Georgia's Transfers Receive Jersey Numbers
Georgia Football updated its roster Wednesday to include three of its newest players: transfers Arik Gilbert, Derion Kendrick and Tykee Smith. The updated roster also includes the number each player will wear on their jerseys.
Georgia has fielded a football team since 1892. Each jersey number carries the legacy of the former players who donned those numbers while they played "between the hedges." Here are the legacies these three transfers will inherit this season.
No. 11: Derion Kendrick
The No. 11 didn't have much of a legacy until Aaron Murray claimed the number in 2010, but it's one of the school's more prominent numbers thanks to him. Murray's name is attached to many school passing records including season and career records for yardage and touchdowns.
Jake Fromm also wore No. 11 during his UGA career and while he never put up the numbers Fromm did, he did lead the Bulldogs to three straight SEC East championships. Fromm's freshman year was his most memorable. In 2017, Georgia won the SEC Championship and the Rose Bowl to earn a shot at the national championship.
No defensive player has put their stamp on No. 11, but that could change this year because Kendrick is an elite cover corner.
No. 14: Arik Gilbert
Of the three transfers, Gilbert has the biggest legacy to live up to with his number. Some of Georgia's greatest offensive players wore No. 14, including quarterbacks Kirby Moore, Andy Johnson, James Jackson and David Greene.
Each of them added to the legacy of the No. 14. In 1965, Moore threw the famous "flea-flicker" pass to upset Alabama. He earned the full-time starting job in 1966 and helped lead Georgia to its first of six SEC championships in the Vince Dooley era.
Johnson piloted a vaunted option attack in the early 1970s and nearly led the Bulldogs to an undefeated season in 1971. Georgia scored at least 21 points nine times that season, which was a lot in an era where slow and methodical offenses were the norm.
In 1985, Jackson became the first African American to start at quarterback for Georgia. He never lit up the stat sheet in the passing game, but he was a true dual-threat passing for more than 3,400 yards and rushing for over 1,300 in his career. He bolstered his stats with 34 total touchdowns.
Without a doubt, the best quarterback to wear No. 14 was Greene. He was the winningest quarterback in NCAA history when he graduated and he's the quarterback credited with breaking Georgia's 20-year SEC championship drought in 2002. Over his four seasons, Greene passed for over 11,000 yards with 72 touchdowns.
The legacy of No. 14 spreads to the defense as well, most notably with rover back Terry Hoage. His resume' as a Bulldog is mind-blowing. Not only is Hoage a two-time consensus All-America and a member of the College Football Hall of Fame, but in 1983 he finished No. 5 in Heisman Trophy voting. At the time, that was the highest a defensive back had ever finished. Hoage's 12 interceptions in 1982 are a school record that still stands today.
No. 23: Tykee Smith
Kendrick and Gilbert will wear numbers with rich legacies, but those numbers are closely associated with players of different positions. That's not the case for Smith. Wearing No. 23, Smith will carry the legacy of one of the greatest defensive backs in UGA history: Tim Jennings.
Jennings was one of Georgia's first true shutdown cornerbacks. He glued himself to opposing receivers and made quarterbacks pay when they threw his way. Jennings had 10 interceptions in his career. He saved his best two picks for last. Jennings had the game-saving interception to beat Georgia Tech in 2005 and he had a pick-six to ice the SEC Championship Game against LSU.
