How a former Gamecock helped the Georgia Bulldogs land a key transfer from Clemson

Georgia had its eyes on a key target to replenish its secondary. All Kirby Smart had to do was look to the coaching staff to help make it happen.

Suddenly, the Bulldogs had two strong internal recruiting voices to focus on the star across the state line and pursue former Clemson cornerback Derion Kendrick.

Smart recruited him as a receiver in the 2017 recruiting class. South Carolina’s Will Muschamp did the same when he led the Gamecocks as their head coach. Muschamp is now part of the UGA staff as an analyst.

The forces united and used those pre-developed relationships to begin the recruiting process again.

“Both of us felt like we had a good feel for his family and his dynamic there,” Smart said at the Wynfrey Hotel podium during SEC Media Days. “He’s a young man that comes from a program that’s been very successful. He’s played and had a lot of experience.”

Kendrick bolsters the Bulldogs’ secondary in a myriad of ways for a unit that had been depleted after the losses of cornerbacks Tyrique Stevenson, Eric Stokes, Tyson Campbell and others across the secondary. Kendrick, a South Carolina native, was a consensus All-ACC honoree after starting in eight contests and recording 18 tackles, six pass deflections and an interception.

Clemson coach Dabo Swinney vaguely addressed Kendrick’s situation after he missed significant action against Wake Forest and sat out the Nov. 28 contest against Pitt. Kendrick later was removed from the Tigers’ roster, which led to his addition to the transfer portal and eventually landing with the Bulldogs.

Kendrick had been pegged as a priority target once deciding to leave Clemson, and Smart didn’t waste much time in adding the premier defender. He joined former West Virginia cornerback Tykee Smith as defensive backs to join Georgia via the portal. The Bulldogs added Alabama transfer Brandon Turnage, but he later left the program to join Tennessee.

“It’s great to have DK in,” defensive tackle Jordan Davis said. “He’s definitely getting acclimated to the coaching.”

Now, in an instant, Kendrick will suit up for another Clemson game, but in an opposing uniform. Georgia opens the 2021 season against the Tigers on Sept. 4 in the Duke’s Mayo Classic.

“He’s a young man that I’ve always loved as a football player. He’s got a really good heart,” Swinney told The State after Kendrick’s dismissal. “He’s never been a disrespectful young man or anything like that. Just sometimes there just needs to be a change.”

Kendrick made his move to the Bulldogs with some legal issues. He was arrested on March 12 in his hometown of Rock Hill, South Carolina for unlawful possession of a firearm and simple possession of marijuana.

Kendrick’s immediate playing status was unknown after the arrest, but he’s now cleared. He underwent pretrial intervention through the York County Criminal Court. It led to the charges being expunged or removed, according to court records that were originally obtained by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

“There are times in life when changes become necessary for one to grow, some people have to walk out of your life for others to walk in,” Kendrick said in a June 1 Instagram post to announce his commitment.

The addition of Kendrick is yet another blockbuster offseason transaction for Georgia. It followed Daniels and Jamie Newman from last year. Georgia has utilized the portal since the beginning of Smart’s tenure when the Bulldogs added Mo Smith from Alabama, and it hasn’t stopped.

Smart has made it clear that Georgia won’t use the portal as a primary form of recruitment. That has been proven by the Bulldogs landing consecutive top-ranked classes from the high school ranks. Georgia, however, will use it to address areas of need and that has been a growing trend across college football.

“You look at what the portal took away from us and we lost, we were able to gain as well. I think that’s an interesting situation when you look across the board at what’s going to happen to the future of college football, whether it be NIL, combination of portal, of the haves and have-nots,” Smart said. “That line of parity is separating even more because we were able to get a guy that had a lot of great experience playing, and we needed someone at that position.”

Kendrick is one of three big-time additions for the Bulldogs as LSU transfer Arik Gilbert joined the pair of defenders. Each time Georgia pursues a prospect from the portal, it has an advantage.

When a call comes a player’s way, Georgia’s pedigree as a top program puts him in a spot where he can’t help but to listen. If two coaches with pre-existing relationships work on a certain target like Kendrick, it becomes harder to refuse an offer.

“It’s really difficult to beat Georgia. What bad can you say about it? I can’t find anything,” Daniels said. “You get a lot of good players in the transfer portal who compete right away.”

This story was originally published July 20, 2021 at 11:44 AM.