What Derion Kendrick Adds to Georgia Football's Defense
Exiting spring camp, Georgia Football had one glaring weakness on its roster: cornerback. The Bulldogs had nothing but youth and inexperience at the position after losing its top four corners to the NFL Draft or the transfer portal.
Many wondered if Georgia would reach into the transfer portal to solve its cornerback problem. That question received an answer on Tuesday when Clemson's Derion Kendrick committed to Georgia. Kendrick isn't just a big name with a good resume'.
Here's what his transfer means to the Georgia Football team:
Best cornerback available
Without a doubt, Kendrick was the best cornerback in the transfer portal, especially for Georgia's defense. The Bulldogs prefer to play man coverage and they expect their cornerbacks to play physically and cling to their receivers. That's exactly what Kendrick did in two years at Clemson.
Quarterbacks rarely threw in his direction last year. In fact, he didn't surrender a catch until the fifth game of the season. In eight outings, Kendrick surrendered only 105 yards. He padded his 2020 stats with 11 pass deflections and three interceptions.
Big-game experience
Kendrick has one important trait that no other cornerback on Georgia's roster has: Experience, especially in big games against the nations' best offenses. Kendrick appeared in 22 games at Clemson and he earned All-ACC honors in 2019 and 2020. Kendrick's time at Clemson includes three playoff games and a pair of ACC championship games.
That experience is very valuable to a Georgia defense that was expected to start two freshmen at cornerback. In a conference full of explosive offenses, inexperience at cornerback could have ruined Georgia's chances of competing for championships.
Time to develop other players
Kendrick's transfer isn't only a short-term gain for the Bulldogs. His presence gives the coaching staff time to develop some of the younger cornerbacks, so they will be ready to contribute next year and beyond. Namely Jalen Kimber, Nyland Green and Lovasea Carroll.
All three have the talent to be great players in the SEC, but each currently has shortcomings in some areas. Green and Carroll are totally inexperienced. Green didn't even play in the G-Day game and Carroll originally signed with Georgia as a running back. Kimber is well-developed fundamentally, and he's a fantastic athlete, but he lacks the size needed to be an elite cornerback in the SEC.
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