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Georgia lists true freshman OL Juan Gaston as starter for season opener

On3 imageby: Jake Rowe08/30/25JakeMRowe
Juan Gaston Georgia
Georgia offensive lineman Juan Gaston Jr. (73) during Georgia’s practice session in Athens, Ga., on Tuesday, March 11, 2025. (Tony Walsh/UGAAA)

ATHENS, Ga. — Georgia’s 2025 season opener is finally here. The No. 5-ranked Bulldogs are set to host Marshall between the hedges at 3:30 p.m. ET, and if the first depth chart of the season is any indication, UGA will be starting a true freshmen on the offensive line. Juan Gaston is listed as the starter at right guard.

If Gaston starts the game, it’ll be the first time Georgia has started a true freshman offensive lineman in the season opener since 2017. That season UGA tapped Andrew Thomas as the team’s starting right tackle. Thomas earned that spot after enrolling at Georgia at the end of May. Gaston, on the other hand, has been with the program since January.

The Bulldogs last started a true freshman on the offensive line in game three of the 2018 season. Cade Mays got the nod after Andrew Thomas sustained an ankle injury against South Carolina.

At over 6-foot-7 and approximately 350 pounds, Gaston finished the 2025 recruiting cycle as the nation’s No. 62 overall prospect and No. 4 interior offensive lineman per the Rivals Industry Rankings, a weighted average that includes all three websites that publish recruiting rankings.

Georgia beat out Tennessee for Gaston’s signature during the 2025 cycle. He started generating positive buzz soon after he arrived on campus despite tipping the scales at over 375 pounds. According to Kirby Smart, Gaston has shed roughly 30 pounds since getting to UGA. He has also turned some heads amongst his peers.

“I’ve been really impressed with Juan,” Drew Bobo, a fourth-year junior, said on Tuesday. “I think he’s done a really good job. Just, I mean, he’s huge. He takes up space. He literally, when he’s blocking somebody on film, it looks like he just engulfs them, because you can’t even see him (the man he is blocking) anymore. But I’ve enjoyed playing next to him when I’ve gotten a chance to.  And I think he’s done a really good job.”

Gaston is the only listed starter on Georgia’s offensive line without at least two career starts. Monroe Freeling is listed as the starting left tackle with Micah Morris at left guard. Drew Bobo will be the starting center and Earnest Greene, who started the past two seasons as the left tackle, has moved into the starting spot at right tackle.

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