{"id":390805,"date":"2026-01-06T02:25:10","date_gmt":"2026-01-06T02:25:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/390805\/"},"modified":"2026-01-06T02:25:10","modified_gmt":"2026-01-06T02:25:10","slug":"wr-zachariah-branch-lb-cj-allen-entering-2026-nfl-draft","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/390805\/","title":{"rendered":"WR Zachariah Branch, LB CJ Allen entering 2026 NFL draft"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/p>\n

Mark SchlabachJan 5, 2026, 06:44 PM ET<\/p>\n

Close<\/a>Senior college football writer
\nAuthor of seven books on college football
\nGraduate of the University of Georgia<\/p>\n

Georgia<\/a> will have to replace its leading pass catcher and tackler in 2026 after wide receiver Zachariah Branch<\/a> and linebacker CJ Allen<\/a> both announced Monday that they’re entering the 2026 NFL draft.<\/p>\n

Branch, who transferred to Georgia after two seasons at USC<\/a>, led the SEC with 81 catches to go with 811 receiving yards and six touchdowns this past season.<\/p>\n

ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. ranked Branch as the No. 22 prospect available and the No. 4 receiver.<\/p>\n

In a social media post, Branch thanked Georgia coach Kirby Smart for his one season with the No. 3 Bulldogs.<\/p>\n

Editor’s Picks<\/a><\/a><\/p>\n

1 Related<\/p>\n

“You have allowed me to grow within this program and I appreciate the standard of excellence you demanded from me each and every day,” Branch wrote. “My experience as a DAWG was nothing short of amazing.”<\/p>\n

Allen, a junior from Barnesville, Georgia, had 88 tackles, 3\u00bd sacks, 2 forced fumbles and 1 fumble recovery this past season. He was a finalist for the Butkus Award as the top linebacker in the country.<\/p>\n

Kiper ranked Allen as the No. 3 off-ball linebacker available for the draft.<\/p>\n

“This experience has played a major role in shaping me, not only as a player, but as a man, and has prepared me for the next step ahead,” Allen wrote on social media. “With faith and purpose, and as this chapter comes to a close, I am officially declaring for the 2026 NFL draft.”<\/p>\n

On Saturday, Georgia defensive lineman Christen Miller<\/a> announced his decision to enter the NFL draft. Miller is the No. 6 defensive tackle eligible for the draft, according to Kiper.<\/p>\n

The Bulldogs are still waiting to know whether starting offensive tackles Monroe Freeling<\/a> and Earnest Greene III<\/a> will enter the NFL draft or return to school in 2026.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Mark SchlabachJan 5, 2026, 06:44 PM ET CloseSenior college football writer Author of seven books on college football…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":390806,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[436],"tags":[49,48,514,82],"class_list":{"0":"post-390805","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nfl","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-nfl","11":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/390805","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=390805"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/390805\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/390806"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=390805"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=390805"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=390805"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}