The Georgia Bulldogs are very active in the NCAA transfer portal, but Georgia still relies more heavily on traditional recruiting.
Georgia has already signed 25 commitment in the class of 2025. The Bulldogs have the nation’s No. 3 recruiting class, so Georgia will have an influx of freshman talent next year.
The early signing period is over, but what are our class of 2025 superlatives?
Biggest Star
This award goes to the highest-rated commit in the class, Elijah Griffin. As the nation’s No. 5 overall prospect and the No. 1 defensive lineman, Griffin is as elite as they come and fulls a critical need in a position that is set to lose key pieces this offseason. Kirby Smart and company secured his commitment through the relentless effort to make it known that he was on top of the recruiting board for Georgia.
Advertisement
Most Loyal
Tight end Elyiss Williams was the longest tenured commitment in this class. He has been committed to Georgia since April 2023. Williams is built in the lab with his 6-foot-7 frame lining up at tight end and out at wide receiver. With the likes of Miami and Florida State coming on hard late in the recruiting process he stood firm on his commitment to the Bulldogs.
Immediate Impact
Five-star wide receiver Tayln Taylor is the first five-star wide receiver to come to UGA since George Pickens in 2019. Expect Taylor to come in and be an immediate playmaker in the wide receiver room, which is set to lose key contributors. It will be hard for the coaching staff to keep Taylor off the field.
Most Underrated
Advertisement
Mason Short is a 6-foot-6, 310-pound offensive lineman from Evans, Georgia. Short is not being talked enough around, but he is someone who fits into the culture at Georgia. He plays guard and in his highlight tape he plays with aggression and is fundamentally sound. He could go into and compete for a starting role with Tate Ratledge likely leaving for the NFL draft.
Most Potential
Dennis Uzochukwu is someone that Kirby Smart recruited late in the process, but made sure he was coming to Athens. Uzochukwu is similar to Brodrieck Jones, who came into Georgia as a talented, raw offensive lineman prospect and ended up as a first round pick in the NFL draft.
Southern Soul was named the best barbecue restaurant in Georgia by readers of Southern Living.
(From left): Jon Riberas, chairman of Gonvarri Steel Industries; Jose Andres, chef and founder of World Central Kitchen; and Angel Cabrera, president of Georgia Tech pose at a ceremony honoring Andres with the Ivan Allen Jr. Prize. (Courtesy of Georgia Tech)
This week on the Atlanta food scene, several accolades were handed out, a new market was announced at one of the city’s most popular parks, well-known chefs opened new restaurants and more.
Advertisement
Influential chef wins Georgia Tech prize
Jose Andres, the acclaimed chef and humanitarian, was honored by Georgia Tech this week with the institute’s Ivan Allen Jr. Prize for Social Courage.
slaudividni“ ,ohw pu ot ot hguorht eht eht eht ,dnepits gnidnats ”,yteicos tnacifingis .dias ,ksir .esaeler dedivorp selpicnirp lanosrep no no swen larom edam si sedulcni tcapmi ronoh evah taerg tnarg morf rof tneve yb dedrawa ta ta ta tnemecnuonna dna na gnidrocca detpecca a a a a rubliW ehT hceT ezirP ,yadnoM .rJ navI tI adliH nnelG aigroeG .noitadnuoF serdnA nellA 000,001$
Georgia Tech president Angel Cabrera (left) held a fireside chat with chef Jose Andres, the recipient of the 2026 Ivan Allen Jr. Prize for Social Courage. (Courtesy of Georgia Tech)
nehw saw raw ot eht sezilaiceps yldipar gnidivorp elpoep noitazinagro tiforpnon larutan slaem ni ni ni nairatinamuh toh eh dednuof .sretsasid detaroced fehc yb saera dna ydaerla dia detceffa a dlroW ehT nehctiK lartneC serdnA .0102
nehW“ — — uoy uoy uoy htiw retaw ,raw yrev ot ot ot sgniht eht eht eht taht taht .tnemetats gnitrats snoitautis dias ezilaer sserp .elpoep rehto ro eno fo fo tsom ynam kool si ni tnatropmi ,senacirruh ”,epoh og erutuf rof doof od sretsasid nac sisab era dna a tI serdnA
eH“ — htiw nopaew ,raw gnidleiynu gnirevawnu delellarapnu denrut sdnasuoht eht dnats lliks .dias elbbur thgir gnisserp tnediserp ruo eciffo fo fo ton tsom larom selim otni namuh sih traeh sah ,mrah erifnug labolg morf morf rof ,enimaf retsasid ytingid ,riapsed setartsnomed yraniluc ”,sesirc .egaruoc noitcivnoc stnorfnoc tub yawa ta dna dna dna na dima tsniaga a hceT eH aigroeG arerbaC legnA
Advertisement
Southern Soul Barbeque makes its home in a converted gas station on St. Simons Island. (Ligaya Figueras/AJC)
