Kelee Ringo embraces Georgia standard, high expectations for him during draft process
Former Georgia cornerback Kelee Ringo sat down with NFL Network’s Good Morning Football earlier this week and shared the latest on his preparation for the 2023 NFL Draft. A two-time national champion and a key part of the Bulldogs bringing both titles back to Athens, Ringo knows that he’s ready for whatever comes next based on what he went through at Georgia.
“I think it’s huge. The standard he holds us to, it’s almost perfection in every single thing that we do,” Ringo said about Georgia head coach Kirby Smart and his way of getting guys ready to go pro. “My teammates as well, all the way to other coaches and GAs (graduate assistants) and walk ons, everybody is held to that, and I feel like the standard definitely helped us with success, going on to win two National Championships.”
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At 6-foot-2, 210 pounds, Ringo is a rare breed for a corner. He’s big but also capable of running fast – recording the fifth fastest time of all players at his position at the NFL Combine last month in Indianapolis. Going into the 2022 season, Ringo was widely projected as a first round pick. While his stock seems to have fallen a little bit being seen as a second rounder by the majority of mock drafts now, the Tacoma, Wash. native knows what he’s capable of.
“It’s a great feeling to hear that from somebody like him,” Ringo said about a comparison to Patrick Peterson by Richard Sherman, with whom he’s done a good bit of training. “Going throughout the entire process, talking to him about the mental game and how I can continue to enhance my game, I definitely know that the sky’s the limit. I’m extremely blessed to be in this situation, to go to the University of Georgia and be able to play football at this high level. I’m just going to continue to keep my feet where they are and put one foot in front of the other.”
In just two seasons as a starter, Ringo totaled 76 career tackles, four interceptions and 19 pass deflections. In 2021 he had a sack on Kentucky quarterback Will Levis, one of three tackles for loss to his name. Then, in 2022, Levis was one of the two NFL Draft prospects Ringo picked off. He also came down with an interception off of Tennessee’s Hendon Hooker in Georgia’s 27-13 win over the then-No. 1-ranked Volunteers. Ringo had a career-high seven tackles in the victory over the Vols, tying his total set the previous season against Kentucky.
Ringo and the rest of the Georgia Bulldogs in this year’s draft hope to hear their name called when things get underway in Kansas City on Thursday, April 27th with the first round. Second and third rounds take place on Friday before the busiest day of them all – Saturday – wraps things up with the fourth through seventh rounds, all airing on ABC, ESPN and NFL Network.
