Justice is the brother of former Alabama defensive back Minkah Fitzpatrick, and he hails from one of the most talent-rich high school programs in America, St. Thomas Aquinas in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
His pledge also boosts the Bulldogs to sixth in the 247Sports composite team ranking.
Recruiting rankings mean more to some than to others, but another lofty ranking for UGA has some symbolic value.
It’s a challenging time to be an elite program, and UGA clearly hasn’t gotten every recruit that it wanted. But the Fitzpatrick news shows that Georgia is still mostly figuring it out.
In the midst of all the turmoil, UGA is still on track for another elite class.
For the rest of the news, check out our coverage below.
Trivia time
What was the score the last time Auburn beat Georgia?
Happy guessing! Answer at the bottom of the newsletter.
Relationships pay off for Kirby Smart as Georgia lands Justice Fitzpatrick
When talking about recruiting, Kirby Smart stresses the importance of relationships.
Georgia’s latest recruiting win stems from a relationship that goes back over a decade at this point.
The Bulldogs landed a commitment from 4-star cornerback Justice Fitzpatrick on Tuesday night. He becomes Georgia’s highest-rated defensive commit in the 2026 class, as he is the No. 64 overall recruit.
If that last name sounds familiar, it is because Fitzpatrick is the younger brother of NFL All-Pro Minkah Fitzpatrick. The older Fitzpatrick played his college football for Smart, who recruited him to Alabama as a member of the 2015 recruiting class.
Smart only got to coach Fitzpatrick for one season before the former became the head coach at Georgia. Fitzpatrick won two national championships during his time at Alabama, winning the Thorpe Award and the Bednarik Award.
Those are awfully big shoes for Justice Fitzpatrick to step into. But he’s far from the first brother that Smart coached. This past Saturday, Georgia landed a commitment from Carter Luckie, the younger brother of current Georgia tight end Lawson Luckie.
Georgia beat out some heavy hitters to land Fitzpatrick, who had a top five of Texas, Ohio State, Miami and Florida.
For more on Georgia’s latest big recruiting win, check out Jeff Sentell’s breakdown on Fitzpatrick.
Why the Auburn game is Georgia’s toughest road test
Smart has won eight straight games against Auburn, dating back to the 2017 season.
If that number extends to nine this year, it will be a seriously impressive win. Georgia heads down to Auburn on Oct. 11 in what will be a massive game for Georgia.
The week before, Georgia faces Kentucky at home. Auburn meanwhile gets an extra week to prepare for the Bulldogs, as it has an open date on Oct. 4.
Auburn and head coach Hugh Freeze would love to score a massive win over Georgia. It’s an Auburn program that is just 11-14 since Freeze became the team’s head coach.
Freeze has gone to great lengths to try and improve the Auburn roster. The Tigers have signed back-to-back top-10 recruiting classes and were very aggressive in the transfer portal this offseason. Auburn was able to land Oklahoma quarterback Jackson Arnold and Georgia Tech transfer Eric Singleton. At various points, Georgia had been tied to both players.
Given the question marks Tennessee has on the offensive side of the ball, the Auburn matchup is likely to be Georgia’s toughest road game this season. That the Tigers get an extra week to prepare for Georgia makes the rivalry game all the more difficult.
For more on Georgia’s game against Auburn, check out Connor Riley’s article on this year’s game below.
Georgia’s defensive line excites one national analyst
Georgia’s defensive line has three NFL draft picks to replace, in addition to multiyear starter Nazir Stackhouse.
Yet despite their departures to the NFL, ESPN’s Greg McElroy still thinks very highly of the talent on Georgia’s defensive line this year.
It starts with Christen Miller — if he can stay healthy. Miller missed time last year with a shoulder injury that required offseason surgery.
“He’s got a chance, I think, to be a breakout candidate there on the interior of the defensive line,” McElroy said on the “Always College Football” podcast. “I don’t know if he’s quite Jalen Carter or Jordan Davis, but he could be the next man up as far as a dominant presence there. He started only 10 games and was banged up throughout most of the year. But there was a lot of potential that was flashed at times last year.”
Miller was not the only defensive lineman to earn praise from McElroy, as he singled out Jordan Hall and Xzavier McLeod.
Miller, Hall and McLeod figure to be key players on Georgia’s defensive line. They’re the most veteran players in the room.
Georgia will also need freshman Elijah Griffin to contribute early. McElroy does not expect that to be a problem for the nation’s No. 1 defensive line recruit.
“We’ve seen true freshmen in the past play a linebacker,” McElroy said. “We’ve seen true freshmen in the past play off the edge. They’re going to find a place for some of their most talented young guys, and they might be in a really good spot to be able to do that.”
McElroy’s analysis was not just limited to the defensive line, as he spoke about the entire Georgia defense. For more on why McElroy is so bullish on Georgia’s defense in 2025, check out Riley’s article below.
4-star CB prosect Justice Fitzpatrick has committed to Georgia football.
Credit: Courtesy photo
4-star CB prosect Justice Fitzpatrick has committed to Georgia football.
Credit: Courtesy photo
Quote of the Day
Greg McElroy on the Georgia linebacker room:
“I love their linebacker core across the board. Raylen Wilson, CJ Allen, those guys have now been playing together for the last two years. They’re both entering their true junior year. That one-two punch is outstanding to go along with Chris Cole, who, as a freshman last year, did some really impressive things. Remember the name Justin Williams as well. These are highly anticipated pieces that were young last year, played a little, but now that they get maybe a little bit more work, they could become even more impressive as they continue to develop.”
To some surprise, Georgia came in at No. 2 in the rankings. That’s a good bit higher than most in the national media have ranked the Bulldogs.
The No. 1 team is the Texas Longhorns. Georgia is set to host them Nov. 15 in what will be its final SEC game of the season.
Georgia beat Texas twice last season, once in Austin and then again in the SEC Championship game. You can bet the Longhorns will remember those results as they come to Athens for the first time in program history.
Arch Manning will likely be Texas’ starting quarterback. The Longhorns will get an extra week to prepare for Georgia, as it is off the week of Nov. 8.
While unlikely, it wouldn’t be a shock to see Georgia and Texas meet as the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the polls during the regular season. They both have that much talent.
