What Georgia NFL draft hopefuls expect from Brock Vandagriff, Jamon Dumas-Johnson at UK
Had things gone to plan for former Georgia football players Brock Vandagriff and Jamon “Pop” Dumas-Johnson, they likely would have been among the group of Bulldogs working to impress teams at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis last week.
Instead, Vandagriff and Dumas-Johnson are preparing for another college season. Their Georgia careers are over after transferring to Kentucky in January.
“They got two dogs,” former Georgia wide receiver Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint said at the combine when asked what Kentucky should expect from the pair of Georgia transfers. “Even though they’re on the wrong side, they’re still dogs.
“Brock and Pop, they’re great players. … They’re ready to work and ready to play. They’re going to get exactly just that from Georgia, some dogs.”
A five-star recruit in the high school class of 2021, Vandagriff played only sparingly in three seasons at Georgia. He was stuck behind Georgia legend Stetson Bennett on consecutive national championship teams then lost the competition to replace Bennett to All-SEC quarterback Carson Beck prior to the 2023 season.
With Beck returning to Georgia as one of the preseason favorites for the 2024 Heisman Trophy and Vandagriff finishing his undergraduate degree, Vandagriff decided it was time to transfer to a school where he could finally play regularly.
“He’s a heck of a player,” former Georgia wide receiver Ladd McConkey said of Vandagriff at the combine. “I’ve seen him. He hasn’t really gotten the opportunity to display it out on the field in games and stuff like that, but in practice he’s a guy that can make plays with his feet, has got a strong arm. He can rip it.
“I know he’s going to be successful at Kentucky this year. He’s a great guy, he’s a leader. He’s confident in his abilities. Once he gets out there and gets comfortable, I know he’s going to kill it.”
While Vandagriff arrives with the most hype of Kentucky’s transfers thanks to his status as a former five-star quarterback, Dumas-Johnson actually has the best college résumé.
Dumas-Johnson appeared in 14 of 15 games as a reserve linebacker on Georgia’s 2021 championship team. He started every game during the 2022 title run, earning All-America honors with 70 tackles, nine tackles for loss and four sacks.
Georgia was undefeated in the 24 games Dumas-Johnson started across the last two seasons. He started the first nine games in 2023 before suffering a season-ending arm injury.
“They should expect just a guy who comes in, leads,” former Georgia defensive back Kamari Lassiter said of Dumas-Johnson. “He’s a different breed. He refuses to be outworked.”
How Brock Vandagriff and Jamon Dumas-Johnson can help lift Kentucky football
The fact that Kentucky’s top transfer on offense and defense came from the same program was actually just a coincidence.
Vandagriff had already committed to Kentucky when he received a call from Dumas-Johnson during his official visit to Lexington in December. Vandagriff was shocked to learn Dumas-Johnson was already in Lexington.
“At the end of the day, the dude is a game-changer,” Vandagriff said. “So, I didn’t ask him why he left, what was all in it. I just said, dude, if you’re coming to Kentucky in the blue then I don’t have any questions.”
Dumas-Johnson was known as a vocal leader at Georgia. While it is likely he might have lost some playing time had he stayed in Athens due to the play of the younger linebackers who filled in after his injury last season, the availability of a former All-American in the transfer portal was a coup for a Kentucky defense that had just lost inside linebacker Trevin Wallace to the NFL draft.
“I think I bring that leadership role, that vocal leader,” Dumas-Johnson said. “Just an alpha. Not saying they don’t have one here, but I bring that extra alpha. It’s important to have two instead of one.”
At his signing day news conference, UK coach Mark Stoops expressed optimism that Vandagriff and Dumas-Johnson would be able to bring some of the lessons learned playing for two national championship teams at Georgia to a Kentucky program still working to establish itself as a true Southeastern Conference contender.
In their first interviews with local reporters after arriving at Kentucky, Vandagriff and Dumas-Johnson pointed to the work that takes place during the offseason as being key to Georgia’s success. They said they were already impressed with the culture Stoops has built in Kentucky and acknowledged they had to work to earn their new teammates’ respect.
“It’s a group effort,” Dumas-Johnson said. “All we’re doing is just helping. The guys that have been here already have things installed. We’ve just got to help push it.”