ATHENS — Isaiah Gibson and Chase Linton took different paths to get to play the same position for Georgia. Perhaps it shouldn’t be surprising that the outside linebackers are developing in different ways.
Gibson was a 5-star recruit in Georgia’s 2025 class. He was viewed as one of the top targets in the cycle and a major win for Kirby Smart and former outside linebackers coach Chidera Uzo-Diribe after flipping him from Southern Cal.
Gibson played for Warner Robins High School, where he was teammates with fellow Bulldogs Rasean Dinkins and Isiah Canion. He was also an AJC Super 11 choice.
As for Linton, he was a late-rising recruit.
Originally committed to Rutgers, he did not earn his offer from Georgia until the summer before his senior season. He played for North Atlanta High School, which is not exactly a prospect factory for Georgia recruiting. Linton is the only North Atlanta High School prospect to play for Georgia in the 10 years Smart has been in Athens.
Neither Linton nor Gibson played much as freshmen.
Linton dealt with an unspecified injury that prevented him from stepping on the field until Georgia’s final home game against Charlotte. The missed time stunted Linton’s growth in his first season, though he did take advantage of the extra practices before the College Football Playoff and earned snaps in the season-ending loss to Ole Miss.
Gibson didn’t factor into the rotation at outside linebacker despite his lofty ranking. He played in three games.
With neither contributing significantly, Georgia’s pass rush suffered, as the Bulldogs had just 20 sacks as a team. The team’s outside linebackers combined for 3½.
If Georgia is to improve those numbers, Linton and Gibson will have to play bigger roles. That holds true even as the Bulldogs bring back Gabe Harris and Quintavius Johnson and welcome Auburn transfer Amaris Williams.
For Linton, he seems to have turned the corner this spring, especially when it comes to pressuring Georgia’s quarterbacks in practice.
“He’s been a high-motor player for us. I mean, he runs the ball really hard,” Smart said. “He plays with twitch, and he plays bigger than he is. I’ve been very pleased with Chase’s progress, and we need him to get better to give us some of the pass rush we need.”
Smart further praised Linton’s intangible abilities.
“He’s exemplified those things and probably (is) tougher than I expected in terms of the guy likes contact and he likes hard work,” Smart said.
Linton has the body type (6-foot-4, 230 pounds) typical of a designated pass rusher. While he might have to add strength to be an every-down player, his spring showing has opened the door for him to be a part of Georgia’s third-down pass rush package.
As for Gibson, Georgia is aiming to turn him into a more well-rounded player instead of solely focusing on his pass-rush talents.
“They’ve got him rotating at three positions right now, and I feel like he’s executing at a high level right now,” Johnson said of Gibson.
Gibson’s development arc might mirror that of Harris. During his first two full seasons, Harris earned a reputation for doing the dirty work for the Bulldogs. Late last season, Harris finally began to break out as a disruptive player for the defensive front, only for a toe injury to end his season in the team’s win against Alabama.
Harris is back this season for Georgia, though he’s limited in spring practice as he recovers from surgery. If Gibson can remain patient and committed, Georgia players and coaches say his time to blossom will come.
It will just look different from what the Bulldogs envision for Linton.
“He’s a high-effort, really tough, hard-nosed player,” Smart said of Gibson. “He’s bounced in between what we call the big end and the JACK, and he’s playing both those positions and helping us fill the role.”
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