Georgia football to debut No. 0 jersey for 2020 season. Defender in transfer portal
Georgia will unveil a new jersey number whenever the 2020-21 season commences. For the first time, No. 0 will take the field.
Freshman tight end Darnell Washington chose the newly-eligible jersey number, according to the program’s released football roster. Washington was a former five-star prospect from Las Vegas.
The NCAA approved legislation in April that allowed the No. 0 to be worn.
Other notable jersey number announcements came from the team’s incoming transfers. The quarterbacks will wear No. 9 (Wake Forest transfer Jamie Newman) and No. 18 (USC transfer JT Daniels). Tight end Tre’ McKitty, who joined the program from Florida State, will wear No. 87 as a Bulldog.
Fifth-year defensive lineman Julian Rochester, formerly No. 5, changed his number to 89 for his final campaign.
The jersey numbers were one of many roster-related nuggets for Georgia football over the past week.
More Georgia football jersey numbers
The rest of the jersey numbers for incoming freshmen on scholarship:
Kelee Ringo: 5
Jalen Kimber: 6
Jermaine Burton: 7
MJ Sherman: 8
Arian Smith: 11
Carson Beck: 15
Justin Robinson: 17
Major Burns: 20
Kendall Milton: 22
Daran Branch: 26
Walk-on quarterback Jackson Muschamp (son of South Carolina head coach Will Muschamp): 26
Daijun Edwards: 33
Tate Ratledge: 51
Cameron Kinnie: 52
Austin Blaske: 58
Broderick Jones: 59
Sedrick Van Pran: 63
Devin Willock: 77
Chad Lindberg: 78
Nazir Stackhouse: 78
Marcus Rosemy: 81
Ladd McConkey: 84
Jalen Carter: 88
Warren Brinson: 97
Jared Zirkel: 99
Divaad Wilson enters transfer portal
Defensive back Divaad Wilson announced his entrance into the transfer portal and intention to transfer after two seasons (one of which he sat out for 14 games with a torn ACL).
“... I have decided that parting ways with UGA (is best) so that I can be closer to home during this time,” Wilson wrote Monday on Twitter. He later confirmed his next school would be in the state of Florida.
Wilson had 24 tackles and an interception last season. He started twice and appeared in every game. Georgia, without Wilson, has depth and could use sophomore Tyrique Stevenson in Wilson’s role.
Wilson, out of Miami Northwestern High School, was originally committed to Florida. Former Georgia offensive coordinator James Coley, now the tight ends coach at Texas A&M, was a big part in bringing Wilson to Athens.
Wilson has numerous ties to his community as he played football through Pop Warner and high school leagues in Liberty City, Florida. He plays the sport in honor of his late grandfather, Henry “Pop” Black, who coached Wilson and his community of friends during his younger years. Wilson has numerous close relationships with family members, teammates and coaches across South Florida.
Wilson’s options could include Florida, Miami or UCF. His original commitment to the Gators was largely in part to a relationship with former defensive coordinator Randy Shannon. Shannon has since moved to a defensive coordinator role at UCF. Miami, obviously, would have some intrigue due to location and recent recruiting success by head coach Manny Diaz.
Wilson is not listed on the Bulldogs’ 2020 roster.
Georgia position changes
Cameron Kinnie, a three-star prospect from Collins Hill, was listed as an offensive lineman on National Signing Day in February. He is now listed at defensive line on the updated roster. Georgia lost a handful of defensive linemen — notably Tyler Clark, David Marshall and Michael Barnett Jr. — after last season.
Netori Johnson has been a defensive linemen throughout his Georgia career, until the Bulldogs flipped him to offensive line ahead of the Sugar Bowl. Johnson remains listed as an offensive lineman. Georgia lost four starters within the position group after the 2019 campaign.
Georgia lands football commitment
Georgia received some recruiting news for the future Wednesday. Four-star inside linebacker C.J. Washington announced his pledge to the program. Washington ranks as the fifth-best inside linebacker prospect nationally for the 2022 class and the 12th-overall recruit in the state of Georgia, according to the 247Sports.com composite rankings.
Washington comes from Cedartown High School, the same school as former Georgia star running back Nick Chubb.
The addition, albeit for the 2022 recruiting cycle, gives the program a small sigh of relief. Georgia missed out on two of its top prospects for 2021 over recent weeks — five-star defensive backs James Williams and Tony Grimes.
Reports of injuries to UGA newcomers
A torn meniscus served as a setback for freshman wide receiver Arian Smith, who underwent surgery at the end of last week. The development was first reported by UGASports.com. The Florida speedster headlined the Bulldogs’ haul of receivers in the 2020 class.
Offensive lineman Broderick Jones suffered a lower leg injury in a bike accident. The injury occurred in early July and was first reported by 247Sports.com. Jones was one of the prized additions of the 2020 class, ranked as the No. 11 overall prospect.
The statuses of Smith and Jones are unknown for fall practices, which is scheduled to begin on Aug. 6.