Depth has been one of the key tenets of Kirby Smart’s coaching philosophy.
He wants to have the most talent on his roster.
While it looks different now than it did in the late 2010s, Smart went to great lengths to ensure he maximized Georgia’s roster. He’s kept walk-ons while making late additions like Tre Shields and Nick Peal to Georgia’s 2026 signing class.
That’s how Georgia ended up at its max of 105 players on its roster (not including walk-ons).
It’s also why there isn’t a straightforward answer as to whether Georgia could add to its roster after U.S. District Judge Charlotte Sweeney ruled Friday that players from the 2022 signing class who have completed four years of eligibility could return for a fifth season.
“We’re always at or around the 105 limit. That technically could be changing all the time,” Smart said. “It’s not like a defined target in time that we’re at this or this. We’re always open to bringing on a new player if we have room. And if we don’t have room, then we can’t do that, and we’re stuck at it.”
Most of Georgia’s 2022 signing class was either drafted or had transferred. Three additional players — Dillon Bell, Brett Thorson and Noah Thomas — signed deals with NFL teams as undrafted free agents.
That leaves just defensive back JaCorey Thomas and wide receiver Cole Speer as players who could possibly return. Thomas has indicated through his agency that he would be open to doing so.
While other college football players have done the same as Thomas, Sweeney’s ruling is limited in scope. It doesn’t grant exemptions to exceed the 105-roster limit, nor does it give those players the ability to enter the transfer portal.
Smart spent a portion of Wednesday’s news conference discussing the ruling, which the NCAA said it will appeal.
“The way I understand that rule and the interpretations that have come out most recently indicate that you’ve gotta have room on your roster,” Smart said. “So, if somebody knew what was coming, kind of like a crystal ball, and they said, ‘We’re gonna sit at 100 so we can bring five guys in,’ they were a lot smarter than me. Because I was trying to operate at the fact that we had 105, we wanted to have the best team we could and nobody knew this was coming.”
Not all teams operate with the same mindset as Smart. Indiana is set to get back defensive lineman Stephen Daley, who led the Big Ten in tackles for loss last season.
Even if Georgia had room on its roster, it wouldn’t have someone of that caliber to add.
Speer was a key special teams player last year, specifically when he blocked a punt in the SEC championship game.
Thomas stepped up as a starter in the secondary when Kyron Jones went down with a foot injury after the Auburn game. His Georgia career came to an end when he was ejected at the end of the first half of the College Football Playoff quarterfinal against Ole Miss because of a targeting penalty.
Georgia operated under the idea it would be losing Thomas, which is why the Bulldogs added a pair of transfers, Clemson safety Khalil Barnes and East Carolina safety Ja’Marley Riddle. The Bulldogs also signed four safety prospects in the 2026 recruiting class.
“Ja’Marley is a great guy,” safety KJ Bolden said. “He’s been doing a great job of learning the defense. I can tell that he’s bought in to what we’re doing here, and he’s staying after every day to try to learn the playbook, getting better.”
Smart has said this offseason that he likes where his roster is at. He did so again Wednesday, even if he did stop short of saying this roster is finalized.
“We’re pretty healthy, we’re in a really healthy state,” Smart said. “I feel like we’ve got a lot of guys that can practice. We’re fortunate to have really good numbers still. I think we’re at 125, 127 guys practicing, which we’re very fortunate to have those numbers. We can get a lot of guys reps that way.”
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