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Georgia Tech Recruiting Reset: First Big Weekend was Successful, More Work to Do

January is off to a good start for Georgia Tech, but there's still more work to be done on the recruiting trail.

By Joey Weaver
Danny Karnik/Georgia Tech Athletics

With the final push to the Class of 2016's National Signing Day in full swing, Georgia Tech held its first of three major official visit weekends over the past few days. The weekend saw a commitment and some developments with other top targets, so let's take a look at where the Yellow Jackets stand as we move deeper into January.

For reference, here is last week's Recruiting Reset, and here is a detailed Scholarship Breakdown.

Current Recruiting Class

Pos Player Ht Wt Status Rivals 247Sports Composite
LB Emmanuel Bridges 6-1 208 Enrolled (1/11/2016) 3-Star (5.7) 3-Star (0.8634)
BB Dedrick Mills 5-10 220 Enrolled (1/11/2016) 3-Star (5.6) 3-Star (0.8535)
DE Desmond Branch 6-4 265 Enrolled (1/11/2016) 2-Star (5.4) 3-Star (0.8348)
AB Xavier Gantt 5-10 170 Committed (2/11/2015) 3-Star (5.7) 3-Star (0.8606)
LB Jakob Brashear 6-1 210 Committed (3/19/2015) 2-Star (5.4) 3-Star (0.8339)
DT Chris Martin 6-2 250 Committed (5/9/2015) 3-Star (5.5) 3-Star (0.8454)
DB Jarrett Cole 5-10 185 Committed (7/30/2015) 3-Star (5.5) 3-Star (0.8473)
OL Parker Braun 6-3 272 Committed (8/29/2015) 3-Star (5.7) 3-Star (0.8712)
WR Steve Dolphus 6-5 200 Committed (10/21/2015) 3-Star (5.5) 3-Star (0.8410)
OL Kenny Cooper 6-3 285 Committed (12/8/2015) 2-Star (5.3) 2-Star (0.7852)
WR Jalen Camp 6-2 210 Committed (12/9/2015) 2-Star (5.2) 3-Star (0.7986)
WR Jair Anderson 6-2 185 Committed (12/26/2015) 2-Star (5.4) 3-Star (0.8456)
ATH Jay Jones 6-0 180 Committed (1/16/2016) 3-Star (5.7) 3-Star (0.8515)

As shown above, Georgia Tech added a commitment on Saturday from Alabama QB/ATH Jay Jones. That's a big deal -- Jones is a gifted athlete who immediately becomes one of the highest-rated recruits in the class. He figures to begin his career at quarterback, but he has the ability to play other positions down the road given his excellent athleticism.

Check out a few tweets from the commitments who were in town for their official visits this weekend!

After Jones' commitment, the updated wish list for Georgia Tech to finish out the recruiting class is shown below. Keep in mind that, should Lucas Johnson commit, he would count for the Quarterback spot while Jones would count for the Athlete spot, although both would begin as quarterbacks.

  • 1 Quarterback
  • 1 Offensive Lineman
  • 1 Defensive Tackle
  • 1 Defensive Lineman (DT/DE)
  • 1 Defensive Back
  • 1 Athlete (Defensive Back/A-Back)

Although the Jackets can safely take a maximum of 6 more commitments, history tells us that they will save 1-2 scholarships for walk-on players and potential transfers. That said, they could end up taking more than that if Coach Johnson knows now of players that are leaving the program prior to the start of next season.

This Weekend's Visitors

Aside from Jones and several committed players, there were four visitors this weekend. Let's see where they stand following the weekend.

Positive Outlook

QB Lucas Johnson

By all accounts, it looks like Johnson had a good time this weekend with his host Marcus Marshall. He's set to visit San Diego State next weekend, where he's been committed for several months and right around the corner from where he goes to high school. Chances are, this is going to largely be a decision based on how important it is to Johnson to be close to home. That said, the fact that he was even willing to fly across the country for an official visit is a good sign for Georgia Tech. Johnson should be announcing his decision by the middle of next week, after his visit this coming weekend.

