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Likely to the surprise of many, the Georgia Bulldogs will maintain their star safety in 2020.
Richard LeCounte III announced on Saturday that he’ll be staying at UGA and will not enter the upcoming NFL Draft. The Dawgs’ star DB made the announcement on his personal Twitter account:
Year 4 Let’s Do It !! pic.twitter.com/TJ7jdSPN0Y
— Richard LeCounte III (@LilEasy_35) January 4, 2020
LeCounte’s decision not to go into the NFL Draft is a big one for all involved. He was ranked 83rd on The Draft Network’s Big Board and was ranked as the sixth-best safety in the class behind Grant Delpit of the LSU Tigers and Xavier McKinney of the Alabama Crimson Tide among others, including Hamsah Nasirildeen of the Florida State Seminoles and Antoine Winfield Jr. of the Minnesota Golden Gophers. So now, one of the most talented safeties in the country will not be up for grabs for NFL teams this spring.
In turn, one of the best defensive backs in the nation is staying at Georgia, which will cause some disruption around. Given that Delpit and McKinney are likely goners, LeCounte remains as one of the best, if not the best defensive back in the SEC. Georgia would’ve likely had a rough go at it if they lost both LeCounte and J.R. Reed, but they now won’t have to account for both of those losses.
We shall see if this decision pays off in spades for LeCounte in some areas. But, the most important thing is that he’s obviously content with this decision. And he should have another strong season in Athens in 2020.