UGA Football: Smith, Carter, Dumas-Johnson And Bowers Named SN All-Americans

ATHENS, Ga.——Georgia senior safety Christopher Smith, junior defensive lineman Jalen Carter, sophomore linebacker Jamon Dumas-Johnson and sophomore tight end Brock Bowers were named Sporting News All-Americans, according to an announcement Tuesday.

Georgia (13-0), the Southeastern Conference champion and top seed in the College Football Playoff, led all schools with three first-team selections in Smith, Carter and Dumas-Johnson. Bowers was named to the second team.

Smith, a native of Atlanta, Ga., was a finalist for the Bronko Nagurski Trophy.  He has started all 13 games, leads the squad with three interceptions and ranks fourth in tackles with 50.  In the SEC Championship Game victory over LSU, Smith returned a blocked field goal 96 yards for a touchdown, had three tackles, including a TFL, and an interception.

Carter, a native of Apopka, Fla., was a Rotary Lombardi Award finalist.  Despite starting only seven games because of an early season knee injury, he has 29 tackles, including seven tackles for loss (TFL) and three sacks, to go with two forced fumbles and 25 quarterback hurries. Over the last six games, he has accounted for 24 tackles, 6.5 TFLs, three sacks and a pair of forced fumbles.

Dumas-Johnson, a native of Hyattsville, Md., was a Butkus Award finalist. He is the team’s co-leader in tackles with 64, including eight tackles-for-loss, three sacks and 21 quarterback hurries. He has started all 13 games and served as one of the team captains seven times.

Bowers, a native of Napa, Calif., won the John Mackey Award last week as the nation’s top tight end. He has a team-best 52 catches for 726 yards and six touchdowns.  He also has six carries for 93 yards and three scores.  In addition, Bowers has been a pivotal blocker for a Bulldog offense that averages 207 yards on the ground and has allowed only seven sacks this year. Bowers was a Rotary Lombardi Award finalist and was named to the College Sports Communicators Academic All-District team.

On Monday, Smith and Carter were named Associated Press (AP) First Team All-Americans. Last week, Smith and Carter were named to the Walter Camp Football Foundation and Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) All-America first team while Bowers made the FWAA first team and Walter Camp second team.

The Sporting News All-America Team has been among the five teams used to formulate the NCAA’s annual consensus All-America team, which will be announced later this week.  Since the 2002 season, the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), the AP, the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), and the Walter Camp Football Foundation have joined the Sporting News as the five designated selectors by the NCAA.

The Bulldogs battle No. 4 Ohio State (11-1) in the CFP Semifinal Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl in Atlanta on Dec. 31.  ESPN will televise the matchup at 8 p.m.