This Sentell’s Intel rep on Georgia football recruiting has the latest with 4-star DL Anthony Lonon Jr. at Clarke Central. He ranks as the nation’s No. 38 DL and the No. 294 overall prospect for 2026 on the 247Sports Composite. The Rivals Industry Ranking has him as the No. 28 DL and No. 264 overall.
ATHENS -- When given the chance to watch Anthony Lonon Jr. in a practice setting, the standout theme of his game gets confirmed quickly.
“AJ” is always moving. Got a hill to climb to get to another practice field? Lonon will chug up it like he’s got the V12 engine he shows on film.
When he wraps up an interview and his D-line group is working 200 yards away, he’s on the hop to get there. That’s how he is wired and why he makes so many plays chasing down plays 15-plus yards from the backside on tape.
“When you chase down the ball from the other side of the field at my size, people are like ‘Dang, that boy can run and he’s big,’ and that’s one of my favorite parts of the game, just pursuing the ball,” he said.
With that mystery solved, the real question statewide is what he will do on August 2. That’s the day he will announce the winner of a statewide recruiting battle between Georgia and Georgia Tech.
He took official visits to both schools.
Lonon’s recruiting story has also been quite the climb. Even though his namesake was a national recruit back in his day, who played at UGA.
“Around, I want to say, eight months ago, I had zero offers,” Johnson said. “No stars or anything. I want to say most of my recruiting really just came from me sending out film. I sent film to at least a hundred schools. I know for sure. I was just sending film. Emails. Twitter DMs. Everything.”
“I started getting offers. Everything. It came up, and within seven months, I had 28. So I feel like that was the main thing that really got my stock up.”
Lonon will decide at 1 PM next Saturday at Clarke Central. There’s certainly a hometown pull as his mother was also a “Double Dawg” degree recepient at UGA.
Georgia Tech has still made this one interesting. The Yellow Jackets have been buzzing in his ear since they offered him on April 23.
If the Jackets win this in-state battle, it will be because of defensive line coach Jess Simpson. Simpson has coached extensively at the high school, college and pro level.
“If I chose the Yellow Jackets, it is because of coach Simpson,” Lonon said. “He really knows how to develop a 3-tech. He was with Grady Jarrett on the [Atlanta] Falcons and has developed players on the Baltimore Ravens right now. So I feel like that would be the main reason, knowing that, okay, I have a clear path over there.”
Georgia didn’t offer until June 3. That offer came from EDGE coach Chidera Uzo-Diribe. Defensive line coach Tray Scott and Uzo-Diribe are both recruiting him. Johnson could wind up in either room depending on how his body develops over the next few years.
What do the Dawgs value in his game?
“The plan at Georgia would be that, once again, I can do anything from a nine-tech to a three-tech,” he said. “I’m young. I just turned 17 a couple of weeks ago. So, depending on how I grow into my body, it depends on if I become a natural 3-tech only or if I can still keep my speed and athleticism and all that, and play from a nine-tech to a three-tech, so that’s how they are looking at me.”
Check out this photo from his UGA official visit. It offers a good example of his athletic ability.
“I’ve been wanting to do that headstand pick, too,” Lonon said. “I wanted to be creative with the photos.”
Scouting Anthony Lonon: What sticks out here
His size comes up in the prospect evaluation. He played most of last season at well under 240 pounds, but he’s up to 265 now. Despite the weight gain he’s packed on his 6-foot-2 frame, his quick twitch off the line remains the same.
Especially in short spaces.
If he chooses Georgia, it will be an interesting fit. The way he slips past blockers and knifes into the backfield isn’t something Georgia asks much out of its DLs. When he was lighter as a junior, there were some moments where it was hard for him to hold up at the point of attack in the red zone in the run game.
But that was about 30 pounds ago.
That said, Scott told him that he’s looking for a few DLs every cycle like him.
“Coach Scott told me that the way they want to build for the future is with players who are twitchy,” Lonon said. “That’s the new game. Like Aaron Donald. Those types of players. That’s what he wants to build at Georgia. A player that can play anything from a nine-tech to a three-tech because of their size and speed along the defensive line.”
That’s an intriguing thought to look out for with Georgia defensive line recruiting.
Can Lonon be that guy? The tape says yes. Check out his junior film below:
“My style as a football player is heavy on persistence and being slippery,” he said. “My goal is to always be at the ball.”
Lonon set that Aug. 2 date because it would give out-of-town family members time to attend the celebration. It will also be a fit for the facilities at Clarke Central.
He’s got a decision in mind and locked away in his back pocket.
“I pretty much know, but it is not official yet,” he said. “I will know for sure 100 percent on August 2.”
Clarke Central coach David Perno is impressed by Lonon. He was effusive in his praise for the character Lonon has shown.
“Really good kid,” Perno said. “That’s where it starts. His character is as good as any kid we’ve had come through our program.”
Perno brought up his 4.25 grade-point average as an example of Lonon’s off-the-field achievements.
“That tells you a lot about him, and then he’s as good a guy you would want to coach,” Perno said. “He’s made up of really good stuff, and if he were two inches taller, you know, he’d go anywhere he wanted.”
Have you seen this week’s “Before the Hedges” weekly recruiting special on YouTube yet? Check it out below.
SENTELL’S INTEL
(Check on the recent reads on Georgia football recruiting)
