Georgia’s already thin receiving corps just got a little thinner.
Blake Tibbs, a junior flanker from Lithonia, confirmed Wednesday that he is leaving Georgia and seeking a transfer. The 6-foot-2, 180-pound speedster was unwilling to discuss details but the situation appears to be at least partially related to academics.
“Yep,” Tibbs said Wednesday by phone when asked if he was leaving Georgia.
Asked what were the circumstances of his departure, Tibbs said: “I don’t have any comment right now. I’ll let you know when everything gets worked out. I’ve got a lot to get settled right now.”
UGA just completed final exams for spring semester last week. The Bulldogs are off until they reconvene for summer semester in June.
“Blake and I have met and he has decided it would be in his best interest to transfer to another institution,” Georgia coach Mark Richt said in a statement released by the school. “I certainly understand and wish him nothing but the best.”
Whatever the case, things just haven’t worked out for Tibbs at Georgia. In three seasons, he has caught just four passes for 43 yards for the Bulldogs while appearing in 15 games, mostly on special teams.
Tibbs signed with Georgia as a 3-star recruit out of Martin Luther King Jr. High. He was a Class AAAAA All-State selection as a senior in 2011 when he caught 63 passes for 1,054 yards and 15 touchdowns. Ranked the state’s 21st best prospect by Rivals.com, he also had a reputation as a dynamic kick returner.
But he has never been able to crack the Bulldogs’ regular receiver rotation. It was thought he might this spring as the Georgia has a dearth of experienced receivers. But he injured a shoulder the first week of spring ball and missed the rest of the practices.
“That’s the last time I talked to him,” said coach Mike “Pop” Carson, who coached Tibbs at MLK. “He said he’d hurt his shoulder and not going to be able to play this year.”
After losing Michael Bennett and Chris Conley to graduation, the Bulldogs have only senior Malcolm Mitchell returning as viable and experienced receiving threat. Senior Justin Scott-Wesley is coming off a year off due to suspension and injury. Meanwhile, sophomore Isaiah McKenzie, and juniors Reggie Davis and Kenneth Towns battled for playing time during the spring.
Georgia signed four wideouts in February who will join the competition this summer, including 5-star prospect Terry Godwin of Hogansville and 4-star athlete Shaquery Wilson of Coral Gables, Fla.
