Seven walk-ons awarded scholarships; two of them may start
ATHENS – Georgia coach Mark Richt on Sunday awarded scholarships to seven walk-on players.
Two of them — tailback Brandon Harton and defensive back Blake Sailors — are former walk-ons who were placed on scholarship last year and were renewed for the coming year. The other five are all getting aid at UGA for the first time, including fullback Merritt Hall and safety Connor Norman, who figure to start or play significant roles early in the season. The other recipients are cornerback Luis Capella, receiver Rhett McGowan and linebacker Kosta Vavlas.
Georgia, of course, is infamously low on its scholarship numbers for the coming. It had 72 before Sunday’s actions by Richt. As it is, the Bulldogs remain six below the NCAA maximum allotment of 85.
Here’s a look at the seven recipients:
DB Luis Capella, junior, Augusta: Capella (5-10, 176) is third-string cornerback and special teams player. He graduated from Richmond Academy and has made the AD’s honor roll and the SEC academic honor the past two seasons.
FB Merritt Hall, redshirt freshman, Alpharetta: Hall (5-11, 238) earned the No. 1 spot on the depth chart during spring practice and was named “outstanding walk-on.” He remains Georgia’s starting fullback heading into the second week of preseason camp.
TB Brandon Harton, junior, Reidsville: Harton (5-6, 174) earned a scholarship last season and played in five games. He led the Bulldogs in rushing against Kentucky with 101 yards on 23 carries.
SE Rhett McGowan, junior, Calhoun: An all-state player and team captain at Calhoun High, McGowan (6-0, 190) has played in nine games the last two seasons. He finished with 7 catches for 84 yards last year and caught a touchdown pass against New Mexico State.
DB Connor Norman, redshirt sophomore, Duluth: Norman (5-10, 208), who attended Peachtree Ridge High, played in all 14 games for the Bulldogs last season, mainly on special teams, and recorded 13 tackles. He could start at free safety if Bacarri Rambo is sidelined as expected. Norman received a most improved award in 2011 and outstanding walk-on on defense this spring.
DB Blake Sailors, junior, Athens: Sailors (5-11, 186) is a cornerback and special teams stalwart who has played in every Georgia game the past two seasons. A 2009 graduate of Oconee High, this is the second year in a row Sailors earned a scholarship
LB Kosta Vavlas, redshirt sophomore, Tarpon Springs, Fla.: Vavlas (6-0, 219) is an inside linebacker who is currently listed as third-team “Mo” behind Alec Ogletree and Christian Robinson. He played in all 14 games last season, finished with 19 tackles and received a most valuable special teams award.
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220 comments Add your comment
7576DAWG
August 13th, 2012
1:02 pm
I am glad that we can give 5 to 7 loyal walk-on’s a reward for all their sacrifice but truth be known it will be a miracle if any of these kids ever are given a chance in Pro ball. That being said I am sure they were local hero’s , somewhere , when they played high school football and they would have been very good Division 2 football players or Division 3 football stars but there is a reason that even the Division 1 IVY League players never make it even to tryouts at the Pro level.
Giving scholarships to walk on’s is a great “feel good” article but in the SEC when you are playing against a team who is 2 and 3 deep you get killed in the second half because you don’t have the depth of quality players that it takes to win championships.
MCGARITY end this stupidity and mind set. It’s okay to give 1 or 2 walk-on’s scholarships but 5 to 7 is absurd or just plain crazy.
AltamahaDawg
August 13th, 2012
1:03 pm
I don’t understand why the report is 7. Two of them are scholarship player coming back, like 54 other players.
Just an idea .....
August 13th, 2012
1:03 pm
I suspect that these kids WORK HARD in practice, on game day and in the classroom. YOU CANNOT have enough guys like this on any team, business or football.
Everyone of these guys wil make their mark before they leave UGA, if only in ONE game, i suspect. I also think that all will graduate.
Go Dogs.
Chip Towers
August 13th, 2012
1:05 pm
AltamahaDawg: I, too, was counting Harton and Sailors among the returning scholarship players. But apparently their agreement was for one year/
Huh?
August 13th, 2012
1:06 pm
AltamahaDawg…as you know, scholarships are a 1 year deal. Okay Okay…so two of the walk-ons from last year were given another scholly this year. I get your point…I’m just not sure why you are making it.
Like 7576 said above….it’s a feel-good story. But the fact is that these “fine young men” that have been doing it the “UGA way” would not be getting scholarships if not for the off-the-field behavior of several other quality players.
