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Zachariah and Zion Branch officially sign with Georgia

On3 imageby: Jake Rowe01/06/25JakeMRowe
Zachariah Branch - Nevada
(Photo above by Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports)

Georgia has locked in its first two transfer portal additions of the current season according to On3’s Pete Nakos. Zachariah Branch and Zion Branch have officially signed with the Bulldogs, meeting a pair of significant transfer portal needs. The school has yet to announce either player as a signee.

Zachariah Branch, a receiver and return man, is the No. 3 overall prospect in the On3 Transfer Portal Rankings. He’s the No. 2 wideout. Zion Branch is the No. 247 player in the transfer portal rankings.

The Bulldogs held off Arizona State and Miami to land the Vegas-based duo. The Branch Brothers were also heavily courted by Texas and Tennessee in hopes of getting a visit but they inked with Georgia before those trips could take place.

Zachariah caught 78 passes for a total of 823 yards in his two seasons at USC. His 47 catches tied for the team lead in 2024 as he went for 503 yards and a touchdown. In addition to that, he’s been among the nation’s best as a returner taking two kicks (one punt, one kickoff) for touchdowns in 2023. He earned the Jet Award as the nation’s top return man after the 2023 season.

As a prospect in the 2023 class, Zachariah was the nation’s No. 4 overall prospect and No. 1 wideout per the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average of all four websites that publish recruiting rankings. He was the top player in Nevada.

In 19 games across three seasons, Zion totaled 41 tackles including three for loss with one sack. He defended three passes and forced a fumble as well. The new UGA safety has experienced a pair of significant injuries since arriving in Los Angeles. Zion, like his brother, was a coveted player coming out of Bishop Gorman High School. He was the No. 61 overall prospect in the 2022 class and the No. 7 per the On3 Industry Ranking. He, too, was the top player in Nevada.

Georgia is expected to remain active in the transfer portal market even after adding the Branch brothers. In fact, it’s like that UGA adds at least one more player at each of their positions before the roster is finalized.

More on the transfer portal…

The NCAA student-athlete transfer portal launched in 2018. It marked a change from when student-athletes had to get a release from their school to transfer to another and they could be limited as to where they transferred. The portal allows student athletes to simply notify their current school and its compliance department that they intend to move on to another program.

Last season, Georgia lost 21 scholarship players to the portal, watching several end up at power conference programs around the country. The Bulldogs did add to their talent however, as they’ve done before. Adding to the likes of Lawrence Cager, Tre McKitty, Derion Kendrick, Tykee Smith, Dominic Lovett and others that have joined the program in the past, UGA brought in Trevor Etienne, Colbie Young, London Humphreys, Ben Yurosek, Xzavier McLeod and others that have had an impact on the Bulldogs’ 2024 campaign.

For more Georgia athletics coverage, be sure to check out the DawgsHQ YouTube channel where you can find press conferences, player interviews, podcasts and more!

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