The Chad Simmons Road Show: Who's solid, who's not?

CLASS OF 2019 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | State | Position | Team

I was back on the road last week and I visited 11 schools and met with over 50 football prospects. I saw many talented prospects in the 2019, 2020 and 2021 classes, mostly in the north Georgia area.

Four of high profile recruits I spent time with are committed. Three are committed to Georgia and one to Miami. Not all are committed in the same way.

Lets take a look at what category each falls under.

Dominick Blaylock is back to 100-percent after injuring his ankle a year ago in a baseball game at Marietta (Ga.) Walton. As strong as his ankle now is, is the strength of his commitment to the Georgia Bulldogs. Blaylock, the No. 5-ranked wide receiver in the 2019 class committed to Georgia in July and he hasn’t looked back since. Blaylock said that he has told schools like Clemson and Kentucky that he is strong to Georgia and that there is no reason to recruit him any longer. There is nothing that will change his commitment status he said.

Jermaine Burton is a 2020 Miami commitment and he committed to the Hurricanes before he ever stepped foot on campus. He visited Coral Gables for the first time a few weeks back and he loved it. He got to speak with wide receivers coach Ron Dugans at length on his visit and the two are getting closer by the day. Georgia is a school that Burton could potentially visit because it is close to home and he has some former teammates there, but Miami is in a very good spot with this one despite him being in the 2020 class.

Last spring Jadon Haselwood shined at the Rivals 3 stripe camp presented by adidas in Atlanta, but this year, he will compete in Nashville because he will be in Norman (Okl.) visiting the Sooners the weekend his hometown hosts the camp. The five-star grew up a big fan of Oklahoma, the school his father attended, so should the Georgia fans be worried? Since committing to the Bulldogs last March, he never made it a secret that he is going to visit other schools. There will be more visits. Haselwood continues to say all the right things to make Georgia fans feel pretty good about his commitment, but OU could be a real threat. The Sooners are really working the angle of getting him the ball and making him their featured receiver. Auburn, Miami, UCLA and USC are other schools Haselwood said he could potentially take official visits to.

Georgia’s first 2019 commitment was Luke Griffin. Not long after he impressed the Georgia coaches at camp in the summer of 2016, the Bulldogs offered and Griffin committed. Since that time, Griffin has had a couple of knee injuries and he just recently picked up offers from Alabama and Florida. Numerous other schools are expected to offer in the coming months. Griffin has not had as strong of communication with the Georgia staff in recent months, so he has started to take visits and talk to other schools. Brent Key of Alabama has been in regular communication since the Crimson Tide offered and a visit to Tuscaloosa is in the works. Florida had Griffin on campus last month and the Gators really have his attention. Griffin is still committed to Georgia now, but he is one to keep an eye on.

Those four are big names. Those are names most that follow recruiting know at least fairly well. What about four new names? Here are four 2020 and 2021 prospects you will be hearing a lot more about.

Joshua Martin is a 6-foot-2, 210 pound athlete who plays tight end and outside linebacker for Hiram (Ga.), but his future is on defense. South Carolina has started to show interest and a lot more schools will know about him as more see him this spring and summer.

Tyree Nelson is a 5-9, 185 pound running back who is put together. He finished his sophomore season with over 1,000 yards and he can run with power and quickness. Nelson has good balance as well and he has interest in Clemson, Georgia and Louisville early.

Jacquez Smith is another talented wide receiver out of Marietta (Ga.) — and he is only a freshman. Florida recently offered. Nebraska was the first school to pull the trigger. Smith is 6-foot, 190 pounds and he is one to know this fall and the next three seasons.

Aakil Washington will miss spring due to a broken bone in his foot, but the 6-2, 215 pound edge rusher out of Marietta (Ga.) Wheeler will be one to track this fall. He has over 80 tackles and nine sacks last season. He is already drawing interest from Duke, Miami and Tennessee.