Another Athens-area high school football player is joining Kirby Smart’s roster. In the last two years, he is the fourth.
Clarke Central senior Anthony ‘AJ’ Lonon Jr. confirmed his pledge at a ceremony in the Clarke Central weight room Saturday, choosing Georgia over Georgia Tech.
Advertisement
The 6-foot-1.5, 265-pound defensive lineman is rated a four-star class of 2026 recruit, ranked No. 35 out of Georgia by the 247Sports Composite.
As a junior, he had 51 tackles, 33 solo and 13 for loss of yardage, as well as 8 sacks for a loss of 60 yards. He averaged 5.1 tackles per game during the 2024 season.
His top schools were Georgia and Georgia Tech, but he had offers across the board from schools like NC State, Wake Forest, Virginia Tech, Appalachian State, Ball State, Georgia Southern, West Georgia and more. He even had a few Ivy League teams interested between Cornell, Dartmouth and Harvard.
Lonon Jr. becomes the 31st hard commitment, and seventh defensive lineman commit, for Georgia’s 2026 class. He joins GHSA Class 4A state champion Khamari Brooks out of North Oconee and will be reconnecting with his former quarterback Hezekiah Millender, who joined Georgia’s 2025 class with Brooks’ former teammate Landon Roldan.
Advertisement
His senior season begins Aug. 15 with the annual Classic City Championship at 6:30 p.m. The Gladiators, who have won the last six meetings, will be traveling to cross-town rival Cedar Shoals, looking for lucky number seven.
This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: Clarke Central big man Anthony Lonon Jr. commits to Georgia football