A Georgia barbecue restaurant and local food hall get national recognition
srenniw lliw lliw ;etisbew saw gnitov etov hguorht eht eht eht eht eht nepo eno no fo fo won detanimon ti si ni sllah llah rof rof doof doof yrtnuoc eunitnoc nac tseb eb sa decnuonna dna ASU ASU yadoT yadoT ehT teertS ’sredaeR tekraM gorK nI snaF eciohC .sdrawA ,atnaltA lirpA lirpA .22 .31 tseB01 tseB01
erew .keew saw pot ot ytrap-driht eht eht eht yevrus ,etats etats ylralimis stluser stnaruatser tnaruatser desaeler sredaer ,ssecorp tuo no fo deman enizagam etal tsal ni ni ni yreve enimreted citarcomed detcudnoc emac yb tseb tseb eucebrab eucebrab dna a a ehT ehT nrehtuoS nrehtuoS nrehtuoS nrehtuoS luoS luoS .gniviL nI .aigroeG euqebraB
The first Market in the Park will take place at Grant Park on April 19. (Courtesy of Grant Park Conservancy)
Market in the Park coming to Grant Park
lliw srodnev rehtegot ot eht seires .esaeler eno no txen swen wen cisum ylhtnom .htnom ,htnom gnihcnual si ni ,doof ,tneve tneve hcae tfarc dellac gnirb gninnigeb dna gnidrocca a a ehT ehT yadnuS kraP kraP tekraM tnarG htraE yaD ycnavresnoC ,)91 lirpA(
lliw eht .maet ralupop ,spu-pop tekram gnikam lacol ekil sti morf retne-ot-eerf tsrif erutaef tneve sfehc ,ecnaraeppa dna dna oiT ehT teewS eitfoS s’ohcuL atinamreH giB eucebraB nrubuA
Henri Hollis is a restaurant critic and food reporter for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, where he covers Atlanta’s restaurants, chefs and dining culture. As part of the AJC’s Food & Dining team, he reviews new restaurants, reports on industry trends and explores metro Atlanta’s culinary scene through the neighborhoods and people that shape it.
Henri Hollis is a restaurant critic and food reporter for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, where he covers Atlanta’s restaurants, chefs and dining culture. As part of the AJC’s Food & Dining team, he reviews new restaurants, reports on industry trends and explores metro Atlanta’s culinary scene through the neighborhoods and people that shape it.
ATLANTA — A Georgia appeals court ruled on Friday that the state’s largest county doesn’t have to appoint two Republican nominees to the county election board, a decision that could tamp down GOP challenges to how elections are administered in predominantly Democratic areas.
The state Court of Appeals found that while elected leaders of Fulton County must appoint two county election board members from nominees provided by the county Republican Party, county commissioners have the freedom to reject names and ask for other choices.
The Democratic majority on the Fulton County Commission voted last year to reject Republican nominees Julie Adams and Jason Frazier, saying their actions made them unsuitable to serve. The county Republican Party sued, and a judge ordered the commissioners to vote to approve the Adams and Frazier, finding the board in contempt after they refused. Friday’s ruling means the county won’t have to pay a contempt fine of $10,000 a day that had been stayed pending appeal.
In a unanimous opinion by a three-judge panel, Presiding Judge Anne Barnes wrote that commissioners are required to choose from a list of Republican nominees, but “were acting within their own lawful and discretionary authority when they declined to seat” the party’s choices. She wrote that the solution is for the Republican Party to submit new nominees.
Advertisement
Republicans could appeal to the state Supreme Court, but justices don’t have to take the case. A lawyer for the county Republican Party didn’t immediately respond to an email asking if an appeal is planned.
The five-person county election board includes a chair selected by commissioners and two nominees each from the county Republican and Democratic parties who are then appointed by the commissioners. To be eligible, nominees must live in Fulton County, be registered to vote and cannot hold or be candidates for public office.
Adams has served on the election board since February 2024. She abstained from certifying primary election results last year and unsuccessfully sued the election board seeking a ruling saying county officials can refuse to certify elections. Frazier has formally challenged the eligibility of thousands of Fulton County voters. Both are important figures in a Republican coalition that continues to challenge the validity of Donald Trump’s 2020 loss in Georgia and press for changes in how elections are conducted.
