The former kicker for the Blue Devils will probably compete to be the Bulldogs’ kickoff specialist.
Charlie Ham, a former Duke kicker, committed to the Georgia Bulldogs on Friday, which gave the club some special teams support. By making this choice, Ham reunites with his former special teams coordinator for the Blue Devils, Kirk Benedict, the Georgia special teams coach.
Ham, a former Atlanta Westminster Schools outstanding kicker, has one year left on his eligibility to attend Georgia.
In each of the previous four seasons, Ham has handled kickoff responsibilities. He started as Duke’s placekicker from 2020 to 22. He had a 50.1 touchback % during that period, going 36 of 50 on field goal attempts, 91 of 93 on PATs, and 97 touchbacks on 191 kickoffs.
Ham is likely to compete to replace Jared Zirkel as kickoff specialist. In 103 kickoffs during the previous season, Zirkel had 67 touchbacks, or a 65.1 touchback rate. This offseason, he transferred to Texas A&M.
A Georgia special teams team that could see an increase in production through the transfer portal now has Ham as its newest member. Beau Gardner, a former long snapper for UCLA, was also added by Georgia this offseason. Michael Jackson III, a former wide receiver at USC, also has experience returning punts.