Georgia Power 100 linebackers: Blessed Trinity 5-star leads list of top 10

In alphabetical order, here are the top linebackers ahead of the Georgia high school football season, with ranking information from 247 Composite.

Gregory Batson, Lee County: Batson (6-1, 215) was Lee County’s second-leading tackler as a junior and leader as a sophomore. He has 39 tackles for losses and 15 sacks in his career. He is a top-500 senior prospect and Lee County’s best inside linebacker recruit in history. He has a handful of ACC and SEC offers, including one from Georgia Tech. He decommitted from Florida State in June.

Jeremiah Culpepper, Troup: Culpepper (6-2, 206) is a consensus top-300 national senior recruit and Troup’s best linebacker prospect this century. An AJC all-state pick, he had 59 total tackles and 10-2 Class 3A team with 16 tackles for losses and 12 sacks last season. He committed to Ole Miss in May.

Joshua Echols, Buford: Echols (6-0, 210) is the most productive returning defensive player for reigning consensus national champion Buford. He had 99 total tackles, 12 tackles for losses, 10 QB hurries and four sacks as a junior. Echols is a three-star prospect who committed to Middle Tennessee in June.

Jake Godfree, North Gwinnett: Godfree (6-0, 215) was first-team AJC all-state and the Region 7-6A player of the year in 2025. He’s a four-year starter (his teams are 32-7 in that time) with 348 total tackles, 44 tackles for losses, 17 sacks and 12 forced turnovers for his career. He has scored seven touchdowns as a short-yardage back. Godfree is a three-star prospect, listed at just 5-11 on recruiting sites. He committed to NC State in May.

Credit: Jason Getz / Jason.Getz@ajc.com

Credit: Jason Getz / Jason.Getz@ajc.com

Joakim Gouda, McEachern: Gouda (6-2, 225) is a consensus top-200 national prospect among seniors and McEachern’s best linebacker prospect this century. He had 100 tackles (59 solo, 41 assists) in nine games for 4-6 South Paulding last season. He committed to Georgia in June.

Eli Harris, Grayson: Harris (6-2, 215) is a three-year starter who had 67 total tackles and 17 tackles for losses last season, second to five-star recruit Tyler Atkinson. He made the AJC’s all-state team and was first-team outside linebacker with the Gwinnett Touchdown Club. Harris is a three-star recruit who committed to Nebraska in June.

DJ Jacobs, Blessed Trinity: Jacobs (6-5, 235) is the consensus No. 4 prospect nationally and No. 1 by 247Sports. He was honorable-mention all-state as a freshman and first team as a sophomore and junior. He was the AJC’s Class 4A defensive player of the year in 2024. As a junior last season, Jacobs had 102 tackles (65 solo, 37 assists), 14 sacks, 21 tackles for losses and two blocked kicks for a team that went 7-5 in 4A. He committed to Ohio State in December.

Olrick Johnson III, Harrison: Johnson (6-1, 215) was the Region 3-6A defensive player of the year and made AJC all-state last season, when he had 100 tackles, 14.5 tackles for losses and 12.5 sacks for a 10-2 team. He is a three-star recruit who committed to Florida State in June.

Jaeden “JT” Taylor, Carver (Columbus): Taylor (6-1, 210) made first-team AJC all-state and was Region 1-2A’s defensive player of the year as a sophomore for the Class 2A state champions. He had a team-leading 36 tackles for losses. Taylor is a consensus top-300 national prospect among juniors and Carver’s second-best linebacker prospect behind his head coach, former Georgia and NFL player Jarvis Jones. He has at least eight ACC and SEC offers.

Darryn Williams, Gainesville: Williams (6-0, 210) made all-state teams last season after compiling 88 total tackles, nine tackles for losses and eight QB hurries. More impressively, he intercepted six passes — returning three for touchdowns — and forced three fumbles. Williams is a three-star prospect who committed to Wake Forest in April. His nickname is Boom.