Georgia Bulldogs giving back to community with football camps
It’s the month of May. School is no longer in session, and College Football players across the country have a bit of freedom to go do whatever they want during the little down time they get each year. However, for a few Georgia players, they’ve decided to use it as an opportunity to pass along their skills to the next generation.
Sophomore outside linebacker Darris Smith hosted his first annual youth football camp on Saturday at Appling County High School. It comes just one week after fellow Bulldog defender Warren Brinson held one of his own in Savannah.
Smith appeared in 11 games for Georgia as a true freshman this past season. A top-100 recruit coming out of Appling High School according to On3, the outside linebacker recorded four tackles including one in each of Georgia’s College Football Playoff games. He also made highlight reels with his hops on Ohio State’s missed field goal with many believing Smith would have blocked the kick had it gone straight.
As for Brinson, he played a bigger role for the Bulldogs. Headed into his senior season in 2023, the IMG product and Savannah native has seen action in 34 career contests including all 15 last season. He had three tackles for loss with a sack in 2022 and is expected to take on an even bigger role in 2023 with the likes of Jalen Carter and Bear Alexander gone from the defensive line room.
“This was something we talked about even before he went to Athens with him and his family. How to make football a big deal down here and make it important to change the culture of Appling County,” Smith’s high school coach Jordan Mullis told DawgsHQ. “He’s using football as an example like a lot of teams in South Georgia already do on how to create value for yourself. When you create that value and opportunity for yourself, it allows you to come back and create value and opportunity for your community.”
“Darris right now is our poster child,” Mullis continued. “His family has been here their whole life and they know all the young kids and obviously all the young kids know him.”
According to WJCL news in Savannah, Brinson limited his camp to just 20 student-athletes from grades 9-12, allowing him one-on-one time with each of the campers. The former Savannah Christian star worked with the defensive linemen just like his defensive line coach Tray Scott would with him.
“I just wanted to get close with some kids in Savannah, teach them some technique and fundamentals of how to play d-line,” Brinson told WJCL. “Give them some information. I’m an open book of knowledge, and I wanted them to be able to soak up everything I had in my head just to give them a slight advantage over the competition when they come for their fall season.”
This is far from the first time that Georgia players have made an effort to give back to their communities. Players like Ladd McConkey and Oscar Delp have gotten out and read to kindergarteners at High Shoals Elementary. Several of their teammates did so at the Boys and Girls Club with countless other examples out there too through the Dawgs for Pups program started by the football team in 2020 and continued on over the years.
Georgia players report back to campus at the end of the month and begin summer workouts ahead of the 2023 season in June.
