The 2022 college football season is quickly approaching, and the Georgia Bulldogs will enter the season with some uncertainty at certain positions. After having 15 players drafted off last season’s national championship winning team, which set a modern record, the Bulldogs must replace key contributors on both sides of the ball.  

That being said, many important players return and the Bulldogs possess one of the most talented rosters in college football. One position Dawgs fans should be particularly confident in is tight end. The group is so talented and deep that David Pollack, a college football analyst for ESPN, called it “one of the best tight end rooms in the history of college football.”  

The Bulldogs boast a bevy of talented players at the position, headlined by the sensational sophomore Brock Bowers. A 6’4 phenom from Napa, CA, Bowers came to Georgia as a high four-star recruit and contributed immediately. The talented pass-catcher hauled in six passes for 43 yards against Clemson, his first game as a Bulldog.  

Bowers caught a team-leading 56 passes for 882 yards and scored a school record 13 touchdowns on the season. The versatile playmaker also rushed for 56 yards and a touchdown. A first-team All-SEC selection on offense, Bowers proved nearly impossible to cover due to his size, speed, and reliable hands.   

The scary thing for opposing defenses is that he’s far from the only mismatch nightmare in the Georgia tight end room. Junior Darnell Washington returns and has drawn significant praise for his performance this offseason.   

Washington, who stands at 6’7, was slowed by injury early last season before working his way back. Despite battling injuries, he proved to be an excellent blocker and caught 10 passes for 154 yards and a touchdown. Now healthy, the former five-star looks to make a bigger splash in 2022.   

The Dawgs’ loaded tight end room doesn’t end there. Arik Gilbert, a former five-star recruit from Marietta, also seems poised to make an impact for the Dawgs. Gilbert caught 35 passes for 368 yards and two touchdowns as a freshman for the LSU Tigers in 2020 before opting to transfer.   

Gilbert missed the 2021 season for personal reasons, but his talent was apparent during his lone season at LSU, and he flashed in the Dawgs’ spring game with two touchdown receptions. He was the top-ranked tight end prospect in the 2020 class.   

True freshman Oscar Delp also racked up seven catches for 91 yards in the spring game when the Dawgs had multiple tight ends missing due to injuries. The Bulldogs also have scholarship tight ends such as Brett Seither and Ryland Goede.  

It will be interesting to see how Georgia’s coaching staff chooses to use the tight ends in 2022. Offensive coordinator Todd Monken and head coach Kirby Smart will undoubtedly seek to utilize this deep and incredibly talented group of tight ends in ways that put the offense in the best positions. However they decide to use their tight ends, fans should expect the position to be a major strength for the Bulldogs yet again.