10 Georgia football players we’ll talk about most in preseason camp

The Georgia football team will hold its first practice later this week, inching us one step closer to the start of the 2025 season.

The practices during August will be the most physical and grueling of the season. Coach Kirby Smart often wants practice to be more difficult than the games. These practices before Georgia’s season opener Aug. 30 against Marshall (3:30 p.m., ESPN) will be the toughest of the season.

Whichever players can stand up to the grueling August heat should position themselves to have strong seasons. Health will be critical this month, especially for young players seeking to make a name for themselves.

The following players aren’t the ones who necessarily will have the best set of preseason practices, but rather those who figure to draw plenty of attention and intrigue over the coming month. How these 10 players develop will go a long way in shaping Georgia’s season.

Ryan Puglisi

Puglisi is fighting an uphill battle to beat out Gunner Stockton to be the team’s starting quarterback. Stockton possesses an experience and leadership edge over the redshirt freshman quarterback.

But Smart has not named a starting quarterback for the season and indicated at SEC Media Days he wouldn’t be doing that. Puglisi will have plenty of opportunities to impress the coaching staff, while continuing to put himself in a position to help Georgia this year.

As we saw last year, when Carson Beck was injured and Stockton had to leave after a vicious hit against Texas, you’re one play from being a significant contributor.

Josh McCray

Smart indicated Georgia would be doing things differently when it comes to the running game this season, though he declined to go into specifics.

Adding McCray, a transfer from Illinois, should allow Georgia to have a more physical edge to its rushing offense. At 240 pounds, McCray is Georgia’s biggest running back and could be an excellent complement to sophomore Nate Frazier.

It’s not always easy for a summer arrival to make an immediate impact, but running back has been one of those positions where you can jump right in and make a splash.

Zachariah Branch

The USC transfer was Georgia’s splashiest additions this offseason. He is the face of a new-look wide receiver group that needs to make a big jump from what we saw last season.

Branch also figures to have an impact on special teams. He was voted first-team All-SEC as a return specialist and an all-purpose player. For an offense that faces plenty of questions, excellent special-teams play would make a massive difference this season.

Jaden Reddell

The third tight end normally isn’t much of a factor for most schools. But Georgia is not most schools, especially when it comes to tight ends.

Oscar Delp and Lawson Luckie will be major players on this offense. But the coaching staff likes Reddell a lot, and he should soak up some of the snaps previously occupied by Benjamin Yurosek.

Reddell did have ankle surgery following spring practice, so his health and conditioning will be critical to watch.

Daniel Calhoun

Georgia’s offensive line, for all the turnover from last season, seems fairly set at all but one position. Monroe Freeling and Earnest Greene will occupy left and right tackle, respectively. Drew Bobo takes over at center and Micah Morris will be the team’s left guard.

As for right guard, that position is wide open. Entering spring, Calhoun seemed like the favorite for the spot. But a foot injury robbed him of valuable practice reps and allowed fellow redshirt freshman Michael Uini to start at right guard on G-Day.

Calhoun will need to be at his best to win the right guard spot. Georgia will want to develop depth, but a lack of continuity was a big reason the offensive line underwhelmed last season.

Elijah Griffin

Smart often wants to keep expectations for freshmen in check. To this point, Smart has not been successful in that regard with Griffin.

A defensive tackle from Pooler, Griffin was the No. 1 ranked defensive prospect in the 2025 recruiting cycle and plays a position that needs to replace three draft picks from last season.

Expecting Griffin to be a star right away might be a bit much. But if he can carve out a role as a rotational player on Georgia’s defensive line, it will be a very welcome development for Smart and the defense.

Elo Modozie

Rarely has a post-spring transfer generated as much attention as this one from the Army.

But outside linebacker Modozie has a lot of upside and fills a major position. The early reviews from workouts indicate Modozie is an excellent fit within the Georgia culture.

Modozie will need his early success to translate when the pads come on, so he can provide a punch to a pass rush that must replace 78% of its sack production from a season ago.

Chris Cole

Much like Reddell on the offense, Cole is the third linebacker in Glenn Schumann’s group.

But Cole will have a significant role this season. A season ago we saw him impress as a freshman while working as a dime linebacker. He’ll see an uptick in playing early downs, but how Georgia elects to use Cole on third down will be a fascinating subplot for the defense.

Ellis Robinson

Another second-year defender who was a five-star prospect, Robinson’s development will be followed closely.

He could not crack into the starting lineup as a freshman. The spring game showed that Daniel Harris will not be easy to overtake as a starter.

Georgia always could get creative to find ways to get Robinson onto the field, especially in obvious passing situations. An increase in physicality will determine how much more he will play in 2025.

Brett Thorson

For the most part, Georgia is a healthy team entering fall practice, but Thorson is the exception.

Thorson had knee surgery after injuring his ACL and MCL in his plant leg in the SEC Championship game last season. With Thorson out, the Bulldogs turned to Drew Miller in the loss against Notre Dame.

It remains to be seen if Thorson will be fully healthy to open the season. Despite the injury, Thorson was still viewed as the top punter in the league.