Trevor Lawrence once chose Clemson's culture and people over Georgia's

Trevor Lawrence is the current star quarterback of the Jacksonville Jaguars, but he first burst onto the scene as the No. 1 overall recruit in the 2018 recruiting class. 

Hailing from Cartersville, Georgia, there was certainly a world in which Lawrence would have ended up with the Georgia Bulldogs. It was Dabo Swinney and the Clemson Tigers that ultimately wound up with his commitment, though, and the rest is history. He won a national championship as a freshman and was selected No. 1 overall by the Jaguars in 2021. That's not to say Georgia wasn't close to landing the 5-star's commitment, but recently speaking on "The Pivot" podcast (h/t 247Sports), the former 5-star recruit turned NFL superstar explained that he felt a better vibe at Clemson. 

“The position I was in, I was a big recruit so I was treated well. But I think the underlying, the beliefs, the way the two programs kind of went about their business, the way they carried themselves? I think they were a little bit different. What it came down to, for me, was just the people," Lawrence said regarding why he ultimately committed to Clemson over Georgia. 

That's interesting to hear because even though Georgia is the back-to-back college football national champion and Smart has built a juggernaut both on the field and on the recruiting trail, there have been some questions about the culture of the program he's built.

For what it's worth, Lawrence wasn't implying anything negative about the Bulldogs. In fact, he said he had a great relationship with Smart as a recruit. 

“I actually just saw him two weeks ago in The Bahamas. We ran into him and we caught up. I hadn’t talked to him since high school. But I had a great relationship with him and with Coach Swinney. Obviously, Georgia’s built something special so it’s worked for them," Lawrence said.

Speaking of working out, Lawrence was so good as a college quarterback that had he chosen Georgia over Clemson, his career would have likely worked out just the same: at No. 1 overall in the 2021 NFL Draft.