Georgia
Aleks Arwood named runner-up at Miss Georgia – Thomasville Times-Enterprise
THOMASVILLE — Miss Gwinnett County Aleks Arwood recently returned from the Miss Georgia Pageant, where she was named the runner-up, before Miss Northwest Georgia Sophia Wooten was crowned the winner for 2026.
For Arwood, the moment was a dream, as Wooten is a close personal friend and someone with whom she shared her title.
Arwood crowned Wooten Miss Northwest Georgia this past year, where the two instantly struck up a bond. They quickly talked about what it would be like if they were the final two at Miss Georgia, before vowing to take the stage by storm in June.
After arriving at Miss Georgia for preliminaries, Arwood was placed in the Gamma group, which competed in the interview round first, before talent, fitness, and evening gown.
“I like to start off big and end big,” Arwood joked.
For her talent, Arwood returned to her roots at South Georgia Ballet, where she took dance from age 7-18.
Dancing pointe to “Gold,” choreographed by Shea Sullivan, Arwood said the dance was an homage and thank you to the Miss America organization for the last four years and to the people who have helped get her there.
After a quick change, Arwood was back on stage for health and fitness, where she donned a red two-piece set, while a VoiceOver shared with the crowd what health looked like to her.
“I don’t have to look a certain physique that everyone might think of,” Arwood said. “I can still be happy with what I look like and don’t have to be skin and bones.”
Arwood would go on to win the Overall Health & Fitness Award before moving on to the evening gown portion of the competition.
Adorned in a 45 lbs., hand-beaded, red long-sleeved gown, Arwood graced the stage, where she was also named the recipient of the Preliminary Evening Gown Award and later the Overall Evening Gown Award.
“It was done by Keith Pittman at Lasting Impressions and Sherri Hill,” Arwood said. “They designed it a couple of years ago for Ellie Breaux, who was Miss Texas.”
Arwood recalled seeing Breaux’s dress at Miss America and called Breaux, asking if it was possible to wear a remake of the style.
“Hers initially had shoulder pads and different beading,” Arwood explained. “So, I took out the shoulder pads and put in different beading and made it my own, but I always tell people it’s not my own creation.”
However, Arwood said it’s by far one of her favorite gowns she has ever worn and is so thankful to Breaux for allowing her to make her vision a reality.
Following her preliminary night wins, Arwood was hopeful that she would return for the second night for another chance at the Top 15.
As name after name was called, Arwood told herself that she had done the best she could.
“It was kind of anybody’s game at that point,” she said. “The girls competing at Miss Georgia, the caliber of skill, the caliber of talent is off the charts. I was praying my name was called.”
Finally, her name 15- Miss Gwinnett County was called.
Arwood quickly took the forefront of the stage again, where she was given a word and had to explain what it meant to her in 30 seconds.
Arwood was prompted with the word “empowerment.” It was a word Arwood felt perfectly described her community service initiative, the Aveline Project, which empowers the next generation of young women.
“It was a little bit of relief, but then I had to go backstage and get ready for fitness and do everything all over again,” Arwood said. “You have to go compete; someone is going to be crowned.”
After the Top 15 had competed once more, they were brought back on stage, where the Top 5 were announced.
From that moment on, contestants have a complete blank slate.
“Your scores are completely wiped, and you answer one final question, and the judges rank you 1-5 based on what they’ve seen throughout the course of the week and how you could possibly act as the current or new Miss Georgia,” Arwood explained.
Arwood was questioned on how she would balance being an influencer in the Miss America Organization, while still being her own person.
“I talked about how Miss Georgia needs to be relatable and relate to every single person, and how social media can be a tool when it’s used correctly,” Arwood said. “You have the opportunity to reach an audience you never knew you had, but with that power, you need to make sure you’re doing good with it.”
Once the on-stage questions were complete, the Top 5 contestants held their breath as they waited to see who would be crowned Miss Georgia 2026.
For Arwood and Wooten, they had discussed and prayed for it to be the two of them left standing on the stage at the end of the night.
“It almost became a joke, not necessarily because it was funny, because we actually wanted it really badly, but it was more of how crazy would it be if this came true,” Arwood said.
As their dreams became a reality and it was just the two of them left on the stage, Arwood said she felt a sense of peace because she wasn’t worried about whose name was going to be called.
“I knew in that moment that if it wasn’t going to be me, Sophia was going to do the best job out of anybody, and I was okay with whatever was about to happen,” she said.
Arwood then heard her name called as runner-up, meaning her best friend is now the new Miss Georgia.
For Arwood, it is the best outcome, as she not only got to share that special moment with her friend, but she also received scholarship money as part of her runner-up win, allowing her to now pursue her MBA.
She hopes to attend Emory, where she can compete in the Miss Atlanta Pageant and hopefully make another run at Miss Georgia.
The Georgia Bulldogs have plenty of questions surrounding their wide receiver group this season. Georgia coach Kirby Smart offered a feisty response to a question about how he would assess the Georgia wide receiver room entering the 2026 season.
