Oscar Delp never ran from hard, making himself and Georgia all the better

ATHENS — Oscar Delp and the Georgia football program never really needed each other.

Delp was a coveted enough high school prospect that he could’ve gone anywhere. South Carolina, his mother’s alma mater, pulled out all the stops to try to land him.

As for Georgia, Delp enrolled between Brock Bowers, one of the great tight ends in college football history, and Lawson Luckie, a Georgia legacy recruit. Sandwiching the uber-athletic Delp between the two was like having a third beach house.

For Delp and Georgia, want outweighed need. Which is why Delp stayed at Georgia, no matter how hard things got.

“I mean, to be the best, you got to play with the best, and I think that’s why people come to Georgia in the first place,” Delp said. “I would not want to go to a school where I know as a freshman I’m going to be an immediate starter and do all this stuff, but we’re not going to win games.”

There are two moments that stand out with Delp from his freshman season. While Bowers was winning the first of two Mackey Awards, Delp was buried on the depth chart. Georgia also had current Pittsburgh Steeler Darnell Washington on the roster, as well as former 5-star tight end Arik Gilbert.

Delp would catch his first touchdown pass in an early season romp over South Carolina. The score did not go unnoticed in the 48-7 win; using Delp in that moment felt personal for Kirby Smart against his former assistant and tight ends coach Shane Beamer.

But Delp would get his first taste of real playing time in the most high-profile of situations. Washington, someone big and good enough to possibly play left tackle, suffered an ankle injury in the first quarter of Georgia’s College Football Playoff game against Ohio State. Running two tight end sets was an integral part of Georgia’s identity, and Delp was the next man up.

So there was Delp, as a freshman, showing he could hang with the big boys. He played a season-high 21 snaps in the 42-41 win. He played against TCU in the CFP championship game, which Georgia won 65-7. Delp is one of only 11 members on this season’s team who know what it is like to win a national championship.

“I know what it looks like, and what you need to do every day to accomplish that, and so does coach Smart,” Delp said. “And, you know, the coach can always tell you what you all need to do, but, I mean, it’s got to be player-led. It’s got to come from one player to another, and I think our senior class really knows what it looks like and kind of holds those younger guys to that standard and kind of teaching them that, so hopefully in the future they can know what it feels like, as well.”

Delp just played his final regular-season home game at Sanford Stadium on Saturday against Charlotte. His path to this point, as one of the best and most important leaders on the team, has been far from straightforward. Surely, there was an easier path to get to this point.

But Delp has never run from a challenge. He committed to Georgia when it already was clear Bowers was something special for the team.

Instead of seeing Bowers as an obstacle, someone who would eat into his potential catches and accomplishments, the two became best friends.

“Just to be able to play with Brock is unreal,” Delp said. “He’s one of my best friends to this day still, keep in touch with him all the time. I’m just so grateful to be able to play with him and Darnell and those guys, and just, I wouldn’t be half the player I am today if I didn’t get to learn from them.”

When Bowers suffered an ankle injury against Vanderbilt in 2023, Delp was yet again asked to step up. Delp would have a key touchdown catch in a home win over Missouri in 2023 with Bowers on the sideline. Delp’s play to that point had only fueled the idea there would be no statistical drop-off when Bowers left to play in the NFL. Bowers would be taken with the No. 13 overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft and set the record for most yards and receptions by a tight end in their rookie season.

With Bowers gone, it was finally Delp’s time to shine. Only that didn’t happen, as he had fewer receptions and receiving yards in 2024 than he did in 2023, when he was sharing the field with Bowers.

Georgia legend David Pollack thought quarterback Carson Beck didn’t trust his tight end. Delp was brutally honest as to why his junior season underwhelmed when speaking to reporters this past spring.

“Last year there was times I feel like I had one foot out the door and I just thought about things I shouldn’t have been thinking about,” Delp said. “And it just kind of hurt me in ways that, you know, I didn’t think would happen. And then I kind of figured out later on in the year how to really practice and how I should really be leading that room and everything.”

The underwhelming junior season is a big reason Delp stayed at Georgia. He could’ve been a coveted transfer portal option, but he knew he had to go out on a better note than he did last season.

Even if his numbers haven’t swelled to Bowers’ levels this year, his impact on this team is undeniable.

Delp didn’t run from high expectations or hard circumstances. He embraced them.

And made Georgia better for it.

“He’s been everything,” Luckie said of Delp. “Being able to see him grow so much from the time I came in as a freshman to not just on the field, but off the field, he’s become such a better leader. Like, truthfully, he really has. And so I’m proud of him and the effect he’s had on us. He’s had a great career.”

Delp didn’t score his first touchdown this season until the ninth game, something that likely would’ve eaten away at him as a junior. But he now knows his impact isn’t just limited to what he’s done as a pass catcher.

His blocking has improved tremendously. It’s something he’s now better at than Bowers was at Georgia. There have been countless big plays broken for Georgia this season with a running back or wide receiver racing past an engaged Delp.

“You can put more on Oscar than you can somebody else, because he’s seen it all and done it all,” Smart said. “You can’t put a value, and I don’t mean a monetary value, I mean a value in terms of our team, on what he does for the team. He’s just incredible. He leads. He’s got passion, fire and energy. He’s playing really physical this year. He’s grown up is what he’s done.”

Smart acknowledged Delp is a better fit for what current quarterback Gunner Stockton needs. It helps that Delp and Stockton are roommates and count themselves as close friends. Even if Delp isn’t Stockton’s No. 1 target, there’s no one he trusts more. The same is true for Delp.

It took time, but Delp learned how to lead the team in a way that is unique to him. Teammates have seen more of Delp’s sense of humor this season, as he’s quick to crack a joke to try to lighten the mood.

But there are few, if any, players who take winning as seriously as Delp. Before he left the field after an overtime win, Delp was hooting and hollering about finishing his Georgia career with a perfect record against Tennessee.