Joey
August 13th, 2012
1:11 pm
Lex, you’re right. Scout.com sends me alerts of UGA’s new committs and for some reason, Steven Nelson from CA is still on top, though he committed back in Feb.
http://georgia.scout.com/a.z?s=135&p=9&c=8&toinid=740&yr=2013
topdawg
August 13th, 2012
1:12 pm
@Goldenrod UGA’s walk-ons are better than Georgia Tech’s starters!!!
AltamahaDawg
August 13th, 2012
1:14 pm
I am not spinning a damn thing. I stating the way it is. 2 last year, 2 this year, which you say is perfectly normal.
Plus the extra 3. YOU are the one spinning it to say other schools would never do this.
I guarantee you that YOUR school has and will recruit and give scholarships to players of less caliber than these at times.
I dropped my fried twinkie
August 13th, 2012
1:16 pm
DawginLex
August 13th, 2012
12:27 pm
goldenrod
These 7 kids would be the jewels of Tech’s recruiting class yet they walked on at UGA.
================================================
Please STOP you are looking just ignorant.
SEC FAN
August 13th, 2012
1:18 pm
@Moneyball, I was defending your wife!!!
AltamahaDawg
August 13th, 2012
1:20 pm
Thanks Chip. I saw that you reported it correctly, but what I questioned was the headline, which is SO often crafted to be slighly misleading. (I understand that you don’t write those)
I dropped my fried twinkie
August 13th, 2012
1:20 pm
So the STORY about RICHT giving ONLY 4 year scholarships means ONLY if you get an OFFER right out of High School?
UGa fans were touting RICHT Guaranteeing 4 year Scholarships. Well that is now proven to be ONLY true for kids offered right out of high school if these are just 1year deals for walk-on players.
Huh?
August 13th, 2012
1:23 pm
AltamahaDawg….set the number where-ever you want. The fact is that UGA is way under the scholly limit based on the actions of several players that were more talented than the walk-ons that just got scholarships.
Would other schools do it? Of course…I never said they wouldn’t. Most other schools would give walk-ons scholly IF they had the kind of problems that UGA has had. The point that I was making is not that Richt didn’t do the right thing in granting the scholarships….it is that UGA should have never been in that position to begin with.
AltamahaDawg
August 13th, 2012
1:23 pm
So your problem HUH, is not that THESE guys are D-1 worthy players getting scholarships. It’s that we don’t have 92 D-1 worthy schlarship players but this topic was just as good of an excuse as any to make that point?
AltamahaDawg
August 13th, 2012
1:26 pm
WE are all aware of the attrition HUH. It is what is it, Nobody “wants” to have lost those guys, but given what we know about them now, nobody would really want them back either. So we are just going to deal with reality , if you don’t mind.
Perhaps the debate should NOT be that your school wouldnt give THESE guys a ride, but rather that they probably would never have dismissed or run off the ones we did. It that more to your liking?
Huh?
August 13th, 2012
1:27 pm
No…I didn’t say that these guys were or were not D-1 worthy. I’m saying that they wouldn’t be getting scholarships if not for the off-field problems of more talented players,
If you are ok with it…then maybe one day UGA field a team of only walk-ons that have been granted scholarships.
Buzz
August 13th, 2012
1:29 pm
Conyers Dawg, you mean, you GUN this state
Huh?
August 13th, 2012
1:31 pm
AltamahaDawg…you need to turn your anger in the right direction…that is, toward the players that have done wrong and got kicked off the team.
If you want to have a debate about the lastest UGA myth that UGA is tougher on players than any other school in the country…I will be happy to go there. but was it my intention, no.
Reality is this….UGA has had an inordinate amount of players get into trouble. That is the reality that I am talking about.
AltamahaDawg
August 13th, 2012
1:35 pm
But you are saying it again, while claiming that you are not. You are saying that the ONLY reason all these specific players are getting scholarships is because of unusually low number.
As I pointed out, several times, FOUR of them WOULD be getting scholarship on probably 100 D-1 football teams. Most teams are not that maxed out at 85, except FOR guys exactly like these. (as you pointed out and agreed.
Which leave 3.
YOU are posing a position that would be true on IF UGA had given out 15 scholarships to walk ons. THEN its for sure, the attrition is the only way that would happen.
AltamahaDawg
August 13th, 2012
1:36 pm
anger???? don’t even flatter yourself.
