What new Eagles DB Kelee Ringo said about the famously tough practices at Georgia under HC Kirby Smart
The Philadelphia Eagles are intimately familiar with former Georgia Bulldogs players at this point (they drafted three former UGA players this year and two last year) which is a big reason why they were comfortable selecting defensive back Kelee Ringo in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL Draft. Ringo has first-round talent, but he […]
The Philadelphia Eagles are intimately familiar with former Georgia Bulldogs players at this point (they drafted three former UGA players this year and two last year) which is a big reason why they were comfortable selecting defensive back Kelee Ringo in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL Draft.
Ringo has first-round talent, but he slipped to the fourth round amid "character concerns".
NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported on Saturday that many of those concerns were relayed by Georgia's brutally honest coaching staff.
"Here's the best way this was explained to me and this is based on feedback from the Georgia coaches who were very, very honest with teams during this process," said Rapoport. "Five-star mentality is essentially the description I got. There were questions about his work ethic. There were questions about simply how many plays does he make as well. But work ethic was probably the biggest thing. The infrastructure in Philly is going to be key here, just like it's going to have to be for Jalen Carter (No. 9 overall pick by the Eagles)."
Those concerns are certainly valid as they come from the coaching staff at Georgia.
But one thing Eagles fans should consider is that Georgia's practices are notoriously tough. And that's not just lip service. Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart believes in making practices tougher than games that way his players are fully prepared for SEC competition (and that's clearly worked as UGA's won two straight national titles).
Last season, audio of Smart screaming at Ringo during a practice leaked before Georgia's game against Tennessee.
After the Bulldogs' 27-13 win against the Vols, Ringo was asked about the leaked audio and the tough practices at Georgia.
And he made it clear that the tough practices in Athens made him mentally tougher.
"100 percent," said Ringo last November when asked if the hard practices at Georgia made him mentally tougher. "I mean if you can go through those types of things with, of course, fatigue. I mean, it's 90 degrees with 90 percent humidity out there. Just being able to adjust in those situations. I feel like it's a lot easier to work (after tough practices at Georgia) when you have 90,000 screaming at you on the field on Saturdays."
Smart's standards at Georgia are high when it comes to work ethic. So those "character concerns" probably aren't as severe as what you might think based on Rapoport's comments. The Bulldogs trusted Ringo in some big situations and he delivered. He could easily end up being one of the biggest steals in the draft for an already talent-rich Eagles team.
