This Sentell’s Intel rep on Georgia football recruiting has the latest with Brentwood Academy (Tenn.) 4-star Kenneth Simon II. He ranks as the nation’s No. 10 LB and the No. 131 overall prospect for 2027 on the 247Sports Composite. The Rivals Industry Ranking has him as the No. 11 LB and No. 147 overall.
Kenneth Simon II knows what he’s doing. Or maybe he’s gotten some very good advice.
The way he approaches his recruiting feels like it was the way his father might have done it had he gotten the chance to do it all over again.
Especially if his Dad knows a lot about football.
There’s a lot to like here about Simon. It starts with how he’s wired.
“The reason I haven’t set any official visits and all is I think I will have made my decision before official visits roll around,” he said.
Does he want to be one of those one-and-done OV recruits?
“Yes, sir,” he said.
Why is that?
‘There’s a lot of kids, they like to go on OVs," he said. “Trying all the jerseys and experiences. Which is a great experience. Getting to go with your family and spend time at a certain place for a couple of days. But for me, I just want to find the school that I’m going to be at. Really as quick as possible.”
“Pick it and then from there all I’ve got to worry about is football and training and putting myself in the best position for my freshman year to go get on the field. I’m not really with that to go everywhere and take pictures. I just want to play football. That’s really all I want to focus on.”
Georgia has noticed. After a late offer, he has the attention of the UGA staff. He’s moved the Dawgs into his top tier. At the minimum, it sounds like UGA is in his top three.
He was originally planning a return to Notre Dame on April 18. That has changed.
“I’m going back down to Georgia,” he said. “I don’t know. Notre Dame. I have good relationship with Coach BJ [LBs coach Brian Jean-Mary] and Coach [Marcus] Freeman. But something being around Coach [Glenn] Schumann and around the facility and just around those people in the building. It felt a little different so I want to get back down there just one more time.”
“It’s always a good spot to hang out, but I want to see what it is like when the stadium is filled.”
Simon wants to be a good building with elite culture. The Dawgs have checked that box with him for sure.
ALL-SEC Dad: The legacy story to know with Kenneth Simon II
As it turns out, his father knows a lot about football. Kevin Simon was a two-time ALL-SEC linebacker at Tennessee.
Simon was the equivalent of a 5-star before 5-stars when the national recruiting guideposts were Parade Magazine, Prep Star, SuperPrep and USA Today. He was the 2000 National Defensive Player of the Year for Rivals, but also a part of two mythical national championship teams. He helped De La Salle in California build an imposing 151-game win streak.
He was also an NFL scout for the Dallas Cowboys from 2009 to 2018. Simon returned to his alma mater in 2018 and is now the Director of Player Development for the Vols. He’s the key liaison to NFL scouts.
His son has clocked a reported 4.49 in the 40, plus soared to a 40-inch vertical leap. That’s top-of-the-charts athleticism for an inside linebacker.
“Football is something I have done since I was young,” Kenneth Simon II said. “I play for my family and my last name. But also for myself. It’s just something I love to do. It’s a dream I’ve always wanted to chase and accomplish for myself. It is just proving to myself that I can accomplish my dreams and the goals I have set for myself.”
Is he a shoo-in to play on Rocky Top? He’s had reps handling the topic.
“My Dad and I talk about it all the time,” Simon said. “He just wants me to go where it’s best for me. It is going to put me in the best spot to go to the NFL. But having a Dad like that, who’s been through the process and has experienced it, has been so good. He’s been so good. He’s helped me a lot.”
There’s that strong family tie, but also the reality the Vols have had one LB drafted since 2009. That was fourth-rounder Jalen Reeves-Maybin in 2017.
The Dawgs have seen eight of their inside linebackers taken since the 2018 NFL Draft, including three first-round picks. There has also been three Butkus Award winners since the last UT draft pick at that position.
The weekly DawgNation.com “Before the Hedges” program is available as an Apple podcast.
Kenneth Simon II: Georgia is in the mix here
Schumann didn’t offer him until January 13. That was interesting, but also in line with his track record with elite LBs.
While he’s focused on chasing championships with the Dawgs in November and December, the Georgia DC waits until January to evaluate the next class.
That was how it was with CJ Allen in 2023 and Justin Williams in 2025. Nick Abrams was the en vogue latter offer in 2026.
Simon released a Top 4 on January 26. The schools in the mix were Alabama, Ole Miss, Texas A&M and Tennessee. That has changed like his position evaluation. He was closer to the 190-pound mark back then. He’s now up to 208 pounds as of late last week.
He’s no safety. He’s a linebacker prospect with an evolved Top 4 that includes Georgia, Notre Dame, Ole Miss and Tennessee.
“Georgia offered me kind of late, but you know, Coach Schumann, knowing his track record and what he’s been able to produce at Georgia and even his years at Alabama, I mean, I had to give him a shot,” Simon II said.
Schumann didn’t miss.
“Coach Schumann came up to my house,” Kenneth Simon II said. ‘We were in a bad snowstorm, so our power was out for three days. He was there when the power was out. He was actually there for like five hours and then he was actually there when the electricity. Our relationship has started off really really good."
Simon recently saw UGA for his first visit for a spring practice.
“Being able to go down there and meet Coach [Kirby] Smart and the rest of the staff and hang out with players and go to dinner has been fun,” Simon II said. “It definitely jumped them up the board a lot for me up there with all the other top schools. It was a great experience.”
He’s a fan of the no-phones rule at a UGA practice.
“I was kind of like, man, that’s a long time with no phone,” he said. “But at the end of practice I realized not one time was I like ‘Alright, let me get on my phone’ real quick. I was just so locked in from [Kirby Smart] being on the mic and keeping everyone engaged.”
“The way they were compeiting was different. You could tell. It was physical. It was the first day of pads. They were really getting after it.”
Simon said he’s never seen a team “get after it” like that.
“I can’t name a school that I’d say was competing as much as them,” he said.
Simon called Schumann “a master of his craft.” What is he looking for?
“I’ve just got to find a coach who believes in me,” he said. “Belief is a big thing for me. If you can get a coach to believe in you, he’s going to give you an opportunity. Knowing me, I’m going to make the best of whatever opportunity I get.”
We’ll see what happens, but there are a lot of qualities with Simon that mesh with other top-tier prospects that wound up at UGA. There’s something different here, but that is what the Dawgs seek out, plug in and watch them become NFL draft picks.
Simon plays hard, but also fast and physical. He’s always around the ball. Not just with his junior film below.