“Keep questioning them, because the more you question them, the more it helps me motivate them,” Smart said. “So everybody says they don’t listen to you guys. The wide receiver are listening, so they’ll have a new challenge issued based on your question.”
Bleacher Report’s David Kenyon named college football teams that “badly need” a No. 1 wide receiver and Georgia was one of six teams to make the list. Kenyon notes that Georgia has a “serious void to fill” at wide receiver, which is fair. The Bulldogs lost their all-time single season receptions record holder in Zachariah Branch, who is now with the Atlanta Falcons.
Branch is not the only experienced Georgia receiver to depart over the offseason. The Dawgs lost six of their top seven receivers from the 2025 season. Georgia’s No. 1 leading receiver Branch is gone. The second-leading receiver, Colbie Young, is in the NFL. Georgia does return third-leading receiver London Humphreys. However, Georgia also lost wide receivers Dillon Bell (No. 4) and Noah Thomas (No. 6) along with tight end Oscar Delp (No. 5) and running back Cash Jones (No. 7).
The No. 1 receiver is probably the biggest question on Georgia’s offensive depth chart. Georgia’s top candidates to be a WR1 are London Humphreys, Georgia Tech transfer Isiah Canion and Talyn Taylor.
Kenyon makes a good point that Georgia will “need a receiver to emerge in clutch moments” this fall. The Bulldogs prioritize running the football, but having a receiver that can consistently win one-on-one matchups will be huge for Georgia if the Bulldogs are going to make a run in the College Football Playoff.
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Fall Camp week one is in the books for Georgia Tech.
The Yellow Jackets will return to the field next week as the season opener against Colorado continues to get closer and closer. With the first week in the books, what have we learned about Georgia Tech’s offense so far?
1. Offensive line taking shape
While nothing is set yet, Georgia Tech’s offensive line is starting to come together after this first week of fall camp.
When talking with the media earlier this week, Yellow Jackets head coach Brent Key talked about how they have seven players up front that they have been pleased with so far, and he mentioned Ethan Mackenny, Kevin Peay Jr, Joseph Ionata, Malachi Carney, Jameson Riggs, Markell Samuel, and Jordan Floyd have separated themselves so far.
Mackenny, Peay, and Ionata seem to have locked things down (no surprise) so far, while Carney and Samuel are battling for the right guard position. Will Jameson Riggs be the starter at right tackle or could the loser of the right guard position slide out and start? If Samuel ends up being the starter, Carney played all of last season at right tackle and graded out well there on Pro Football Focus.
The battle for the depth positions is going to be something to watch, but things are starting to iron out for the Yellow Jackets up front.
Alberto Mendoza taking charge
During the spring, Alberto Mendoza was battling for the starting position at Georgia Tech and trying to beat out Grady Adamson, Graham Knowles, and Cole Bergeron. Now, Mendoza is entering fall camp as the starter for Georgia Tech and he he has taken charge of the position, though Key reiterated this week that they are working on not putting too much on the young quarterbacks plate.
Key mentioned that when he spoke to Mendoza before fall camp, he felt that this was the first time that this felt like “Georgia Tech’s” Alberto Mendoza:
“Yeah, I mean, he’s developing every day. You know, I talked to him for a long time today. Yesterday and today. And honestly, it felt for the first time it was Georgia Tech’s Alberto Mendoza. And we talked about it. I mean, shoot. Anytime you come from somewhere else, I mean, what are you always doing? You’re always thinking about what happened this time last year. So there’s always a natural comparison to whatever you did to your previous, whether you were a freshman, you were comparing it back to high school, right, transfer, or you were here comparing it back to last year at this time. That’s human nature. I’ve been excited to see his progression. Leadership, I think that’s one of the most overused words right now in all of football, all of sports, probably in life.
You try to force a square peg in a round hole a lot of times with this leadership thing, and you don’t truly allow the guys that are leaders to rise up and lead in moments when they need to. If you had 100 leaders on the team, you’d probably go 100 different directions and have no success. So I want him to be him. I want him to understand that we’ve got a full offensive toolbox to be able to go use.”
Georgia Tech is hoping that an elite running game, elite kicker, and an improved defense will make things easier for Mendoza in his first season as a starter and that he can be a leader in his effective way.
Running Backs Living Up To The Hype
Georgia Tech’s running back room entered fall camp as a much hyped unit and they have lived up to that so far.
At ACC Media Days, it was Justice Haynes and Malachi Hosley front and center representing the Yellow Jackets and they are going to be the top 1-2 punch on this team.
But this week has been about showcasing the depth of this unit.
Chad Alexander and Trelain Maddox have gotten a chance to speak to the media this week, and for the first time since the spring, running backs coach Jimmy Smith did as well.
