Jacob Copeland did the rare doubleheader visit last Saturday. He toured Georgia in the morning and Auburn in the early evening.
That was enough for the nation’s No. 3 receiver in 2018 to clearly place Auburn and UGA in his top two.
He did say that Auburn impressed him more on the back-to-back visits. Copeland has since taken a trip to Alabama this week after his travels to Auburn and Georgia.
He arrived at UGA early last Saturday morning. That was his first SEC campus tour of the day.
“They have a good little campus and I liked the way they are building in their new indoor,” said Copeland, who plans to study sports management in college.
Copeland was able to recite the $32 million dollar price tag for that facility. He’s being recruited to UGA by receivers coach James Coley and support staff member Kevin Beard. Beard, the former receivers coach at Miami last year, has already proven to be a valuable addition to the UGA staff.
5-star Class of 2016 signee Mecole Hardman Jr. raved about the relationship he had with Beard along his recruitment, among others.
“They were already recruiting me at Miami after my freshman season,” Copeland said. “They saw me when I was at a Miami camp last year (as a freshman) with all the top DB prospects that they had. I wasn’t a highly-recruited player then so I just said all those rankings don’t mean anything.”
He started out with rising sophomores at his own age level and was soon called over to compete against the “big boys.”
“Destroyed all their DB’s that day,” Copeland said. “Everybody who was holding (an offer.)”
Copeland can already picture himself leaving the state of Florida to play college ball.
“I’ve been in Florida my whole life,” he said. “It is time to see some other things in life.”
Auburn receivers coach Kodi Burns made an impression on him along his visit. He went on a separate tour than the “Big Cat Weekend” event that most of the major recruits were on that day.
“Auburn is the place to be,” Copeland said. “Just the way the atmosphere is around here. Just by looking at everything and visiting and seeing how the coaching staff feels.”
Copeland felt that Burns already stands out among the recruiters that are on him heavily.
The Pine Forest High School junior (Pensacola, Fla.) was also rated No. 38 overall for 2018 by 247Sports. He said to look for him to commit by the end of his junior season. He already feels confident that Auburn and Georgia will both get official visits in his senior year.
Nick Saban gave him the royal treatment at that Alabama visit in letting him blow his air horn at a camp. That’s an honor Saban reserves for elite recruits. Current UGA receiver Terry Godwin got the same treatment when he was a recruit. Copeland already had an Alabama offer before he made that visit to Tuscaloosa.
The 6-foot, 190-pounder is blazing fast. His Hudl highlight page includes a Nike Verified time of 4.44 seconds in the 40-yard dash. Copeland had 10 all-purpose touchdowns and averaged 19.8 yards as a receiver in 2015.
He plans to visit LSU on Friday and Clemson on June 13. Copeland felt that Auburn, Florida State and Georgia were the schools recruiting him the hardest at the moment.
Jeff Sentell covers UGA football and UGA recruiting for AJC.com and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Follow him on Twitter for the latest on who’s on their way to play Between the Hedges. Unless otherwise indicated, player rankings and ratings are from the 247Sports Composite.