DB Romeo Finley

(Article requires subscription.) Although he left without committing, it looks like Finley's visit went exceptionally well. He's due to visit Clemson and Miami over the final two weekends, but it's unclear whether either one would have room for him to commit. (That especially goes for Miami, who has 4-5 defensive backs committed depending on where you look.) Don't expect Finley to commit for at least another 10 days, and even then it might go right up to Signing Day. The Jackets are definitely in a good place with his recruitment, though.

Neutral Outlook

DT Brandon Adams

This situation appears to be a bit of a mixed bag for now. It's similar to Johnson's situation -- Adams has been committed to Vandy for a while, which is right around the corner from where he's attending high school. That said, there's some reason to like Georgia Tech's chances with Adams -- he bothered to take the visit to Atlanta, and on top of that it seems like he was pretty impressed with what he saw. He's due to officially visit Vanderbilt this coming weekend, and (also like Johnson) should announce a final decision soon afterwards.

DE Jordan Woods

Before the weekend, there was a video interview with Woods in which he claimed to have already committed to the coaching staff somewhere, without naming which, but saying that he would be "releasing a video on Monday" announcing that commitment. Following that was extensive speculation that it was Tennessee that would be getting Woods, even though the defensive end was due to visit the Flats. He did make that visit, and had not posted a commitment video as of 10:30pm EST on Monday. It's speculation at this point, but the signs would suggest that the visit went very well for Woods and has given him a little something extra to think about.

Also worth keeping in mind -- a long-time Tennessee commit backed off of that commitment Monday due to some major displeasure with the Volunteers' staff. That wouldn't be noteworthy, except for the fact that this isn't exactly unusual as it relates to Tennessee. It's possible that these types of issues impact other recruits (committed and uncommitted) in their perception of the coaches and program, including Woods.

Woods is still due to visit West Virginia this weekend, but keep an eye on him -- the longer that this is drawn out, the lower the chances are that he ends up at Tennessee.

Off the Board

DB Baylen Buchanan

We told you last week that Buchanan had committed to Tennessee and received a scholarship offer from Ohio State ever since backing off of his commitment to Louisville. He was due to visit the Flats this past weekend, but did not make that visit. It would appear that both sides have moved on.

Other Updates

Neutral Outlook

OL Donavaughn Campbell

Campbell took his official visit to LSU (where he's been committed for a long time) this weekend. He told SEC Country that, "It was great," and that he "loved everything". These were a few of his tweets from the weekend:

He also updated his embedded tweet to this one:

Finally, he's due for an in-home visit with LSU Head Coach Les Miles tomorrow:

But, before you think that it was fun while it lasted and Georgia Tech is out of the running for Campbell, he also dropped these nuggets between Sunday and Monday:

Take all of this to mean what you will, but know this: Campbell is due to visit Atlanta the weekend before Signing Day. It's a big deal to get a recruit to visit. It's a really big deal to get them to visit the weekend before National Signing Day and being the most fresh on that recruit's mind. I don't know that he'll end up at Georgia Tech, but the signs are pointing towards the Yellow Jackets still being very much in play.

