Simmons on the Road: Five new names to know in Georgia
With the 2019 high school football season officially kicking off in much of the south over the weekend, Rivals.com Recruiting Analyst Chad Simmons was back on the road eyeing the talent.
He took in five games in person from Thursday to Saturday and here are five new names you need to know.
This list is based on the Lithonia vs. Forest Park, Peachtree Ridge vs. Lanier, Kell vs. Mays, Walton vs. Norcross and North Gwinnett vs. Colquitt County games that were scouted in person.
Lets start with this. French will be ranked on Rivals.com soon. He is a long, rangy linebacker who can run. He was very active in game one, and he finished with around half a dozen tackles, a sack and a couple of tackles for loss. He closed on the ball in a hurry and his offer list will grow in the near future. South Alabama and UAB have offered already. On Monday, Tennessee-Chattanooga offered.
Garner stayed around the football Saturday. He had 10 tackles, two tackles for loss and two pass break-ups. This young man moved well in space, he was physical and he displayed great instincts. He will pop up on a lot of radars this fall.
Mbadinga is only a freshman, so he is a 2023 prospect, and the Peach State running back had a nice coming out party in week zero. Inside Mercedes Benz Stadium, Mbadinga rushed for 113 yards and had 33 yards receiving with a touchdown. He is small, but he is quick, elusive and a ball player.
Rozsman may be known by some, but he is still just a sophomore. He played some last season as a freshman at Walton, and now, in 2019, this is his team. He will put up big numbers the next three seasons. The 2022 quarterback already has an offer from Vanderbilt and he will add many more. He throws a very catchable ball, he has nice touch and he is only going to get better.
It is always nice to identify new players when at a game to see another. That is what happened Thursday. We were there to see Rivals100 offensive tackle Broderick Jones, then his teammate, 2022 linebacker Jamario Washington stood out too. Washington is a very athletic sophomore who had six tackles, four tackles for loss, two sacks and a safety in game one. It is early, but expect schools to start checking on this sophomore much sooner than later.