Dogs expect to sign 15-20 in next class

Georgia signed 18 football players last week. And that’s about the same number the Bulldogs have targeted for the 2010 recruiting class.

“I would say it’s going to be probably around 15 to 20, somewhere around there,” Georgia recruiting coordinator Rodney Garner said on Wednesday.

Georgia already had five juniors (all from the state) committed on signing day 2008. This year’s signing day passed by without any early pledges. Coach Mark Richt said the Bulldogs are not behind schedule.

“Any given year, who knows?” Richt said. “That’s not normal to have that many [like last year]. That’s probably the first time that’s ever happened in my eight years at Georgia. I wouldn’t say that is the norm or that we’re behind. It’s just the way it went last year.”

Evaluation process can take some time

Garner said the evaluation process at Georgia takes time.

“We try to do a very thorough job of evaluating every kid in this state that we feel like has the opportunity to be a D-I player,” he said. “And we really try to double-check and re-check just to see how they may fit into our [scholarship] numbers and our system. We’re slow to offer, compared to the out-of-state schools. Those schools don’t come back every year. They only have to show up when there’s a great player. So we’re going to make sure when we pull the trigger and offer a kid, if that kid commits, then we’re going to be committed to him and not pull back the scholarship or anything like that. We have to be more thorough, and it forces us to be a little slower sometimes.”

Charles calls Richt to clear up concerns

Orson Charles, who is Georgia’s top remaining target for its 2009 recruiting class, said he called Richt this week to clear up some rumors.

Charles, who may wait until early March to announce his college decision, heard rumors that Georgia may use him as a “traditional” tight end. Charles wants to play for a team that lines him up at tight end and wide receiver.

“I was a little concerned,” said Charles, who is ranked as the nation’s No. 62 overall prospect by Rivals.

Georgia already has signed Arthur Lynch of Dartmouth, Mass., who is considered a traditional tight end.

“I was kind of hearing that Georgia was telling Arthur the same things that they were telling me. And I called Coach Richt because I wanted to hear what he had to say,” Charles said. “He said that Arthur and me are two different type of players. He said Arthur is more of a complete tight end, while I’m more like a hybrid guy. [Richt] cleared up all the confusion… .”

Richt also told Charles that Georgia still wanted him.

“He said that he had my jersey [No. 7] waiting on me, stuff like that,” Charles said.

Charles plans to announce his college choice after returning from his official visit to USC on Feb. 20. He also is considering Florida and Tennessee. He said he is asking a lot of questions during the process.

> Go to ajc.com for the “Georgia’s Most Wanted” recruiting list.