A pair of massive Georgia football stars spurn 2024 NFL Draft for one more season

Georgia has done a better job than just about every program in the country of sending blue-chip prospects to the NFL Draft, but at least a pair of studs in the trenches will be returning to Athens for one last ride.

Within hours of each other, defensive lineman Nazir Stackhouse and offensive lineman Tate Ratledge announced they would be coming back to school for one more season. This is so fantastic!

These homegrown products could have turned pro after this past season. They could have ended up being day-two picks in the upcoming 2024 NFL Draft. However, their respective returns to Athens do two things for the Dawgs. One, they give Georgia two incredibly talented players in the trenches who will likely be better than everyone they go up against. And two, think about their combined leadership.

We are talking about a pair of all-conference performers in two of the most critical position groups on the field. The fact they will be back for one more year cannot be overstated enough. Along with senior quarterback Carson Beck, the Dawgs will be dripping with tremendous leaders at several of the most important spots on the roster. Together, Beck, Ratledge and Stackhouse can go win the national title.

Here is Stackhouse announcing that he will be back for one more season Between the Hedges.

And here is Ratledge telling Dawg Nation that his days of wearing the Red and Black are not over with.

Expanded College Football Playoff field or not, Georgia is on a shortlist of teams who could win it all.

Georgia football will have Nazir Stackhouse, Tate Ratledge back for 2024

Factor in linebacker Smael Mondon Jr. sticking with the Dawgs for another year on the defensive side of the ball, and you can feel the stars starting to align for Georgia once again. They were also able to make a few big pickups in the transfer portal in wide receiver London Humphreys coming over from Vanderbilt, as well as running back Trevor Etienne coming from Florida, to headline their portal class.

Overall, it is all about winning the national championship in this era of Georgia football. This is the standard set forth by head coach Kirby Smart. Even if the Dawgs come up short of the ultimate prize like they did this past year, Georgia will remain one of the toughest outs in the country, especially with guys like Beck, Mondon, Ratledge and Stackhouse all returning to school for years they don't have to.

Ultimately, you have to appreciate the culture Smart has assembled at his alma mater. What we saw out of the Dawgs in the Orange Bowl vs. Florida State is a testament to this. Georgia could have mailed it in like they infamously did in the Sugar Bowl vs. Texas back in 2018. That may have been years ago, but you can tell that this team is not going to go down with a whimper, even after defeat.

The only difficult thing Smart has to decide now is who will join him at SEC Media Days this summer.