Georgia target is drawing comparisons to Deshaun Watson

Julian Nixon is only a freshman.

But he is not a normal freshman. Nixon is a 6-foot-4, 205 pound wide receiver out of Duluth (Ga.) Centennial who finished with right at 1,000 yards and 14 touchdowns as a freshman.

With that size and those numbers, it is easy to see why Georgia jumped on him early and offered him his first scholarship in January.

That offer brought a smile to Nixon's face.

"I was surprised and I was happy at the same time," said Nixon. "It is an offer from Georgia, a school in my home state and it meant a lot. It was a complete shock to me. I did not have any type of feeling that the offer was coming that early."

Nixon was in Athens for G-Day 2017, so even when he was in middle school, Georgia already knew who he was. He paid close attention to the team that day and he liked what he saw.

"There is a lot of positive vibes at Georgia. I have been there before and I like the energy there. I like how everyone gets along, how everyone is happy around each other and it is just a positive feeling.

"I liked the crowd too. It was only a spring game, but it was loud and the fans were there supporting the team. I liked the overall feel."

He plans to be back for G-Day 2018 too. He will get back to Athens in the summer and fall now as he starts to look at the Bulldogs a little differently since he now has the offer.

"Georgia offering me first makes me want to go there more and see more of the school," said Nixon. "I will be back there this spring and I plan to be at some games during the season too. I will probably be there for camp this summer too.

"I just want to get over there and be around the coaches more and learn more about things."

Nixon's coach, Michael Perry has been around his share of top players in his career, but there is only one that he started as a freshman outside of Nixon.

His name is Deshaun Watson. A quarterback who led Clemson to the 2017 National Championship and a first round NFL Draft pick in 2017.

There are some similarities.

"I have started two freshmen in my career as a high school coach — Julian and Deshaun," said Perry. "That puts Julian in pretty good company. Julian is a mature young man and he carries himself very similar to the way Deshaun did at this stage.

"Like Deshaun was coming into high school, Julian can be as good as he wants to be. To see what he was able to do as a freshman makes it scary to think about what he can be his junior or senior year."

When you talk to most wide receivers, it is all about scoring touchdowns or making big plays, but Nixon is different. He said his favorite part of playing that position is blocking because he helps set up his teammates for success. The 2021 prospect takes pride in that and that is no surprise to coach Perry.

"Julian is a total team player. He talks about his blocking and he does not care if he is catching the ball or blocking, he is going all out for his team. He is such a mature kid and he will do whatever it takes to help the team.

"He is a very talented football player, but a special young man too."

Ohio State has offered Nixon as well.