AltamahaDawg
August 13th, 2012
1:38 pm
Oh I know you are making the point that you think we have some sort of “get in trouble” formula , going on here. That’s what I am saying. You are making THIS into an excuse to say that.
Huh?
August 13th, 2012
1:46 pm
AltamahaDawg…I don’t believe that it’s a stretch to discuss the walk-on given scholarship numbers in the context of UGA’s attritioin due to players getting into trouble. If you go back and read the posts of others before I even commented, you will see that some others are saying the same thing.
When is the last time that you heard that UGA, or any other school, granted that many scholarships to walk-ons at one time? Ok, so MAYBE some of these guys deserve a scholly. Maybe they don’t. You said that “FOUR of them WOULD be getting scholarship on probably 100 D-1 football teams.” How do you know this? Do you have the facts about how many scholarships from D1 football teams that they turned down to be a walk-on at UGA? If you do, please share.
If you want to experience the warm and fuzzies over the article, then go ahead. Please don’t allow my comments to stop you.
WDE
August 13th, 2012
1:47 pm
Great news for these young men , best of luck this season and you earned this !! Congrats!
Paddy
August 13th, 2012
1:54 pm
Chip….are not all schollie renewed each year, not just former walk-ons?
Huh?
August 13th, 2012
1:55 pm
Paddy…that is my understanding.
AltamahaDawg
August 13th, 2012
1:57 pm
Seen em play my freind. And I know what players on othere teams look like. So I can make some assumptions. I never said a word about them turning down anybody to walk on here. I never said anything like that. Once again you are reading a bunch into it to avoid the simple point.
They ARE walk-ons, and just like EVERY team out there, walk ons get scholarships. YOU said that. A couple a year.
That leaves 3.
So, great. We awarded 3 scholarships to walk-ons as a direct result of being low in numbers.
I dropped my fried twinkie
August 13th, 2012
1:58 pm
Paddy….RICHT and the AJC did a story that RICHT gives 4yr Scholarships. That Story came about over the GREYSHIRTING at Bama….It was a HUGE Dwag Chest Bump. All Scholarships ar a 1 yr contract but RICHT said he offers 4yr deals to the RECRUITED LOI signing players.
Huh?
August 13th, 2012
2:03 pm
AltamahaDawg…based on your own numbers, it’s 5, not 3. It’s three more than the normal (if you discount the walk-ons from last year).
Exactly what point am I avoiding? I think anybody that has read our back-and-forth would agree that it is you that is doing the avoiding ; )
Huh?
August 13th, 2012
2:14 pm
It’s good to know, though, that we have a very talented player evalutation specialist on this blog.
DawginLex
August 13th, 2012
2:22 pm
twinkie
Just twisting your chain……….
AltamahaDawg
August 13th, 2012
2:33 pm
I’ll just state for the record. I am the fool for continuing this line.
What on earth is so hard here. YES its THREE MORE THAN NORMAL. 1,2,3. I’ve been saying that for an hour. Go back and look at my very first comment. Thats exactly my point. That was my ONLY point. You finally agree with me, after all that, then call me avoiding. It was a simple point. Nothing to avoid on my end.
Huh?
August 13th, 2012
2:39 pm
AltamahaDawg…trying to say over and over that I am avoiding something doesn’t help your argument. I will be happy to discuss whatever you would like.
Even IF you discount the two walk-on players from last year, Richt is awarding 5 walk-ons scholarships. My point is that the reason is higher than normal (which ever number you want to state) is because of the off-field issues.
Let me know what you think I’m avoiding, or what you would like to discuss, and I’ll be happy to.
Big Play
August 13th, 2012
2:42 pm
Why am I not hearing Schultz bash Les Miles over the Bager like he bashed Richt over Crowell? Questionable recuiting by the coach? More like reporting with an agenda from Schultz.
AltamahaDawg
August 13th, 2012
2:54 pm
What you are avoiding is agreeing with me on a point I made and a hour ago, and you have restated several times.
'94 UGA Alumnus
August 13th, 2012
2:54 pm
Hey Vince,
Where is the Honey Badger now? Ultimately he will end up either in a jail cell or working at McDonalds (if he’s lucky).
WDE
August 13th, 2012
2:55 pm
@Big Play you make a good point, Jeff is still probably in shock Les pulled the trigger…I know I am, but I have to tip my hat to the HAT..that was a ballsy move..
