Georgia Bulldogs and Kirby Smart shockingly pressing to possibly flip a top four star recruit from Auburn amid upcoming visits
The Georgia Bulldogs are going to look quite a bit different in 2025 than they did this past season. No Carson Beck at quarterback. More than a half dozen defenders have left for the NFL Draft. And despite finishing top three in the team recruiting class rankings (according to multiple site sources) Georgia is still going […]
The Georgia Bulldogs are going to look quite a bit different in 2025 than they did this past season. No Carson Beck at quarterback. More than a half dozen defenders have left for the NFL Draft. And despite finishing top three in the team recruiting class rankings (according to multiple site sources) Georgia is still going to be rolling out a ton of youth and inexperience in their starting line up.
It's absolutely critical that Georgia continues to dominate for yet another recruiting cycle to refill their roster with top tier talent, especially on defense. The team lost their top four edge rushers from a year ago, and just sent both Jalon Walker and Smael Mondon at off-ball backer to the league. Kirby Smart knows he needs defensive front help, so that's where a new possible four star recruiting target comes in for the Bulldogs.
Shadarius Toodle, Four Star Linebacker
Shadarius Toodle has demonstrated that he can be one of the most productive linebackers in the entire nation for two seasons straight. He's tallied 120+ tackles in each of his last two years while showcasing top tier athleticism. That's landed him inside the Top 100 recruiting ranks overall. But can Georgia actually get him to flip from Auburn?
It might be tough, but things are looking up for Kirby Smart and the Bulldogs here. Yes, Toodle is still committed to the Auburn Tigers for now, but he just set five official visits for the summer and Georgia shockingly made the list!
It's not just that Toodle put Georgia in his final five schools that are going to receive an official visit from him. It's how the Bulldogs ever in even made Toodle's list to begin with.
The Baylor Bears were one of the first few schools to offer him, so it's probably a respectful formality that he's taking a final visit with them. Michigan and Florida have decent track records of linebacker development in recent years, but they're likely ornamental visits as well since there hasn't been much real buzz or traction with them outside of the initial offer(s) a year ago. Auburn and Georgia look like the real contenders, and multiple experts in the industry agree.
Auburn has been all over Toodle since February of 2024 with an early offer, a junior day, and several different touch points and visits with the young star-in-the-making. They may still lead by quite a bit for Toodle, especially given that he's still committed there. However, Georgia and Kirby Smart didn't even offer him until late January and now they're all of a sudden getting an official visit? That doesn't seem to make sense unless he's seriously considering heading to Athens.
After Jalon Walker and Smael Mondon both receive decent 2025 NFL Draft capital that may be enough to push him over the top with Georgia. Conversely, Auburn's linebackers struggled mightily in coverage at the Senior Bowl and almost certainly disappoint on draft day.
It's likely that Georgia tries to pull more unofficial visit(s) this spring prior to their final pitch, so we'll be back with more details as those events probably get lined up here soon ahead of spring practices. If Kirby Smart lands Toodle he'll continue an absurd streak of bringing in Top 100 overall recruits at off-ball linebacker.
We'll be back with more Georgia Bulldogs coverage here at A to Z Sports soon! Follow me (@FF_TravisM) and A to Z Sports (@AtoZSportsNFL) on X for all the latest football news!
And if you want to see some of the traits and plays that make Shadarius Toodle a special player just check out his junior season highlights below.
