linebacker Reggie Carter.

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And also redshirt sophomore cornerback Terry (6-0, 197), who underwent knee surgery after being injured in his high school all-star game, continued to make big strides in the spring. He recorded six tackles and a pass breakup for the Red team at G-Day.

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“He’s one physical player,” Dominick Sanders said. “He’s got the right mindset, and he’s got 100 percent effort every time he touches the field.”

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So these are a good sampling of the young Bulldogs you can watch for between the hedges in the new football campaign. And with the arrival this month of the remainder of Georgia’s talented 2015 recruiting class, many more new faces are bound to jump into the headlines as well as the minds of Bulldog fans.

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Murray Poole is a 1965 graduate of the University of Georgia Journalism School. He served as sports editor of The Brunswick News for 40 years and has written for Bulldawg Illustrated the past 16 years. He has covered the Georgia Bulldogs for 53 years.