Georgia Football Breakout Players for 2020: No. 8 — Eric Stokes
It can be argued that Eric Stokes has already had his breakout year. He did, after all, earn a spot on last year’s All-SEC Second Team.
That doesn’t mean he can’t have a second breakout.
The former three-star recruit out of Covington’s Eastside High School was a late National Signing Day addition for the Bulldogs in 2017. He redshirted his first season in Athens under the tutelage of then-defensive coordinator and secondary coach Mel Tucker.
He saw his first significant action in Silver Britches in 2018, starting at cornerback in three of his final four games as a redshirt freshman. In 2019, he took his game to another level.
Stokes started all but one game for the Bulldogs in 2019 and exhibited the traits of a budding lockdown corner: the physicality at the point of attack, the footwork, the speed, the pivoting hips, and, perhaps most importantly, the instincts and the smarts.
He led a historically great 2019 Dawgs defense with nine pass breakups for a reason.
He also initiated this beautifully chaotic example of why we love watching college football:
Former teammate Lawrence Cager praised Stokes in his interview at the NFL Scouting Combine, expecting an even brighter future:
“I think Eric Stokes is a guy that will make noise,” Cager hypothesized in March. “He’s fast...going against me and George [Pickens] every day, he’s become more physical and that’s what you want in a corner.”
Cager followed his preview with a succinct review:
“You want him to be fast and you want him to be physical. I feel like he’s a great shutdown corner in the SEC.”
In 2020, Stokes can ascend from being a proven commodity to being an early-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. The fact that he will play alongside seven other returning starters under an entirely intact 2019 defensive coaching staff can’t hurt.
We spoke to the NFL Draft Network's Senior Draft Analyst, Jordan Reid a while back to get an indication of what the NFL might think of Stokes heading into his Junior season at Georgia:
"Another young player and he has an awesome blend of length and ball skills. I thought he played better last year (2018), but he has the traits that teams will covet. I love his alpha mentality and he firmly believes he belongs, but his impatience leaks over into his footwork and his aggressiveness at the line."
Certainly, there are some things to clean up, but as Reid mentioned, Stokes has traits that will have NFL teams seeking his services in the near future.
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