Georgia great Jarvis Jones is back at Georgia for the 2019 season. While Jones can’t suit up for the Bulldogs this fall, UGA coach Kirby Smart calls it a blessing to have the former first-round NFL Draft pick back in Athens.

“In (the linebackers position group) we’ve got talented players, but a lot of those guys don’t have any experience,” Smart said after Saturday’s scrimmage. “And here’s a guy (Jones) that did it in the NFL, that did it here at a high level. And he’s from our state, he played for one of our coaches, it’s a blessing.”

Jones decided to hang up his cleats and return to Georgia to finish his degree, giving him an opportunity to work on the coaching staff as a student assistant. Jake Rowe of Dawgs247 notes that Jones has been helping Dan Lanning coach the outside linebackers. Lanning is the outside linebackers position coach, but has other responsibilities as the defensive coordinator, making Jones’ assistance especially helpful.

“I’ve had the fortune of a Kevin Butler, of Chris Samuel, some really special players who have come back to work as undergrads,” Smart said. “And Jarvis is here every day. A lot of times, you get those guys and they can’t be all in. They’ve either got a family, they’ve got something going on. Jarvis is all in. He’s in there to learn, he helps set the tempo, set the standard in the outside linebacker room. He demands excellence. I mean he played the position, he knows what it takes to play it.”