Georgia Football Recruiting: Bulldogs Infiltrating Backyard of Fellow SEC Power

In landing 2017 4-star athlete Devonta Smith, Georgia head coach Mark Richt and his staff were able to pluck an elite talent out of fellow SEC heavyweight LSU’s backyard.

However, the Bulldogs may not be done in their pursuit of top prospects from the Pelican State. 

As Smith told Kipp Adams of Dawgs247, he’s close friends with 2016 4-star corner and Kentwood, Louisiana, product Shyheim Carter, who announced he was backing off a commitment to Alabama on Monday.

"Shyheim is like my brother—we have known each other since we were little," Smith told Adams. "We have always said how great it would be to play together. I think Georgia has a pretty good shot to land him, and I plan to try and get him to go there. We really want to play together."

As his Crystal Ball page indicates, Georgia is trending heavily with the nation’s No. 5 corner and the No. 51 player overall in the 2016 cycle.

Another touted Louisiana prospect who is strongly considering Georgia is 4-star offensive lineman Willie Allen, who told Scout’s Chad Simmons that he will take one of his official visits to Athens in the fall.

Allen was in Athens for the Bulldogs' "Dawg Night" camp last month, and the fact that they will get a return visit is a signal of Allen’s legitimate interest in the ’Dawgs.

Both Allen and Carter are among the top five prospects in Louisiana in the 2016 cycle, and Smith is one of the state’s top 10 recruits in 2017.

While their activity in Louisiana may seem unusual, a few factors are helping the Bulldogs make inroads in the talent-rich territory.

For starters, new Director of Player Personnel Sam Petitto—who got his start in coaching in the prep ranks in Louisiana—has been singled out as playing a critical role in building relationships with prospects from his home state, as noted by Adams.

"Sam Petitto being at Georgia makes me feel even more at home there," Smith told Adams. "I know the type of man he is, and I know he will always stay on me and never let me slide. Sam says Georgia is a great place that fosters a strong, competitive environment while also building a family environment."

Petitto is part of a face-lift of Richt’s staff that has seen several new coaches come on board over the last two years.

Those new additions have helped revitalize the Bulldogs program and have them on the verge of landing the program’s second consecutive top-five recruiting class. To put that in perspective, Richt has only had two such classes, in 2006 and 2009, meet that benchmark since he arrived in Athens back in 2001. 

Alabama is one out-of-state program that has had success beating out LSU for blue-chip prospects in past years.

While Georgia has some work to do in landing touted prospects such as Carter and Allen, the Bulldogs appear to be on the right track in making a dent with a handful of elite prospects in the Pelican State.

Sanjay Kirpalani is a National Recruiting Analyst for Bleacher Report. Unless otherwise noted, all quotes obtained firsthand and all recruiting information courtesy of 247Sports.