5-star OT commit Broderick Jones is a big UGA recruiting visitor for Vanderbilt
Want to attack every day with the latest UGA football recruiting info? That’s what the Intel brings at least four days a week. This play sheet offers up a report on the top-heavy visitor’s list for the Vanderbilt game tonight. The lede story is a review of where things stand with elite 5-star OT commit Broderick Jones. He’ll be there along with several 5-star prospects and commits.
Broderick Jones is and will always be a UGA recruiting story DawgNation will never forget.
The Lithonia High School standout was a 4-star OL at the time this spring when I went to visit him at his school. It was just after G-Day and watching him put on a tremendous effort at the Under Armour All-American Atlanta event, too.
The answer was yes. It had been yes for at least 3-4 weeks prior to that visit. He actually committed to UGA twice.
The first time was to OL coach Sam Pittman. He then committed to Kirby Smart on another trip shortly thereafter.
But Jones wasn’t an ultra-secret silent commitment or anything. He committed and then nobody in the hyper-fast world of college recruiting bothered to ask him about it.
It is the sort of story that fuels the “Big Silly” nickname given to Jones by those who know and love him the best.
Jones will be back at UGA tonight for Vanderbilt game. He camped at UGA this summer, but this will be his first visit to a game since G-Day in Sanford Stadium back on April 21.
Sanford Stadium has changed a lot since then. So have things with Jones. The recently-named 5-star prospect has crept up the rankings. Lithonia High’s program is now home to the nation’s No. 3 OT and No. 22 overall prospect on the 247Sports composite.
Very few prospects pass the eyeball test quite like Jones. But he just keeps growing. He’s now up to 6.6.5 inches on the height chart. He remains a chiseled and lean 298-300 pounds.
He’s every bit what guys like Pittman and Smart envision when they think of future Sunday NFL left tackles signing with their program.
Has anything changed with Jones regarding his thoughts on UGA? Not much. He still should be seen as a very solid commitment in the class of 2020.
“I’m just trying to get back up there and show my face a little bit,” he said.
RELATED: What’s going on right now with all these de-commitments for UGA recruiting?
What’s the latest with Broderick Jones?
Auburn keeps wanting him to visit. But he hasn’t felt the urge to do so just yet. Jones remains very loyal to the program that was the first to offer him a scholarship.
He’s working on all aspects of his game right now.
“Honestly like my kick-stepping,” he said. “That’s a little bit of what I have had to work on. Because when I kick, I would kick out instead of back. But I’m learning to kick backward now.”
His coaches tell me about his football I.Q. that is something that continues to evolve. He’s an engaged learner. When he has a question in practice, he’ll ask right now. It adds to his knowledge base.
He was able to set up an opponent last week that was getting frustrated trying to crash down and beat him around the edge to get to his quarterback.
“We had a run play basically designed to go inside of me and the defensive end was almost head-up on me so I gave him a quick kick-step back which drew him outside and it just drove him out of the play.”
Did he devise that tactic all on his own?
“Yeah, I did,” Jones said. “A little bit. … My coaches actually give me a little bit of leeway to do a little bit of movement.”
He has committed to play in the Under Armour All-American Game for 2020, but I bet that also will turn into a recruiting battle for his services with the Adidas game.
His recruiting decision doesn’t seem that complicated at the moment.
“I am going to open it back up a little bit more (with maybe some other visits) but Georgia is still really the top priority for me,” Jones said.
He’s talking to the coaches at Alabama, Auburn, Clemson and Tennessee right now.
“They are trying to get me to come up to visit there and come to a game and see how it is looking for them,” Jones said. “They want to see their process and see how they do things and all of that nature with their programs.”
That will be fine with Georgia. That’s actually what Kirby Smart told him to do. Go see all he can. That way he will be sure to know which school is the best one for his future. He doesn’t want him to have any doubts.
“He told me to take all the trips I need to,” Jones said.
Do the Bulldogs still have the edge here?
“It is maintaining a little bit,” Jones said. “The coaching is really the biggest thing I still like about Georgia right now. I like how they keep calm and keep cool under difficult situations.”
He is working to enroll early in the class of 2020.
“I really want to play my freshman year,” Jones said. “I really feel that I have the ability to do and to be able to handle the things that Georgia needs out of me to get done at the left tackle position.”
The thinking here is that staying very close to home will be a big priority for Jones regarding his ultimate decision.
Who else will be in town for Vanderbilt?
It will not be a big list for this weekend with Vanderbilt. No official visits are planned. That’s because of the opponent and the fact that it will be a big week up ahead getting ready for Vanderbilt.
That’s part of the reason why Nakobe Dean was asked to reschedule his visit to another weekend.
That said, the headline visitor for this weekend has to be 5-star senior commitment Nolan Smith II. Smith has been in town in Athens since Wednesday. He’s off this week from IMG Academy in Florida.
It will be his first visit this season.
The de-commitment made by 5-star Jadon Haselwood makes him even more important as a major cornerstone for the class of 2019. He’s the longest-tenured commitment in the class as his UGA pledge has stood since late January 29, 2017.
Smith also ranks as the nation’s No. 2 overall prospect for the class of 2019. He is a rare athlete with the athleticism and start-stop quickness of an elite 4-star WR. At least. He’s on his way to play the OLB position for the Bulldogs in Athens.
Who is in town this weekend? We’ll list off a few more very big names. It is not supposed to be as big of a weekend as last week, but the Bulldogs still have at least five confirmed 5-star prospects in town today.
2019 UGA commits
- Nolan Smith/5-star OLB/IMG Academy/Bradenton, Fla. — Nation’s No. 2 weak-side DE and No. 2 overall
- Travon Walker/5-star WR/Upson-Lee HS/Thomaston, Ga. — Nation’s No. 2 DT and No. 22 overall
- Dominick Blaylock/5-star WR/Walton HS/Marietta, Ga. — Nation’s No. 6 WR and No. 31 overall
- Ryland Goede/4-star TE/Kennesaw Mountain/Kennesaw, Ga. — No. 6 TE and No. 173 overall
2020 UGA commits
- Broderick Jones/5-star/Lithonia HS/Lithonia, Ga. — Nation’s No. 3 OT and No. 22 overall
2020 and 2021 UGA targets
- Myles Murphy/5-star SDE/Hillgrove HS/Powder Springs, Ga. — Nation’s No. 2 strong-side DE and No. 15 overall for 2020.
- Andy Boykin/4-star SDE/Troup County/LaGrange, Ga. — Nation’s No. 11 strong-side DE and No. 168 overall for 2020.
- Julian Nixon/4-star WR/Centennial HS/Roswell, Ga. — Nation’s No. 2 WR and No. 9 overall prospect (247Sports) for 2021.
- Terrence Ferguson/4-star OT/Peach County HS/Fort Valley, Ga. — Nation’s No. 7 OT and No. 31 overall prospect (247Sports) for 2021.
*- All rankings listed are from the 247Sports Composite unless otherwise noted
I feel that at least 1-2 other big names may show up as well. Keep in mind that these lists do change from time to time and changes are supposed to happen.
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