Georgia looks to improve its passing prospects for 2016

ATHENS -- With Georgia coming off of its worst passing season since 2006, there's no doubt that head coach Kirby Smart sought to improve the aerial attack on his first National Signing Day at the helm of the Bulldogs.

The obvious first step was to lock down a quarterback, which he did by retaining the commitment and enrollment of Jacob Eason.

But last season's passing woes went beyond just Greyson Lambert and the continued quarterback battle. Beyond Malcolm Mitchell and an off-and-on Terry Godwin, Georgia didn't have any consistent weapons in the passing game. Tight end Jeb Blazevich saw his production decrease by 125 yards, Reggie Davis struggled catching passes at times, and Isaiah McKenzie fought through injury and started just four games.

Smart's response to those struggles was to build depth by adding five pass catchers in the class of 2016, including the nation's No. 1 tight end, Isaac Nauta, and two top 50 receivers in Riley Ridley and Charlie Woerner.

"I certainly hope (we've improve the depth)," Smart said. "I think the experts could say, but I don't think anybody knows. I really don't. I don't think you ever know until you get them out there and you get around them."

One of the most important gets for Smart in this class might be No. 4 junior college receiver Javon Wims. As a player going into his third year of college football, Wims will add much-needed experience into a receivers room that has just a few players with more than one year of experience. At 6-foot-4, Wims will also be Georgia's tallest receiver, adding much-needed size to the group.

"Javon Wims gives us size that we didn't have," Smart said. "He's made a lot of plays at a probably more competitive level than the other kids we've signed, being that he's a junior college kid. It makes it good for us."

In the virtue of size, Smart has made additional contributions with the additions of Nauta and Woerner as well. Nauta is viewed as a bona fide star who can step in right away and contribute at a position that Georgia hasn't had a lot of consistent success at in some time. His chemistry with Eason can play a factor in this, as well.

"Me and Jacob have gone out and thrown a little bit, try to work on some timing and build up our chemistry," Nauta said. "That's definitely been huge for us. We're going to continue to keep on doing that. Right now it's just learning the formations and start installing the plays. Now we got all the coaches here, too, since signing day is over."

Woerner, on the other hand, is a little different. At 6-5, only tight end Jackson Harris stands taller than Woerner among the team's pass catchers. Woerner will also have to experiment a little more with his position, but likely will settle at a flex position between tight end and receiver.

With offensive coordinator Jim Chaney's track record with players like Woerner, Smart is excited for the prospects of Woerner in the offense.

"He's a utility player that can do a lot of things," Smart said. "Having gone against Jim Chaney's offense, I know the way he uses players like that. I watched him do that with Hunter Henry (at Arkansas), I watched him do that with guys at Tennessee. He'll find ways to get the guy the ball and put him in unique situations for his body size and matchup."

The final two skill players Smart brought in were a little more surprising than any of the others. Three-star receive Tyler Simmons was committed to Alabama before changing plans on signing day and picking the Bulldogs. Ridley, the younger brother of Alabama receiver Calvin Ridley, went through an eventful week where he visited South Carolina, committed to the Gamecocks, de-committed, visited Georgia and then committed to the Bulldogs and then enrolled early within a nine-day span.

From what Eason has seen so far, he seems pretty happy to have Ridley on campus already.

"I've seen him run a route, we've had a couple running sessions," Eason said. "He's fast, he's strong, he's got big hands. All the things you look for in a receiver."

Simmons is a less heralded player than Ridley, but his high school teammate Julian Rochester has no doubts about his ability.

"Size and athleticism and speed because there's nobody that's like 205, 6-1 with his build running a 4.35, you know what I'm saying?" Rochester said. "He's going to bring the intangibles of an aggressive receiver and an SEC blocking receiver because he loves to block, he loves the pancakes and he gets after it."

Combining this group of players with the likes of Godwin, Michael Chigbu and Jason Stanley definitely will create some depth for the Bulldogs in 2016 and beyond. And they might not be done, either.

The nation's No. 1 receiver Demetris Robertson has yet to make his college decision and has Georgia among his top choices. Adding Robertson could vault Georgia into a top-five recruiting class, as well as greatly increase the talent in the receiver's room.

But even if Georgia misses on Robertson, Smart has left his mark on Georgia's receiving corps. While the talent is still young and will take time to develop, his hope is that the newfound depth can increase the competition within the group.

"Let's hope that they at least increase the competition in that room," Smart said. "If you increase competition, sometimes you increase production, and that's what we're hoping."

This story was originally published February 13, 2016 at 6:56 PM with the headline "Georgia looks to improve its passing prospects for 2016 ."