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The state of Georgia has become one of the top states in the country for high school football talent. According to 247Sports, the state has produced at least nine top 100 players in the country every year over the past decade. The class of 2028 will be no different, with a number of high-end players already showing how good they can be, even before starting their high school careers.
Flowery Branch linebacker Ryland Garrison will look to hit the ground running in his freshman season as he begins his high school career as a day-one starter for the Falcons. Garrison is coming off an 8th-grade season playing as both a running back and linebacker. On defense, he accumulated 26 sacks, 4 INTs, 11 forced fumbles, and over 70 tackles. On offense, he had over 700 rushing yards on 46 carries along with over 200 receiving yards and 16 total touchdowns. At 6-foot and 180 pounds, Garrison already has the size to be a high-end linebacker while still growing. He fills the final spot in the Falcons’ linebacker room, joining senior Jackson Prehar and junior Griffin Harper. Together, the three will form one of northeast Georgia’s premier linebacker units. In his first game of his high school career Harper had 5 tackles, 1 sack and three quarterback pressures.
Freshman athlete Casey Barner has already shown his potential, winning offensive player of the game honors in the Corky Kell + Dave Hunter Classic against LaGrange, where he scored the first touchdown of the GHSA season. Barner is an athletic freak with good size at 5-11 and 175 pounds and will be one of the top players in the country in the class of 2028. He already has four FBS offers, including one from the University of Georgia. Barner joins 3-star athlete Elijah Hunter Jr. and 4-star cornerback Jontae Gilbert in the secondary and in the wide receiver room. Together, the three form the core of a Douglass-Atl team that is expected to have a historic season and make a deep playoff run.
Bode Spence is already one of the top signal-callers in the class of 2028. Spence has everything you want in a quarterback. He has good size at 6-1, 160 pounds, a strong arm, and a high football IQ. He has already received offers from two FBS schools, UMass and Miami (OH), before playing his first snap of high school football. He was invited to the Georgia Elite Classic in 2023, where he helped the blue 8th-grade team win the game by throwing the game-winning touchdown. Spence joins an East Paulding team that is primed for a breakout season. Along with running back Javen Parker, the Raiders will look to win their first playoff game since 2017 and compete for their first region title since 2012.
One of the top edge rushers in the state in the coming years will be Buford’s Luke Nabors. At 6-4, he has the length to be one of the top players in the country. Nabors has already received his first Power 4 offer from USC. He is joining one of the top teams in the country, which has produced at least one 4-star or better recruit every year since 2021. While he may not see major playing time as a freshman, Buford has shown the ability to develop high end players and a willingness to put young players in major roles early in their careers.
Robert Brown, out of Savannah Christian, is expected to be a major contributor early in his career for the Raiders. The 6-2, 295-pound offensive lineman has already begun the recruiting process, receiving five FBS offers, including offers from Florida State and Arkansas. He is joining one of the top private schools in the state. The Raiders finished as the 3A state runner-up, going 12-3 and making their first championship appearance since 2011. He is already seeing significant playing time playing a major role for the Raiders in his first high school game. Brown joins Elijah Griffin, the number eight player in the class of 2025, and LaDamion Guyton, the number four player in the class of 2027, as they try to avenge last year’s state title loss and bring home the school’s first state title since 2011.