Latest news with #JoshMcCray
USA Today
06-08-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Kirby Smart explains why Georgia RB has been absent from practice
The Georgia Bulldogs have been without Illinois Fighting Illini transfer running back Josh McCray to start fall camp. Georgia head coach Kirby Smart provided a quick update on why McCray has been absent from practice. Smart told Anthony Dasher that McCray has been missing due to an illness and is expected to return soon. McCray is expected to play a large role in the Georgia offense this season. The senior runs with a physical, bruising style, but is still adapting to Georgia's offensive system after transferring to UGA during the spring window. McCray brings experience to a Georgia backfield that lost almost 50% of its rushing production from last season after Trevor Etienne enter the draft and Branson Robinson transferred to Georgia State. In 2024, McCray recorded a team-best 117 carries, 609 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns (No. 9 in the Big Ten/tied) with Illinois. The 6-foot-1, 235-pound back is tough to bring down on first contact. McCray lacks elite speed, but that did not stop him from shredding the South Carolina defense in Illinois' bowl game. We project McCray to be Georgia's top power running back this season and have him slotted to be the Dawgs' No. 2 running back behind third-team All-SEC selection Nate Frazier. Follow UGAWire on Instagram or Threads!
USA Today
19-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Georgia football announces jersey numbers for 7 incoming players
The Georgia Bulldogs have officially given numbers to seven players coming to Georgia in 2025. The four players (Josh McCray, Elo Modozie, Joshua Horton, Waltclaire Flynn) from the spring transfer portal window and the summer enrollee recruits from the class of 2025 (Thomas Blackshear, Dontrell Glover, Rasean Dinkins) were given jersey numbers. Elo Modozie is expected to make a big impact as an edge rusher/linebacker transfer from Army. The 6-foot-4, 248-pound hybrid linebacker will wear No. 18, formerly worn by linebacker Chris Cole last season. Cole changed his number to No. 9. Interestingly enough, Georgia already had freshman defensive back Jontae Gilbert wearing No. 18, so Gilbert will have to get a new number. Running back Josh McCray transferred in the spring from Illinois, and his bruising style of running could be big for Georgia's running game. The 6-foot-1, 235-pound running back will wear No. 2, previously worn by former Georgia wide receiver Nitro Tuggle, who transferred to Purdue. Defensive tackle Joshua Horton comes from Miami as defensive line depth. He will wear No. 81. No one wore No. 81 on defense last year. Horton clocks in at 6-foot-4, 295 pounds. Offensive lineman Waltclaire Flynn Jr. hails from UCF and is expected to play center for Georgia. He will wear No. 54 for Georgia, which was unoccupied last year. Flynn stands at 6-foot-2 and weighs 304 pounds. Wide receiver Thomas Blackshear, offensive lineman Dontrell Glover and defensive back Rasean Dinkins make up the final three recruits from Georgia's class that didn't sign during the early signing period in December. Blackshear will wear No. 88, Glover will wear No. 63, and Rasean Dinkins will wear No. 21. None of those numbers were worn by anyone last year. Follow UGAWire on Instagram or Threads for more UGA coverage!
