D.J. Shockley gets rare, ‘surreal’ honor for Georgia football player

“He already had them before that, but he galvanized the team that night,” Richt said.

Shockley led the University of Georgia to an SEC Championship that season and generated one of the most painful what-ifs in Bulldogs history. What if Shock wasn’t hurt for that Florida game?

In May, Shockley will return to Sanford Stadium to deliver another speech. He will become just the second former Bulldogs football player to give the commencement address at UGA graduation.

“It’s surreal this many years later that Georgia fans still love you and still want to take care of you and give you flowers,” Shockley said.

Billy Payne, the Athens native and former Bulldogs player who went on to become CEO of the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games and Chairman of Augusta National Golf Club, gave the commencement address in the spring of 1991.

Shockley said he was surprised by his own selection. If it came down to just former quarterbacks, he figured Matthew Stafford (2025 NFL MVP), Aaron Murray (holder of several school passing records) or Stetson Bennett (MVP of the Bulldogs back-to-back national championship wins) would get the nod.

Others to give the address through the years include governors (Zell Miller, Roy Barnes, Nathan Deal), billionaire Ted Turner and Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.

For those present for Shockley’s hot seat speech, the choice is an overwhelming winner.

“To be honest, I can’t see anybody else doing it,” said DeMario Minter, a starting defensive back on the 2005 team.

Credit: Phil Skinner

Credit: Phil Skinner

Richt was hired as Georgia’s coach in late December 2000 with roughly a month to secure his first recruiting class.

Shockley, “was without question the first guy I wanted to go see,” Richt said.

Richt was already courting the two-time, all-state quarterback and 2000 Parade All-American at North Clayton High in his previous role as the offensive coordinator at Florida State. Shockley quickly committed to the Bulldogs, the headlining name in a class with 70% of the signees from the state of Georgia.

Shockley’s potential made him a perpetual storyline. David Greene won the starting quarterback job in 2001. The next season, Richt implemented a two-quarterback system with success. But Greene’s stellar play and injuries limited Shockley’s playing time through 2004.

Shockley had aspirations to play in the NFL. And his role as a backup that showed glimpses of greatness created mystique. Starting opportunities beckoned at other prominent programs.

But Shockley didn’t leave.

“Before everybody was giving out bags of money, we would talk about the benefits of going to a university for four or five years,” Richt said. “This was a lifetime decision, to be associated with a team the rest of your life.”

The 2005 season arrived with massive expectations for both Shockley and the Bulldogs. It started with Shockley scoring six touchdowns in the season-opening blowout of Boise State and ended with an SEC Championship and Sugar Bowl appearance.

The Bulldogs were undefeated and ranked No. 4 entering the rivalry matchup with Florida. Shockley couldn’t play because of an injured knee.

Georgia lost 14-10, leaving fans to wonder what could have been. Still, Shockley’s 28 total touchdowns that season were at that point a school record (it has since been broken).

“He never once complained, never once got frustrated,” said Minter, whose locker was for years next to Shockley’s. “I think that translates to what he’s doing now and the type of person he is.”

Shockley spent three years with the Atlanta Falcons but didn’t play in an NFL game. Afterward he launched a career in sports media. He’s now the sports director for Fox 5 Atlanta and sideline reporter for the Georgia Bulldog Radio Network, a role previously held by legendary UGA figure Loran Smith.

Credit: Emily Selby

Credit: Emily Selby

Shockley said he loves the sideline role because it keeps him close to players, coaches and competition. Former quarterback Carson Beck often asked Shockley during games for insight about opposing defenses. And at halftime of the 2024 SEC Championship, Shockley joined a huddle with offensive coordinator (and former Bulldogs quarterback) Mike Bobo and quarterback Gunner Stockton as they formed a game plan to beat Texas.

“D.J. is most deserving of any accolade because he carries himself like he doesn’t expect it,” Smith said. “But deep down I know he does appreciate it.”

Other former UGA athletes to give the commencement address include basketball player Teresa Edwards (2000) and swimmer Allison Schmitt (2024). Edwards and Schmitt have a combined 15 Olympic medals.

Two former UGA football players spoke at their own graduations: Tommy Lawhorne as class valedictorian in 1968 and Aron White, chosen by the Student Government Association, in 2010.

White, a media and fan favorite for his outgoing personality, admits he was nervous. He grabbed the podium to steady his shaking hand.

He leaned into the football-player stereotype by noting the attention athletes get, then shifted to shared student experiences: late-night test cramming, reading headlines in The Red & Black and noting other students who earned Rhodes scholarships.

“I wanted to make it feel like, this is what our class has experienced at UGA,” said White, who now lives in Atlanta and works for Coca-Cola. “I tried to cater to the things that happened since I stepped on campus and what made our years special.”

Shockley has a different task 21 years after he graduated. He said he has already jotted notes for his expected 10-minute commencement speech. The hard part, he figures, will be keeping his backstory and the lessons he aims to convey under the time limit.

“I think it will be like when I played,” he said. “Every game I was nervous as all get out, but I was excited to do it.”