University of Georgia Athletics
Woolfolk’s Confidence Growing With Each Game
January 15, 2025 | Women's Basketball, The Frierson Files
By John Frierson
Staff Writer
Mia Woolfolk arrived at college with a good idea of what she wants to do when she's done playing basketball. The Georgia freshman is interested in coaching, no doubt, but she might be even more driven to get her doctorate and work as a sports psychologist one day.
"I've always wanted to help athletes with their mental health," said the 6-foot-3 forward from Midlothian, Va. That desire started in high school after Woolfolk suffered a serious knee injury as a freshman in 2020. "I really didn't have anybody to talk to because mental health (awareness) had just started formulating during COVID. I had my family and friends and stuff, but nobody professionally to talk to.
"In that moment, I was like, wow, I could really help other athletes one day, because other people struggle and maybe keep struggling."
Woolfolk had to deal with another injury right as Georgia's season was starting. She played in the Lady Bulldogs' opener against North Carolina Central, going 10-for-10 from the free-throw line and finishing with 18 points and 13 rebounds, but then suffered a broken foot that sidelined her for nine games.
Since her return against UNC Greensboro on Dec. 16, Woolfolk has been working her way back into form both physically and mentally. She's also going through the ups and downs that college freshmen typically endure.
"The more I play, the more confident I become," she said.
In nine games with the Lady Bulldogs, including four in the starting lineup, Woolfolk has scored in double figures five times, including a season-high of 20 points at Vanderbilt on Jan. 2. Heading into Thursday's game at Texas A&M, Woolfolk ranks third on the team in scoring with 11.6 points per game. She's also third in rebounding with 5.4 per game. Georgia's leading scorer is another freshman, guard Trinity Turner, who's averaging 12.9 points a game.
As a senior at Manchester High School, Woolfolk scored 20 points and grabbed nearly 10 rebounds a game while leading her team to a 27-2 record and a Virginia state championship. It wasn't the first championship won by a member of her family.
Woolfolk is from a family of standout athletes. Her father, Peter, was the leading scorer on the Richmond team that reached the NCAA Sweet 16 in 1988. Her older brother, Jay, was a baseball and football star at Benedictine College Prep where he won two state championships in baseball and was the starting quarterback on a title-winning football team.
Jay is now a senior pitcher at Virginia, where he earned Freshman All-America honors in 2022. He also spent two seasons as a quarterback on the Cavaliers' football team, starting one game, against Notre Dame, during the 2021 season.
Many a Georgia student-athlete has attributed part of their success to a sibling rivalry. As 2024 Butkus Award-winning linebacker Jalon Walker said this fall of his constant battles with his younger brother, Deuce: "When he did good, I wanted to do better. When I do good, he wants to do better. I just felt like that competitive edge that we had in the house, it was a healthy competitive edge. That's how we play now — we play hard and physical and competitive."
For Woolfolk, the challenge of beating her brother at anything made her a better competitor.
"Growing up with a brother who's also extremely good at sports, you just strive to be better than him, and that only made me better," she said. "I always thought I was better than him at anything he did; I lost most of the time, but I still went in there with a lot of confidence."
Now, she and her big brother share the common experience of being student-athletes at Power 5 schools. They may still be competitive when they're together, but they've actually grown closer since she went off to college, Woolfolk said.
"I feel like now we're closer than what we were when we were living in the same house," she said. "It's like we have something to relate to each other on and stuff, and he's always texting me after games."
After having to sit and watch for about a month while recovering from her foot injury, Woolfolk is back on the court and back playing among a big freshman class that is scoring 45% of the Lady Bulldogs' points this season.
"I definitely feel like my coaches have helped me, helped with that transition from being hurt to being thrown straight back in the water," she said. "They've been there for me, helped me watch film or been in the gym with me and telling me the things I need to work on."
After facing the Aggies on Thursday, Woolfolk and the Lady Bulldogs take on Kentucky on Sunday at Stegeman Coliseum.
