Georgia QB Brice Ramsey, DB Reggie Wilkerson to pursue graduate transfers
Brice Ramsey was never quite able to seize the starting quarterback job at Georgia. And now he’s leaving the program.
The school announced Tuesday that Ramsey, who also served as a punter for the Bulldogs, plans to pursue a graduate transfer for the 2017 season — his final season of eligibility. If he graduates in May as planned, he would eligible immediately at another school next season.
Ramsey, a four-star recruit in the 2013 class, was Georgia’s second-string quarterback in 2014 behind Hutson Mason and looked primed to take the starting role entering 2015. He was listed atop the team’s depth chart heading into preseason practice, but was supplanted by Greyson Lambert, a graduate transfer from Virginia. Ramsey played in 11 games as Lambert’s backup and also emerged at punter, posting a 41.9-yard average. With five-star freshman Jacob Eason in the fold, Ramsey did not appear at quarterback in 2016 but did punt 20 times at a 34.7-yard average.
Overall in his Georgia career, Ramsey completed 45-of-74 passes for 582 yards and four touchdowns and averaged 38.7 yards per punt on 45 attempts.
With Ramsey out of the picture, Georgia has just two scholarship quarterbacks on its roster currently: Eason and Jake Fromm, a five-star 2017 recruit from Warner Robins, Georgia. Fromm enrolled in January.
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Ramsey won’t be the only Georgia player to pursue a graduate transfer. As reported by UGASports.com, the school confirmed that defensive back Reggie Wilkerson will also move on. Like Ramsey, Wilkerson plans to play for another school in 2017 after graduating from UGA in May.
“Our sincerest thanks to both Brice and Reggie for their contributions to the University in general and the Bulldog football program in particular over these past four years,” said UGA head coach Kirby Smart. “We wish them all the best at their next destination and final season of eligibility.”
Wilkerson, a four-star recruit in 2013, appeared in 20 games as a reserve during his UGA career. His best season came in 2013, when he totaled 11 tackles and an interception.
Per UGASports.com, quite a few schools will be interested in Wilkerson, including two SEC foes:
With one year of eligibility left and a degree in hand, Wilkerson could wind up in the SEC depending on his release from Georgia. So far it appears that Mississippi State, Vanderbilt, Iowa State or FAU might be his next stop. Interestingly enough, Todd Grantham is now the defensive coordinator at Mississippi State, and he actually recruited Wilkerson to Georgia. It seems unlikely that Kirby Smart would block Wilkerson from attending an SEC school after the uproar that occurred when Alabama initially blocked graduate transfer Maurice Smith from heading to Georgia.
With Ramsey and Wilkerson making their intentions known, there are now seven players who have chosen to transfer from Georgia since the season ended. The five others are cornerback Juwan Briscoe, safety Kirby Choates, safety Rico McGraw, linebacker Shaun McGree and wide receiver Shaquery Wilson.
The Bulldogs went 8-5 in 2016, the first season of Smart’s tenure.
For more Georgia news, visit UGASports.com.
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Sam Cooper is a writer for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!