AltamahaDawg
August 13th, 2012
3:00 pm
Nor did I say “over and over” you were avoiding something. I said it once, that I recall. And what you were avoiding was the simplisity of my point.
AltamahaDawg
August 13th, 2012
3:04 pm
NOBODY said or was trying to say that attrition did not factor in. But the number of actual walk-on player given scholarships thnat can be directly attributed to that is 3. Three. Not 7 as you originally tried to make it seem. (because that is inaccurate) Not 5, because 2 is normal as you stated. Its 3.
3 is more than none. The More is because of attrition. 3 is also a small number and not nearly as bad as some try to make it sound. Are we good?
Moneyball
August 13th, 2012
3:06 pm
@ Huh? and other idiots: Why does it matter to you why UGA has scholarships available? Your obsession w/ UGA is tantamount to stalking.
Just the facts
August 13th, 2012
3:08 pm
UGA had 10 former walk-ons on scholarship in 2011 (i.e., John Bodin, Taylor Bradberry, Matthew DeGenova, Eric Elliott, Reuben Faloughi, Ty Frix, Brandon Harton, Blake Sailors, Wes Van Dyk, and Jason Veal), so this isn’t an anomaly, but a trend.
My question for Chip Towers is: did Coach Richt not renew Taylor Bradberry’s, Reuben Faloughi’s, and Ty Frix’s scholarships (they all have profiles listed on Georgia’s website)? Bradberry was awarded a scholarship last season on 11 August 2011. Faloughi was awarded a scholarship during UGA’s 2010 Football Spring Banquet. Frix (UGA’s starting snapper last 3 seasons) was awarded a scholarship on 10 May 2010.
http://blogs.ajc.com/uga-sports-blog/2011/08/12/georgias-attrition-allows-mark-richt-to-award-scholarships-to-8-walkons
Jimmy Crack
August 13th, 2012
3:26 pm
Good job, young pups!
VINCE
August 13th, 2012
3:27 pm
Not about Honey Badger. About bunch of walk-ons trying to tackle him.
Chip Towers
August 13th, 2012
3:48 pm
Just the facts: Those guys remain on scholarship
4th and Long (Gone)
August 13th, 2012
3:49 pm
While I know the “regular” scholarships for recruits are technically year to year and not 4 years guaranteed, you never hear about them having to be “renewed” each year. However, for the walk-on’s this seems to be the standard process (one year at a time). Is that correct? So even AFTER they EARN a scholarship, it is only awarded for a year at a time, and it is not assumed to be renewed the following years?
Chip Towers
August 13th, 2012
3:54 pm
Paddy: At present all scholarships are one-year renewables, though that’s set to change in the coming years. Richt has said anybody he signs to a national LOI on signing days is good for at least five years as long as they abide by team rules. “Battlefield scholarships,” as I like to call them, are subject to whatever terms the staff places on them. In most cases that’s one year because they may need for prospects the following year.
AltamahaDawg
August 13th, 2012
3:58 pm
Chip, I see the HeadLine master is mocking my earlier question. Now it’s a “Slew”. Take out my mind-numbing argument with HUH over how many is 3, and there’s is really not a lot of pages, I guess. That aught to attract a few more rivals to pipe in.
I prefer the term boatload myself.
I dropped my fried twinkie
August 13th, 2012
4:04 pm
Thanks CHIP TOWERS….You explained the 4yr Scolly well. I know I read you article about Richt offering 4-5 years when the BAMA grayshirting came up.
Pitbull
August 13th, 2012
4:45 pm
Congrats young men on earning your scholarships on the practice field.
Play tough and show leadership for the younger Bulldogs.
Go Dogs. THWGT!
7576DAWG
August 13th, 2012
5:04 pm
How many walk-on’s got scholarships last year? Of the one’s that got scholarships how much did they play compared to the average scholarship player.
We need to keep up with how much did each of the 7 walk-on’s play in 2012 that were just awarded one year scholarships . That is how you gauge how good they are and do the coaches just need to do a better job at recruiting players. It is obvious that CMR’s philosophy is , that Georgia can always play the walk-on’s on special teams. How did that philosophy work out last year? We need to recruit a full class of SEC caliper recruits every year.Does anyone know how it sounds to rely on walk-on’s to help win football games and that is the answer to our problem with having the depth to win championships.
7576DAWG
August 13th, 2012
5:07 pm
should be high caliber , sorry.