Yahoo
28-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Bret Bielema calls out Kirby Smart, Georgia for tampering
The post Bret Bielema calls out Kirby Smart, Georgia for tampering appeared first on ClutchPoints. When a college football player receives communication from another team about playing for said team before the player has entered the transfer portal, it is called tampering. Tampering is a big problem in college sports, and it is against the rules. However, it's abundantly clear that it happens all the time, and there are rarely any punishments for it. For example, Illinois football head coach Bret Bielema is pretty confident that Kirby Smart and Georgia tampered with his running back Josh McCray. Advertisement Josh McCray was one of the best players on the Illinois football team last season, but he now resides in Athens, Georgia. He entered the transfer portal this past offseason, and it didn't take him very long to land with the Bulldogs. 'We did lose a guy to Georgia,' Bielema said during a recent episode of The Triple Option. 'Somehow, he found his way to the portal and 12 hours after being in the portal, he was on a flight to Georgia. I don't know how that happened, but it's crazy. Wish Josh all the best. He took advantage of that opportunity.' McCray had over 600 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns last season for the Fighting Illini. Losing him hurts, but Bielema has a lot of confidence in this year's running back room. It reminds him of a special one that he had back in the day at Wisconsin. 'I'm very excited,' Bielema said. 'We had three guys last year that are coming back to us that are very special. And it's kind of like what I had when I was at Wisco. I had a roster one year John Clay was a fifth-rounder to Pittsburgh, big 260-pound bruiser, just a workout (warrior). Behind him was a guy by the name Montee Ball, ended up being a second-round pick to the Denver Broncos.' Advertisement Just those players would make for an incredibly stacked RB room, but Bielema wasn't finished. 'Then behind him was this young guy named James White, who was the Freshman Big Ten Player of the Year,' he continued. 'Then there was this other guy, Melvin Gordon, who became a first-rounder. Those four guys were on one roster. All four of them were just a little bit different, and that's kind of what I've got going now.' Tampering is a huge problem in college football, and Bret Bielema thinks that his team was a victim of it this offseason. However, the Illinois football team is going with a next man up mentality, and Bielema is confident that the Fighting Illini will be successful at the RB position. Related: North Carolina, Bill Belichick lands ex-Alabama commit to bolster secondary Related: Lee Corso's son is 'disappointed' by College GameDay's Ohio State selection
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Illinois football to lose Citrus Bowl MVP running back to NCAA transfer portal
Illinois running back Josh McCray will jump into the NCAA football transfer portal when it opens on Wednesday, according to a report by The 6-foot-1, 235-pound mauling back ran for 609 yards and 10 touchdowns for the Illini last season, after three previous seasons in which he produced a combined 761 yards and 4 TDs. Advertisement He was a standout in the Illini 21-17 Citrus Bowl win over South Carolina, during which he rushed for 114 yards and notched a pair of TDs on just 13 carries and was named MVP. Illinois football 2024: Every story from Illini run to Citrus Bowl title CHAMPAIGN, ILLINOIS - NOVEMBER 2: Josh McCray #6 of the Illinois Fighting Illini breaks away to run for a touchdown during the first half against the Minnesota Golden Gophers at Memorial Stadium on November 2, 2024 in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by) McCray was head coach Bret Bielema's first recruit after taking the Illinois job in December 2020. The Illini have Aidan Laughery and Kaden Feagin (season-ending hip surgery) plus Ca'Lil Valentine all returning. Illinois has already added incoming freshman running backs John Forster and Cedric Wyche. This article originally appeared on Journal Star: NCAA transfer portal: Illinois football to lose Citrus Bowl MVP running back
USA Today
21-04-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Georgia football signs Illinois transfer RB
Georgia football signs Illinois transfer RB The Georgia Bulldogs have signed Illinois Fighting Illini running back Josh McCray via the NCAA transfer portal. McCray is a bruising back, who has one year of eligibility left, and was Illinois' leading rusher in 2024. McCray had a team-high 117 carries, 609 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns (No. 9 in the Big Ten/tied) in 2024. The 6-foot-1, 235-pound running back has a physical running style and is tough to bring down on first contact. McCray does not have elite speed, but runs with toughness and is excellent in between the tackles. McCray spent the first four seasons of his college football career with Illinois. He missed a lot of action in 2022 and 2023 due to injuries, but returned for a healthy and productive campaign in 2024. 247Sports ranks McCray as the No. 27 transfer running back in the country and the No. 435 overall player to enter the portal (includes the spring and winter portal windows). McCray's transfer ranking is surprisingly low considering his production from last season. However, McCray has some limitations as a pass catcher and a concerning injury history, so perhaps that explains McCray's transfer ranking. Highlights from McCray's Cheez-It Bowl game McCray's top performance in 2024 came in Illinois' 21-17 Cheez-It Citrus Bowl win over the South Carolina Gamecocks. He recorded 114 rushing yards on 13 carries and scored two rushing touchdowns. Kirby Smart reacts after McCray's commitment Georgia also brought in Army outside linebacker transfer Elo Modozie and Miami defensive line transfer Josh Horton. The Bulldogs have several other notable transfer portal targets, but they are mostly on defense. Georgia is in the mix for Syracuse defensive lineman Maraad Watson and UNC edge rusher Beau Atkinson, who are two of the top available players in the transfer portal.