Smith did not hold back when talking about the kind of player that Haynes is and how he wants to be great, which he imparts on the rest of the running back room as well:
“He doesn’t relax. Like, he doesn’t say, I got it already, so I don’t need to work as hard right now. I don’t need to do this right here. I don’t need to study this hard. I don’t need to have my iPad today because we already went over this one time. Nah. He comes in on day four, the same installation. If he’s doing the same installation, he know everything ain’t making a mistake. He won’t have his iPad right now and everything like he never saw it before. So it makes them, they can’t have an excuse. You can’t say, Coach, I got it. Nah. You made a mistake on that. He write it down and he make a mistake on that at all.
So, he’s… He’s the type of kid where you’re blessed to have him in your room, type of kid who don’t take a playoff, don’t want an opportunity to say, okay, I already got it. He’s going to practice. He’s going to do everything in the meetings, everything at a high level, as high level as he can every time. He wants to be great. Good ain’t good enough for him, and he makes everybody do that. With Chad and Malachi and Tre and Shane and all the guys, that’s something we see every day.”
We still have to see this unit on the field, but it is hard to not be optimistic still about where this group is at this point in fall camp. ]
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The Georgia Bulldogs are pretty healthy entering the start of fall camp. Georgia is preparing for its season open on Sept. 5 against Tennessee State.
Entering fall camp, Georgia head coach Kirby Smart was excited about how healthy the Bulldogs are. Georgia still has some starters that are limited after missing the spring, but the Bulldogs don’t appear to have many recent injuries. Of course, that could all change over the course of fall camp.
“We’re in a really healthy state,” Smart said. “I feel like we’ve got a lot of guys that can practice.”
Georgia is most notably without Auburn transfer defensive lineman Amaris Williams after he suffered a torn ACL in the spring. Williams is not the only Georgia player recovering from an ACL injury. Freshman cornerback Justice Fitzpatrick also suffered an ACL injury in December.
Kentucky running back transfer Dante Dowdell is the only other Georgia player that is expected to miss extended time. Dowdell was involved in an offseason ATV accident.
DB Kyron Jones (foot): Limited
“We’re he’s been kind of on a pitch count, so we’re starting him in fall camp in the same mode,” Smart said on Jones. “He’s been ramping up after of a resting period, and he’s been increasing as the summer goes. It’s not that he’s not 100% healthy, but he’s not taking 100% of a normal practice day’s reps.”
DL Amaris Williams (knee): Out
Georgia will be without Auburn defensive line transfer Amaris Williams for the 2026 season. Williams tore his ACL in spring practice and is rehabbing his injury. Williams was rated as a four-star transfer and had high expectations prior to his knee injury.
RB Dante Dowdell: Out
Georgia running back Dante Dowdell, a Kentucky transfer, had a strong spring, but it out for the foreseeable future. Dowdell is not with the team after having a serious ATV accident this offseason. Dowdell’s accident resulting in him being hospitalized.
“Dante (Dowdell)’s doing better,” Smart said. “He is not with us. We don’t have a timeline for him, and that’s going to happen. The most important thing for Dante is himself, and that he can do functions and do daily, in and out things, not really worried about football right now.”
CB Justice Fitzpatrick (knee): Out
Four-star signee Justice Fitzpatrick missed the spring after having an ACL injury in December during his high school season. Fitzpatrick has a shot to return this season, but needs to have some fortune with his rehab. Fitzpatrick needs time.
OL Drew Bobo (foot/ankle): Limited
Georgia All-SEC first-team offensive lineman Drew Bobo has been limited. He missed the SEC championship, the College Football Playoff and spring practice after having a Lisfranc injury and a broken bone in his foot.
“I’ve been able to do everything during the summer,” Bobo said. “So I’m hoping to be able to be full go whenever the season starts.” Georgia won’t rush Bobo back.
DL Gabe Harris (toe): Limited
Georgia defensive lineman Gabe Harris, an All-SEC pick, missed the Sugar Bowl with turf toe last season. He also missed the spring, but is healthy and is back out there with his practice load being managed.
“Gabe (Harris)’s been doing good,” Smart said. “He’s similar to Drew (Bobo). It was a very significant injury. Those two were the two biggest missing pieces for us towards the end of the year and made it really tough. But he’s out there doing everything now.”
Players that missed spring action
- Safety Ja’Marley Riddle (surgery recovery)
- Defensive lineman Jordan Hall (knee)
- Defensive lineman Carter Luckie (knee surgery)
- Linebacker Zayden Walker (shoulder)
As usual, Georgia has not announced any suspensions although the Bulldogs did have a few arrests this offseason. Georgia could suspend players that were arrested, but is unlikely to announce anything publicly. The Bulldogs open the season against Tennessee State and then Western Kentucky, so Georgia shouldn’t be hurt much even if players are suspended.
“I sort of always liked playing them that second game because you could always count on them having two or three key players suspended,” former South Carolina and Florida coach Steve Spurrier said about Georgia in a memorable quote. The Bulldogs’ first Power Four opponent is in Week 3 against Arkansas, so Georgia could also be more cautious with players that are nursing injuries in Week 1 and Week 2.
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