Colbie Young has become a leader in the wide receiver room for Georgia this offseason as he is one of the returning faces from last season.
“Fire, passion, and energy” is the mantra of the preseason for Georgia. And the Bulldogs’ coaching staff is now recognizing players who exhibit those traits by giving them blue Guardian caps to wear at practice.
Senior receiver Colbie Young has been pictured with a blue cap, as shown in a recent Twitter post from the team’s account. Despite going through only his second fall camp at Georgia, offensive coordinator Mike Bobo revealed Wednesday that Young has taken on a leadership role.
“Well, I’ve been extremely impressed with Colby. Colby, one, he’s grateful to be here,” Bobo said. “…And since he’s been back every day, he doesn’t take a play off. And he’s a guy that we brought in out of the portal, but he is probably the leader in that room. He sets the standard of how to work. And I’m not just talking about whether it’s route running or catching balls, it’s blocking, it’s his effort.”
After losing Arian Smith and Dominic Lovett to the NFL this offseason, Young became one of Georgia’s most experienced players in the receiver room, even though he only played in the team’s first five games last season before his indefinite suspension.
But even with the limited experience in a Georgia uniform, that hasn’t stopped Young from influencing the new guys.
“And that’s kind of contagious because we’ve got some talented receivers in that room, and some of them are young,” Bobo said. “And they need to know what it means to wear the Georgia uniform, and he represents that every day.”
Young finished his first season at Georgia with just 149 yards and two scores on 11 receptions. At 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, he brings the size and frame to man the X-receiver role, but he is facing competition for it from Texas A&M transfer Noah Thomas.
“Noah, through six practices, [it] is starting to slow down for him. And the spring was probably a struggle, if you ask him. New system, new terminology, trying to figure everything out, …” Bobo said of the Aggie transfer. “And you’re seeing incremental improvements from him. He’s light years ahead of where he was in the spring. And he gives you another big body outside that can catch those balls that are contested.”
Category: General Sports