Staff Writer
Mia Woolfolk arrived at college with a good idea of what she wants to do when she's done playing basketball. The Georgia freshman is interested in coaching, no doubt, but she might be even more driven to get her doctorate and work as a sports psychologist one day.
"I've always wanted to help athletes with their mental health," said the 6-foot-3 forward from Midlothian, Va. That desire started in high school after Woolfolk suffered a serious knee injury as a freshman in 2020. "I really didn't have anybody to talk to because mental health (awareness) had just started formulating during COVID. I had my family and friends and stuff, but nobody professionally to talk to.
"In that moment, I was like, wow, I could really help other athletes one day, because other people struggle and maybe keep struggling."
Woolfolk had to deal with another injury right as Georgia's season was starting. She played in the Lady Bulldogs' opener against North Carolina Central, going 10-for-10 from the free-throw line and finishing with 18 points and 13 rebounds, but then suffered a broken foot that sidelined her for nine games.
Since her return against UNC Greensboro on Dec. 16, Woolfolk has been working her way back into form both physically and mentally. She's also going through the ups and downs that college freshmen typically endure.
"The more I play, the more confident I become," she said.
In nine games with the Lady Bulldogs, including four in the starting lineup, Woolfolk has scored in double figures five times, including a season-high of 20 points at Vanderbilt on Jan. 2. Heading into Thursday's game at Texas A&M, Woolfolk ranks third on the team in scoring with 11.6 points per game. She's also third in rebounding with 5.4 per game. Georgia's leading scorer is another freshman, guard Trinity Turner, who's averaging 12.9 points a game.
As a senior at Manchester High School, Woolfolk scored 20 points and grabbed nearly 10 rebounds a game while leading her team to a 27-2 record and a Virginia state championship. It wasn't the first championship won by a member of her family.
Woolfolk is from a family of standout athletes. Her father, Peter, was the leading scorer on the Richmond team that reached the NCAA Sweet 16 in 1988. Her older brother, Jay, was a baseball and football star at Benedictine College Prep where he won two state championships in baseball and was the starting quarterback on a title-winning football team.
Jay is now a senior pitcher at Virginia, where he earned Freshman All-America honors in 2022. He also spent two seasons as a quarterback on the Cavaliers' football team, starting one game, against Notre Dame, during the 2021 season.
Many a Georgia student-athlete has attributed part of their success to a sibling rivalry. As 2024 Butkus Award-winning linebacker Jalon Walker said this fall of his constant battles with his younger brother, Deuce: "When he did good, I wanted to do better. When I do good, he wants to do better. I just felt like that competitive edge that we had in the house, it was a healthy competitive edge. That's how we play now — we play hard and physical and competitive."
For Woolfolk, the challenge of beating her brother at anything made her a better competitor.
"Growing up with a brother who's also extremely good at sports, you just strive to be better than him, and that only made me better," she said. "I always thought I was better than him at anything he did; I lost most of the time, but I still went in there with a lot of confidence."
Now, she and her big brother share the common experience of being student-athletes at Power 5 schools. They may still be competitive when they're together, but they've actually grown closer since she went off to college, Woolfolk said.
"I feel like now we're closer than what we were when we were living in the same house," she said. "It's like we have something to relate to each other on and stuff, and he's always texting me after games."
After having to sit and watch for about a month while recovering from her foot injury, Woolfolk is back on the court and back playing among a big freshman class that is scoring 45% of the Lady Bulldogs' points this season.
"I definitely feel like my coaches have helped me, helped with that transition from being hurt to being thrown straight back in the water," she said. "They've been there for me, helped me watch film or been in the gym with me and telling me the things I need to work on."
After facing the Aggies on Thursday, Woolfolk and the Lady Bulldogs take on Kentucky on Sunday at Stegeman Coliseum.
Assistant Sports Communications Director John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files.
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