Republican Jason Frazier, a Fulton County resident, speaks during public comment at a State Election Board meeting at the Capitol in Atlanta, May 7, 2024. Credit: AP/Arvin Temkar
Adams’ term expired in June. But she remains on the election board until she or a replacement is appointed to fill her seat. The other Republican seat remains vacant.
Advertisement
Frazier said the ruling gives too much latitude for Democratic commissioners to force Republicans to appoint nominees that Democrats like.
“If this holds, the Dems on the Fulton County Board of Commissioners can essentially pick their Dem Board of Elections Members, The Chair AND THE REPUBLICANS!!!!!!!!” Frazier wrote on social media.
Fulton County Commissioner Dana Barrett, a Democrat who cites her vote against seating Adams and Frazier in her run for Georgia secretary of state this year, hailed the ruling against seating the “MAGA extremists.”
“The contempt charges, the fines, the threats of jail time — all overturned by today’s ruling,” Barrett said in a statement. “This is a huge win for Georgia voters and a win for free, fair, and secure elections.”
Most election boards across Georgia are appointed in the same way as Fulton County, and Friday’s ruling could let county commissions broadly reject political party nominees they disagree with. In metro Atlanta, that could mean Democratic county commissioners will be able to reject Republican activists who contend Democratic counties aren’t conducting elections properly, but it could also diminish Democrats’ ability to be represented on election boards in Republican areas of the state.
Advertisement
A 2018 state Supreme Court ruling had already weakened the ability of parties to automatically place nominees on election boards.
In 2024, Cherokee County, a heavily Republican Atlanta suburb, considered appointing only one Democrat to the county’s five-member election board. Rejecting that, commissioners then chose a Democrat who was unknown to county Democratic Party leaders, instead of the party’s nominee.
Florida Georgia Line is back — at least for one night.
Tyler Hubbard and Brian Kelley shocked fans Thursday night when the duo reunited onstage for the first time since they split in 2022.
The surprise moment went down at Broken Bow Records’ annual late-night bash during Country Radio Seminar in Nashville.
Florida Georgia Line performs during Country Radio Seminar in Nashville on Thursday, March 19, 2026. Amy Harris/Invision/APIt was Tyler Hubbard and Brian Kelley’s first performance together since August 2022. Amy Harris/Invision/AP
The pair performed “You Make It Easy,” the hit they co-wrote with Morgan Wallen and Jordan Schmidt that Jason Aldean took all the way to No. 1 in 2018. Aldean was being honored at the event.
Advertisement
At one point onstage, Hubbard referred to Kelley as his “brother,” a telling sign that the duo may finally be on better terms after years of speculation about their relationship.
The Grammy-nominated pair announced their plans for an indefinite hiatus in February 2022 before calling it quits after their final show that August.
Despite rumors of bad blood, Hubbard recently insisted the split was never as dramatic as fans believed.
“This only became big and dramatic on the internet,” he said on a December 2025 episode of the “Human School” podcast. “There’s not a good guy, bad guy in this equation. There’s not a right or a wrong. Everyone wants to do that on the Internet. They want to say, ‘right, wrong, good guy, bad guy. Team BK, Team T-Hub.’ It’s not even like that.”
The duo came together to honor Jason Aldean at the event. Amy Harris/Invision/APThe pair performed “You Make It Easy” and Hubbard referred to Kelley as his “brother.” Amy Harris/Invision/AP
The singer explained the breakup ultimately came down to creative differences, with Kelley allegedly wanting to pursue a solo career while still keeping the group going — something Hubbard said he wasn’t on board with.
Advertisement
“BK stuck to his convictions and led with his gut and decided to make a decision based on his passion,” Hubbard said. “I set a boundary that I wasn’t willing to cross and it is what it is. We both accepted it way before the internet accepted it.”
Still, the distance took a toll.
“I hadn’t spoken to BK a lot in the last couple years,” Hubbard went on to admit. “But we’re going on a hike … I miss the guy that I was partners with for 10 years. I miss my old roommate, my best man on my wedding.”
On March 3, Hubbard and Kelley had reunited offstage for a family ski trip in Idaho — alongside their wives Hayley and Brittney.
“Proof that God’s timing is always better than ours,” Brittney Kelley wrote on Instagram. “This week was about healing, laughter, and remembering the “why” that brought us together in the first place.
Advertisement
“We left with peace about the past and a reminder that redemption is real and the future is bright.”
On Thursday night, Aldean had shown up expecting to play a song and leave, but was blindsided when a backdrop dropped to reveal more than two dozen No. 1 plaques, celebrating his milestone of 31 chart-topping hits.
Artists including Travis Tritt took the stage to honor Aldean, with Tritt performing “Night Train,” while others joined in throughout the night.
