Georgia Bulldogs in the NFL: Chris Conley Makes Winning Plays in Week 8
Chris Conley honed his football craft at Paulding County High School in Dallas, Georgia. However uniquely he was born in Adana, Turkey as the son of a United States Air Force Veteran. He played wide receiver for the Georgia Bulldogs from 2011-2014
Chris started off slow as a Dawg, catching just 36 passes for 630 yards and eight touchdowns in his first two seasons on campus. However, Conley was Aaron Murray's top target by his junior year. He surpassed his two-season underclassman totals in catches and yardage with 45 grabs for 651 yards gained in his junior season alone.
As a senior, Conley was the favorite receiver for Hudson Mason who took over at quarterback. He made nine fewer catches than the prior season with 39. Yet Chris made the most of his opportunities to log career highs with 657 yards and eight touchdowns. The 6'3" Chis Conley did not have much buzz coming out of Georgia but parlayed a strong combine, highlighted by a 4.35 40 yard dash time into a day two selection in the 2015 NFL Draft.
After four seasons in Kansas City Chris Conley signed a two-year contract worth almost 4.6 million dollars with the Jacksonville Jaguars prior to the 2019 season. The Jaguars got a good early return on their investment this week as Conley was instrumental in the team's 29-15 win over the New York Jets. His first catch came with 1:11 left in the first quarter and resulted in an explosive 70-yard touchdown. The touchdown gave the Jaguars a lead that they would never relinquish.
Conley's second catch was an important one as well. He caught a short pass on third down and 11 in the second quarter and raced 14 yards for a first down before running out of bounds. Chris keeping the drive alive with that play is a major reason that Jacksonville was able to get three points on the drive. He struck again with 38 seconds left in the first half, catching a 13-yard pass on third and twelve.
Chris Conley is an avid Star Wars. That was certainly evident as he wrote, produced and acted in the short film "Retribution" a Star Wars-themed UGA production. The Force has certainly been strong with Conley this season. His 429 yards in just eight games put him on pace to shatter his previous career-high of 530. His 20.4 yards per reception average is nearly five yards higher than his previous best of 15 9. Having produced 21 catches and two touchdowns thus far surpassing his career highs of 44 catches and five trips to the endzone certainly isn't out of the question.
Chris Conley is yet another Dam Good Dawg that is making Georgia Bulldogs fans proud by his production at the NFL level. As he continues to build chemistry with rookie quarterback Gardner Minshew, Conley could continue to surprise the NFL world by coming up much bigger than projected.
