It’s fitting that the leaders from such a memorable and special season would make a little more history on their way out. An unprecedented three Bulldog players were selected in the first round, and Bulldogs ended up as four of the first 35 picks.

Four of the top 35 picks. Unprecedented at Georgia. An unforgettable group. pic.twitter.com/3NsCFApstr

— dawgsonline (@dawgsonline) April 27, 2018

• Who had Georgia’s offense ending up with more drafted players than the defense?
• If you look at a sample 2017 mock draft at the end of the 2016 season before the juniors made their monumental decision to return, it’s not hard to see that everyone made the right call to return. Certainly those decisions in early 2017 were a huge shot in the arm for the program, but realistically Georgia didn’t have any can’t-miss juniors on the 2016 team along the lines of Roquan Smith. Michel and Chubb were on that 2017 list of course, and each improved his position. Isaiah Wynn and Lorenzo Carter weren’t even on the draft radar after their junior seasons. It’s safe to say that all six of the drafted Bulldogs improved their standing during the 2017 season with some, like Wynn, making huge moves. That speaks very well of Georgia’s player development. It also speaks well of those players to accept what coming back meant and put in the work to improve.
• Roquan Smith was the headliner of course, and his selection was met with near-universal acclaim. The first round drama was all about quarterbacks and Bradley Chubb dropping a pick or two. Smith’s pick passed without any controversy or debate, and that’s a little unusual at that stage of the draft. He became about the closest thing to a sure thing in the draft. It made sense for last season’s juniors to return, but Smith left at the right time even if he did feel a tug to stay for his senior season.
• It’s cool to see Wynn and Michel end up on the same team, and it was entertaining to see Georgia fans struggle with kind words for the Patriots (despite Andrews and Mitchell already on the roster.) Wynn’s outstanding season at left tackle and his eye-opening performance during Senior Bowl preparations turned him from a marginal prospect into a solid first round pick and the sixth offensive lineman taken. Was his fast rise a flash in the pan? It’s hard to imagine New England taking a flyer on a first round pick to protect Tom Brady.
• Michel and Chubb went in the order most expected. Michel was the slightly more versatile player, and he’s on a team that knows how to be creative with its personnel. Chubb, on the other hand, is headed into a more muddled situation in Cleveland. The Browns believe they’ve found the key to their turnaround in Baker Mayfield, and they do have some nice pieces on paper. They signed Carlos Hyde at tailback (replacing Isaiah Crowell!) to a three year deal, though some of Hyde’s guarantees don’t kick in until the 2019 season. Chubb is a good hedge then against that contract. Nick shouldn’t have a tough time making the team as a second round pick, though he will have to compete for playing time against Hyde and former Miami tailback Duke Johnson. Any concerns about Chubb post-knee injury are long gone, and we know he will bring a tireless determination to the Browns.
• Entering the season I doubt anyone expected Javon Wims to be drafted over players like Thompson and Bellamy. I also doubt many fans expected a junior coming off a season with 17 receptions and one TD to become such a crucial contributor on a national title contender. But he emerged in a big way and became Jake Fromm’s favorite and most reliable target. Godwin’s circus catch at Notre Dame was a highlight of the season, but Wims made the key reception on Georgia’s final drive to move the offense into comfortable field goal range. Wims’ steady ownership of the sideline made sure Fromm was successful as the Bulldogs brought along their young quarterback.
• Lorenzo Carter was yet another player who took a big leap forward in 2017. Carter was always going to be a pro prospect solely on size and speed, but it’s not a sure thing that he would have been drafted as a junior. As recently as the 2016 Ole Miss game, he looked lost and had yet to apply his amazing talent in any kind of consistent and productive way. Carter’s senior season was different, and it showed right away at Notre Dame. He fell on the game-clinching fumble of course, but an earlier strip-sack of his own showed the potential turning into production. Carter’s FG block and his role in the Rose Bowl win will be his legacy, and that’s a much better ending for him than we might have imagined a year ago.
• Did Thompson make a mistake entering the draft? It seems so, though there’s not much difference between a late-round pick and an undrafted free agent. He signed with a team and will have his shot to earn a spot. Thompson was hardly a bust at Georgia, though his setback in early 2017 surely slowed the progress he showed in his dominant performance against TCU. That setback obviously remained a concern for NFL front offices, and it might’ve remained a concern even if Thompson returned for another season.
• The snubs of Thompson and Bellamy might be mild surprises – Bellamy moreso. He showed a knack for the big play, but perhaps teams were looking for more consistency. He’ll have his shot in Houston where they know a thing or two about good pass rushers.
• Were you surprised to see NC State with seven draft picks? They had a decent season with a 9-4 record and a top 25 finish wich was right around where LSU finished (who also had seven players drafted.) Dave Doeren wasn’t a popular head coaching candidate at Tennessee, but you have to go back to 2003 to find at least seven Vols in a single draft class.
• Let’s give Mark Richt his due – this draft class is more or less the payoff of his final years at Georgia. After the disaster that was the 2013 signing class, Richt’s next two classes would provide the raw materials for a very special 2017 season. Of course those players had to be coached up, but you have to start with something.
• Richt also had some of his more successful draft classes early in his Georgia career. That success faded a bit towards the end of the decade as early-round picks became later-round picks. Richt’s final few classes were inconsistent. Only two players were taken in 2014; 2015 was much better. Kirby Smart is hoping for a little more consistency in the coming years.

