REPORT: Georgia Football Potential Destination For Alabama Grad Transfer
Matt Zenitz of al.com broke the news yesterday that multi-position University of Alabama athlete Chadarius Townsend has entered the transfer portal. Since that time Clint Lamb of Roll Tide USA Today has implied that Georgia is a likely, if not the likely, landing spot for Townsend.
According to Lamb’s tweet, Townsend has been a player suspected to leave the Alabama program since the hiring of Scott Cochran as Georgia’s new Special Teams Coordinator. Townsend has practiced on both sides of the ball at Alabama, most recently being a reserve of offense.
A 4-Star athlete out of Tanner High School in Tanner, Alabama in the class of 2017, Townsend appeared in a handful of games last season for the Crimson Tide in 2019. The only stats recorded during his time with Alabama were 8 rushes for 22 yards in 2019.
Townsend released the Tweet shown below on Tuesday, in which he notes that he’ll have two years of eligibility remaining. Also, Townsend has already graduated from the SEC West power in Tuscaloosa and will be eligible to play immediately.
The 2nd year of eligibility for Townsend is what could be particularly appealing to UGA. Georgia likes to bring in two running backs in each recruiting class. Currently, in the 2021 class, the Dawgs have a commitment from IMG Academy’s Lovasea Carroll. Also, they are greatly pursuing Donovan Edwards and LJ Johnson.
If Townsend does come to Georgia, it could be an indicator that Donovan Edwards and LJ Johnson are not planning on joining Carroll in the 2021 class at UGA and that instead of signing another back in that class, the 2nd year of Townsend could add depth and help bridge the gap to the 2022 class. As of now, it looks like Georgia is behind Michigan and A&M respectively for Edwards and Johnson.
Also, Townsend’s versatility makes sense for UGA in the 2020 season, should he end up in the Classic City. Despite bringing in a very talented wide receiver group in the 2020 signing class, those talented prospects are all inexperienced and did not get the benefit of spring ball as early enrollees. Townsend could line up and provide Power 5 college experience at receiver this season as well.
Kirby Smart, as seen with pickups like JT Daniels, loves packing talented athletes onto his roster. Also, the experience is extremely valued by Smart and the Georgia staff. Even though Townsend wasn’t a regular for Alabama, having been around the program for 3 years and knowing how to navigate life as a student-athlete in one of the nation’s premier programs makes him an attractive option to pursue.
The counter-argument to all this is that UGA doesn’t want to take any more numbers away from its scholarship count in years to come by adding another transfer. Time will tell.
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