The Georgia Bulldogs regularly perform at a high level on the recruiting trail and that appears to have transferred as the man at the top of the coaching staff shifted from Mark Richt to Kirby Smart. The team ranks as a consensus top-five program when it comes to the Class of 2017 and, in general, Georgia is doing just fine in enticing high-end players from inside the borders of its own state.
However, four-star offensive tackle Tony Gray threw something of a curve ball on Friday when he revealed his top-five programs. By all accounts, the 6-foot-5, 290-pound senior from Lawrenceville, Ga. holds an offer from the Bulldogs, but Georgia is not among the quintet of teams that made the cut.
Prior to the revelation, Georgia received nearly half of the votes for Gray's final choice per 247's Crystal Ball projections and this is generally seen as a surprise. To be frank, it would not be a shock if a player of his caliber (Gray is the No. 27 offensive tackle nationally) chose to leave his home state in search of the best college football opportunity. What is noteworthy, though, is that Georgia is nowhere to be found on his list of finalists.
In the grand scheme, this is probably just a blip on the radar for Kirby Smart and company. That said, the Bulldogs need to do well in their home state moving forward and this is worth monitoring in that regard.