Speaking of the coming years, we’ll see whether multiple first round picks and 6+ total picks becomes the norm in Athens. The 2017 draft was an improvement over recent Georgia results, but we know Georgia (and Smart) will be measured against Alabama as they are in most things. Alabama’s ridiculous 12 draft picks blew away the rest of the field, but that’s the expectation with such a streak of top recruiting classes. It’s not a one-year blip, and it will take more than one top-rated signing class to begin to see Georgia meeting and surpassing its 2018 draft class.

Georgia’s final spring practice of the 2000 season was just another chilly day on the practice fields with slightly relaxed security. That setting was an exception, but G-Day has taken many forms over the years – it’s been optional, off-campus, an open scrimmage, and even a show for the fans with celebrity guest coaches. But what it’s always been is casual, inconsequential, and little more than a way for the more obsessive fans to scratch that football itch right around the midpoint between seasons.

I was in Athens on Saturday, mainly to see some good friends I hadn’t met up with since that dark night in early January. That alone was worth it, and you couldn’t ask for a better day to spend more than a few hours outside in our favorite city. It seems most of the 82,000+ who showed up felt that way. With a scintillating 7-6 halftime score on the board, a good number of those who heeded Kirby Smart’s call headed for the exits.

Now G-Day is an obligation – an ongoing challenge of our loyalty to the program. I don’t begrudge Coach Smart or any team’s coach for reevaluating every activity, interaction, and minute spent running the program as an opportunity to further the program’s own interests. He recognized the spring game as a chance to sell the program, and the crowd is part of the product he’s selling. You can’t argue the man doesn’t know what he’s doing in recruiting. And just as it gets a little distasteful to have your role in this boiled down to a prop for recruiting, a well-produced video is dropped to get you right in the feels.

Attending this year’s G-Day wasn’t much of a burden. Georgia fans had more than enough reasons to file into Sanford Stadium on Saturday, and they responded – again. Happy fans, happy coach. That’s not necessarily the case at Tennessee. The team hasn’t tasted a title in years, the latest coaching search was a public fiasco, and you’re still not quite sure who’s pulling the strings. Tennessee fans can be excused for keeping the enthusiasm in check until the new first-time coach starts to show a little something. That coach disagrees.

“The ones that were here, I’m proud they were here,” said Jeremy Pruitt. “They’re fired up and ready to get going. Then there were some people that wasn’t here that had legitimate reasons they couldn’t be here, all right. Then there were some people that wasn’t here that, why wasn’t they here? It’s kind of like our football team…I think we all need to look in the mirror and see who we want to be.”

Legitimate reasons to miss a spring game? Did they have to show a note?

Pruitt’s tone is very much in character for him. He has his expectations, and he’s not really interested in the toes he steps on. It’s how he ran his defense at FSU, Georgia, and Alabama. It’s arguably why Georgia enjoys a nice indoor facility now. Is it the smartest thing to do after the first public showing of your new team? That’s not our problem anymore.

Pruitt does have a point though. “We all need to look in the mirror and see who we want to be.” Georgia fans made that choice two years ago. We’ll fill the stadium in the off chance of impressing a decent prospect on the fence. We’ll pay more for a lesser home schedule. It’s eased some of the friction to see the program become exactly what we decided we wanted it to be. I can’t imagine Tennessee fans being as amenable if Pruitt’s trajectory falls short of Smart’s. Who knew being the customer came with so many expectations on us?

(This post was just an excuse to post this Steve Harvey clip – it’s become the first thing I think of when coaches start to challenge the fans. “I paid $38.50…*you* scream.” (NSFW clip below.))