Nakobe Dean aims to be 'one of the best linebackers to ever do it'
By RJ Young
FOX Sports College Football Writer
Former Georgia linebacker Nakobe Dean is one of the most accomplished players available in the 2022 NFL Draft.
Not only has he played in the Sugar Bowl, Peach Bowl and Orange Bowl and led the Dawgs to their first national championship in more than 40 years, but he was also a unanimous All-American selection and the 2021 Butkus Award winner — an honor given to the nation’s best linebacker.
That's not bad for a man who, before committing to Georgia, said he just wanted to reach his potential.
"Anywhere I go, I know I have to work hard to get to the level that I want to play," Dean told 247Sports. "This is just the next step in my journey. I'm trying to get as good as I can get in college before I hopefully take my next step."
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At Georgia, Dean led a defense that FOX Sports NFL Draft analyst Rob Rang believes could see all 11 starters eventually selected for the NFL.
"In terms of the 2022 Draft, Georgia has the most gifted defense in the country, and it isn’t even close," an NFL general manager told Rang.
Dean was not just the best player on that generational defense but also its unquestioned leader and signal-caller. As an inside linebacker, he made all the checks at the line of scrimmage.
He gave me an example of the kind of call he was responsible for once the play came in from former defensive coordinator Dan Lanning, who is now the head coach at Oregon.
"It’d be a call like a ‘base’ call or ‘seven quarters,’" he said. "You have to make the call to the weak side with the safety. And, according to that, you have to let [the defensive backs] know what coverage you plan to be in. If the tight end is on the ball, then it’s a different coverage if he’s off the ball."
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Georgia star Nakobe Dean discusses his preparation to play in the NFL and who he models his game after in the league.
As he took in information based on what he saw from the offense, Dean had to synthesize it, analyze it, redistribute it and still play his assignment. In those moments, he showed why he studied mechanical engineering at the University of Georgia.
And he got a chance to put not only his intellect but also his resolve on display on the biggest stage in the sport. With Alabama up 18-13 against his Dawgs halfway through the fourth quarter of the championship game — and the Tide holding the ball — Dean committed himself to convincing his teammates they could still win the national title that had eluded the program since 1980.
"We were so confident in what we can do and that we can win," Dean said. "No matter what the score was, we never got to a point in that game right there where we thought we could lose. We bowed our necks and went out there to make a play for the offense."
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Dean shares what was going through his mind during the fourth quarter of the title game and talks about the thrill of winning Georgia's first national title since 1980.
Dean was also a standout player on a standout team in high school in Mississippi. He led Horn Lake to its first state championship and a 15-0 record as a senior en route to winning the high school Butkus Award with 175 tackles, 26 tackles for loss, seven sacks and three interceptions.
The Downtown Athletic Club of Atlanta introduced the high school and pro categories for the Butkus Award in 2008. Dean is one of just three players to win the award in high school and college, along with Notre Dame linebackers Manti Te’o and Jaylon Smith.
There are also just three players who have won it in college and the NFL: Patrick Willis, Von Miller and Luke Kuechly.
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Dean talks about Georgia coach Kirby Smart’s animation on the field and how he impacts his players.
No one has won all three. But Dean, who slots as a first-round pick in most mock drafts, could become the first to accomplish that feat. He told me he hadn’t really given it much thought but admitted that winning the award at all three levels "would mean a lot."
"I'm trying to be one of the best linebackers to ever do it," he said. "So, as long as I'm working toward that, being one of the best linebackers to ever do it, everything else is gonna fall into place."
The only question now is which of the 32 NFL franchises will get to be next on the Dean list.
RJ Young is a national college football writer and analyst for FOX Sports and the host of the podcast "The No. 1 Ranked Show with RJ Young." Follow him on Twitter at @RJ_Young, and subscribe to "The RJ Young Show" on YouTube. He is not on a StepMill.