Georgia Bulldogs Countdown to Kickoff: Day 31
31 days away…feels like Georgia football is almost here, doesn’t it? Soon, the Dawgs will be in Mercedes Benz Stadium rolling out the 2022 iteration of the football team against the Oregon Ducks, and we’re looking at how 31 factors in.
We should give credit to William Poole, who dons the #31 for the Bulldogs.
Entering his sixth season in Athens, Poole has shown up in key moments for Georgia, particularly in the latter part of the 2021 season.
In his true senior season, Poole was featured in 11 of Georgia’s 15 games, most notably stepping into starting roles versus the Alabama Crimson Tide.
The former four-star (No. 181 overall recruit and No. 21 overall cornerback in the 2017 class per the On3 Consensus, if you want to get specific) defensive back hails from Atlanta, Georgia’s Hapeville Charter School, as his secondary running mate and projected starting safety Chris Smith also does.
In his career with the Bulldogs, Poole has played in 33 total games, registered 27 tackles, and four pass deflections. All four of his career deflections came in the 2021 season. Timely, eh?
Speaking of timeliness, two of Poole’s pass deflections came at the best time possible — the National Championship against Alabama.
A one-time Florida lean during his recruitment, Poole delivered at the star position in the biggest way against the Crimson Tide when called upon to fill Georgia’s STAR position.
Poole also contributed a career-high five total tackles against Alabama in the SEC Championship game and would near that number again in the National Championship with four total tackles.
He would also register a half tackle for a loss in the title game.
In fact, one-third of Poole’s career total tackles would come against the Tide in the 2021 season.
Moving into 2022, Poole is expected to fill the same role and moves into camp as the projected starter at the STAR spot.
Can he be unseated? That remains to be seen, but moving into his sixth year with the program, he certainly has experience on his side.
Kirby Smart certainly sounded optimistic about his chances.
“We had a pretty good secondary last year. And of course, as you were saying, those two (Smith and Poole) players had a big impact on that. Having two older guys and two leaders being able to come back for the next year is something that’s going to help us.”
Recent Georgia Bulldogs Countdown to Kickoff Stories
No. 32 – With the No. 32 pick in the 2022 NFL Draft
No. 33 – 33 of the biggest points in Georgia history
No. 34 – Herschel and the continuation of the 34 legacy at RBU
