This Sentell’s Intel rep on Georgia football recruiting has the latest on 5-star commit Jaxon Dollar at East Lincoln High in North Carolina. He’s rated as the nation’s No. 2 TE and the No. 34 overall prospect for 2027 on the 247Sports Composite. The Rivals Industry Ranking ranks him as the No. 1 TE and No. 27 overall.
Jaxon Dollar had a big night last Friday.
There was also an unforgettable moment. It came after the long-time Georgia football commit had already made all the plays.
He had a 94-yard touchdown catch. That boosted his stat line to 13 catches for 236 yards. When the statkeeper can take away a 94-yard catch and still see 12 catches for 130 yards next to a player’s name, it was a monster night.
Dollar also had four tackles and a 57-yard interception return. It marked his second pick-six of the season.
At one point, an opposing player paid him the ultimate compliment. Bunker Hill’s Datavian Gaither, a very good player in his own right, had just caught a pass.
Gaither already has 533 rushing yards this fall. He had 699 yards receiving as a junior.
Dollar, lined up at defensive end, came down the line and tackled him for a slight gain.
“It was a fourth down,” Dollar said. “They were on, I want to say, our 35 or 30. He had an out route and I was playing D-end. I went out and tackled him.”
According to a couple of sources who were at the game, Gaither got up and said the following:
“You just need to go to college already.”
Dollar saw it as a sign of respect from a peer who had 247 rushing yards on 20.6 yards per carry in a game earlier this season.
“I know him,” Dollar said. “Been playing against him since sophomore year. We talk a good bit. But yeah, that was the first time anyone had ever said anything like that to me in a game.”
Gaither, a region sprint champion, drew Dollar in man coverage on that 94-yard touchdown. Dollar had a 90-yard TD previously in his career, but that’s his new career high. The 165-pound senior caught Dollar just past midfield on that play, but then had to get the 6-foot-4, 235-pounder to the ground.
“You can’t be arm tackling me,” Dollar said.
The future Dawg has a “spin cycle” move he uses to bust those arm tackles.
He was back in Athens last Saturday for the Oklahoma game.
“It was great,” Dollar said. “Getting to see Asa [Wall] and Kemon [Spell] and Noah and all of them. It was really good. I knew the game wasn’t going to be that close, but my score prediction was really good. I said it was going to be 42-14. It’s always a great time in Athens.”
He’s got a general score prediction for Vanderbilt this week.
“Definitely, I know it is going to be a lot to a little,” he said. “That’s all I know.”
Look for him to return to Athens for the Auburn game on October 17.
Jaxon Dollar has been strong this month
Dollar is off to a fabulous start to his senior year. Check the numbers here:
- 43 catches, 834 yards, 9 TDs
- 19.4 yards per catch
- 13 rushes, 58 yards, 1 TD
- 27 tackles, 9 TFLs
- 6 sacks, 8 hurries
- 2 INTs
- 2 Pick-Six TDs
- All-conference-level work as the East Lincoln punter
The 5-star said he’s never had a month like the month on September in his career. That’s his best month playing football.
“The 50/50 balls all seem more 90/10s with him,” East Lincoln head coach David Lubowicz said. “I think defensively is probably the biggest step forward he’s been making this year. He’s just causing so much chaos on the side of the ball.”
The East Lincoln staff knew what he was capable of, but his coaches feel he’s cleared a higher bar than they expected this season.
“He’s made these huge leaps every year from ninth grade to 10th grade,” Lubowicz said. “Then 10th to the 11th grade, so we knew he was going to get better. Physically, yeah, he’s gotten better. He’s gotten bigger and stronger.”
“I don’t know as a coach if you can kind of wrap your head around the impact he’s had on the games,” Lubowicz said. “In the preseason, there’s no way I could have said this kid is going to draw three defenders. Sometimes four defenders. He’s going to intercept passes, but also get sacks. I think it would be really hard for anyone to sit and say they could measure or anticipate the impact he’s made every week.”
“He kind of amazes me every week. When something good happens for us, he’s usually close to what’s happening.”
Go back and look at those numbers again. Now size them up in this context: Lubowicz estimated that Dollar has drawn at least double coverage on at least 50 to 60 percent of his catches this fall.
“When we played Bandys a couple of weeks ago, by the second half they were running a linebacker at him,” he said. “The inside backer was turning to him. They had a corner on him and a safety over the top. They started the game saying this kid is going to handle him by himself, but then three catches later they are running four people at him.”
His work at punter also adds to the picture. Dollar has punted for three years for East Lincoln.
“You should see coaches before the game watching him,” Lubowicz said. “When we are in our specials group for warmups. The whole coaching staff for the other team just sits there and watches him punt. It’s really amazing. If it does not work out, he could be a punter somewhere. It booms off his foot. It is super high. It’s quite amazing to watch him punt.”
DawgNation honored Dollar this week on our “Before the Hedges” program. Dollar was selected amidst a tough crowd as the first “Dawg of the Month” for the 2026 season.
Dollar has been strong in North Carolina this month. Check out his capital gains on the field.
- 31 catches, 583 yards, 8 TDs
- 18.8 yards per catch
- 20 tackles, 6 TFLs, 3 sacks,2 INTs
- 94-yard TD reception
- Gave out Nike gear to his teammates via NIL deal this year
- 1 Pick-6
The funny part is that “go to college already” line wasn’t the only one he’s heard from an opponent this fall.
It came after he ran through an opposing offensive lineman on a pass-rush attempt as a defensive end. Dollar knocked him down. The lineman also complimented him after the play.
“Hmmph,” the opposing OL said. “Now I see why you are a 5-star.”
He learned a little bit this year. The man who will probably catch about 15 to 20 touchdowns during his time at UGA has been able to compare the joy of a Pick-Six versus a touchdown catch, even those of the 90-yard variety.
Which one of those is more fun?
“Hmmm,” Dollar said. “I’d like to do the Pick-Six because you’ve got to be in the right place at the right time in the right moment. Then catch it, take it all the way back, and maneuver through traffic. Yeah. I’d also say the Pick-Six because it’s a game-changing play. An emotion- and energy-changing play. I’d probably say the Pick-Six.”