Big Board

Pos Player Ht Wt Status Visit Date Rivals 247Sports Composite
ATH Demetris Robertson 6-0 180 Uncommitted 1/29/2016 5-Star (6.1) 5-Star (0.9839)
OL Donavaughn Campbell 6-5 340 Committed to LSU 1/29/2016 4-Star (5.9) 4-Star (0.9369)
DT Michail Carter 6-3 288 Uncommitted 1/22/2016 4-Star (5.9) 4-Star (0.9346)
DB Romeo Finley 6-1 202 Uncommitted 1/15/2016 4-Star (5.8) 4-Star (0.8927)
DE Jordan Woods 6-3 250 Uncommitted 1/15/2016 4-Star (5.8) 3-Star (0.8869)
OL Jordan Johnson 6-3 260 Uncommitted 1/29/2016 3-Star (5.7) 3-Star (0.8647)
ATH Deshaunte Jones 5-10 170 Uncommitted 1/22/2016 3-Star (5.5) 3-Star (0.8578)
DT Brandon Adams 6-2 300 Committed to Vanderbilt 1/15/2016 3-Star (5.5) 3-Star (0.8309)
QB Lucas Johnson 6-3 185 Committed to San Diego State 1/15/2016 3-Star (5.5) 3-Star (0.8162)
ATH Arkeem Byrd 6-1 190 Uncommitted -- 3-Star (5.5) 3-Star (0.8144)
DB Nick McCloud 6-2 166 Uncommitted 1/22/2016 3-Star (5.6) 3-Star (0.8488)
OL/DL Jahaziel Lee 6-3 260 Committed to Louisiana-Lafayette 1/22/2016 2-Star (5.2) 2-Star (0.7678)
OL Dylan Powell 6-3 270 Uncommitted 1/29/2016 3-Star (5.6) 3-Star (0.8206)
DB Baylen Buchanan -- -- Off the Board -- -- --

A few updates here:

Michail Carter

Although Georgia Tech is thought to be a long shot for the 4-star DT, Carter has set a visit date for this weekend. Other than his visit to the Flats, he visited Clemson this past weekend and is still due to visit Alabama (mid-next week) and georgia (the final weekend). There's also some speculation that he'll make an effort to visit Auburn prior to Signing Day, although his schedule is running out of time for doing so.

Georgia Tech isn't necessarily the leader or the favorite for Carter, and I wouldn't recommend holding your breath, but there's still a possibility that he ends up on the Flats.

Arkeem Byrd

Several sites were reporting last week that Byrd was set to visit Georgia Tech on the final weekend of January, but now have no visit date for him. He visited Wake Forest this weekend and seems to have enjoyed it. After taking official visits to Colorado State and Minnesota back in the fall, Byrd can take two more official visits. It's unclear at this point whether he'll take one to Georgia Tech, but we'll keep you updated on his visit status as developments arise.

Dylan Powell

After a recent decommitment from Purdue, Powell is set to visit the Flats at the end of January. He visited Iowa State this past weekend and is due to visit Virginia Tech this coming weekend, and his decision would appear between those two and Georgia Tech. One thing to note is that while Powell hails from Missouri, a look at his previous commitment and visit schedule suggest that distance from home isn't a major point of contention for him. (Iowa State would be closest to home for him, and it's 4 hours away.)

(Other thing to note: a simple Google search for his name suggests that Powell shares a name with a male underwear model. You've been warned.)

Jahaziel Lee

A high school teammate of Christian and Donavaughn Campbell, Lee can play on either the offensive or defensive line. He's due to visit Georgia Tech this weekend after a visit to his high school from Coach Johnson and Coach Cook (pictured above). At this point, my guess is that Lee is something of a backup plan for the Jackets, but could probably be pulled from his commitment to Louisiana-Lafayette if other recruits fall through.

Nick McCloud

After a strong senior campaign, McCloud has been getting more and more attention from Power-5 programs. He visited N.C. State a couple of months back and is due to visit Georgia Tech this weekend. McCloud has no other visits scheduled, but the South Carolina native has reported offers from programs such as Maryland, Northwestern, UCLA, and West Virginia.

What's Next?

This coming weekend is a big one for the Jackets from an "official visits" standpoint, and not only because of the prospects that they have coming in to visit; at the same time, Lucas Johnson and Brandon Adams will be visiting the programs that they're committed to, preparing to make a final decision on where to sign.

Although Georgia Tech has gotten only one commitment so far in January, the next 10 days or so should clarify the recruiting class quite a bit, with several prospects due to announce their decisions in that time frame. We'll keep you updated over that time with any and all updates as the situations for Georgia Tech and its targets continue to develop!

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Georgia Tech Recruiting 2016

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