Class A D1: A Look at One Player from Each Top 10 School.

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As we get closer to the start of the 2023 Season we will take a look at the top player from each school in the Preseason Top 10.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>#1 Prince Ave Christian</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/aaron-philo/">[player_tooltip player_id='321460' first='Aaron' last='Philo']</a></strong> </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Philo returns for his Senior season to defend his State Title after having an outstanding Junior campaign. He completed 70% of his passes, throwing for over 4500 yards with 54 touchdowns. The Georgia Tech commit has a cannon for an arm. With such a high completion rate you would think he is throwing dinks and dunks but this guy is accurate 50 yards downfield. Great pocket presence and consistently makes good throws on the run. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>#2 Swainsboro</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/demello-jones/">[player_tooltip player_id='627638' first='Demello' last='Jones']</a></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The 6'1 Jones is the #2 ranked ATH and the 16th overall 2024 prospect in Georgia. Played some QB, WR, DB, FS last year for the Tigers who went 13-1 and lost to PAC in the State Championship. Officially clocked in the 40 at 4.4. Anytime he touches the ball he is a danger to take it to the house. Very good in coverage with good ball awareness and loves to hit. Selected to the Addias All American Team. Committed to UGA back in March. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>#3 Irwin County</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/shane-marshall/">[player_tooltip player_id='411238' first='Shane' last='Marshall']</a></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>2025 5'10 195 RB: The 80th overall player in the 2025 Class. The guy is an absolute bruiser out of the backfield. Good vision at the line scrimmage and has that stop and start ability that only elite running backs have. He averaged 5.25 yards a carry with 14 TDs while splitting carries with a trio of backs for the Indians. He saw his recruiting pick up this offseason getting offers from Georgia Southern, UAB and Liberty. Look for him to be one of the top RB's in the State by the time his Senior year is over. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>#4 Rabun County</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/willie-goodwyn/">[player_tooltip player_id='661350' first='Willie' last='Goodwyn'] </a></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>2024 6'2 180 WR/DB: Outstanding athlete with explosion. Recorded an 11'2 long jump, has a 32 vertical jump. Good hands that can stretch the field with his speed but doesn't mind catching the ball in traffic. If you don't wrap him up on the screens he has the break away speed to take it to the house. Good at using his height and jumping ability to catch the ball over smaller defenders. University of Cincinnati commit. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>#5 Brooks Co</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/amar-thomas-2/">[player_tooltip player_id='165719' first='Amar' last='Thomas']</a></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The 6'0 170 FS can be summed up in one word, headhunter. This guy loves to bring the hammer and leave no doubt that you have been hit. Was a 2nd Team All Region selection in the very competitive Region 1 1A in 2022. Has decent ball skills and speed. Truley one of the hardest hitting DBs I have watched this season at the Class A level. Has been coached by a great staff at Brooks County. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>#6 Dublin</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='851040' first='Nasir' last='Johnson']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>About time we get a big man in these rankings. 6'5 290 OL/DL is one of the top overall downline man prospects in Georgia. The recent University of Florida commit is one of the most athletic big men I have seen on film in this Class. With a quick log on to his Twitter you can see a video of him doing a roundoff back handspring at 290 pounds, impressive for any athlete. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>#7 Metter</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Allen Williams</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>2025 6'1 180 LB: I really like this rising Juniors film. He has speed to cover sideline to sideline. Effective at shedding blockers to get in the backfield. Shows his burst with several clips of him running down ball carriers from behind. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>#8 Bleckley Co</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Markeze Brown</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>2024 5'11 170 WR/DB: Brown is an athletic, aggressive coverage DB. Real good with his hands in 1v1. Slender build that gets downfield fast with long strides at the WR position. Above average jumping ability with good ball awareness. Doesn't mind catching the ball in traffic. Competed last winter in the GACA All Star game where he had several athletic PBU's. A prospect to keep and eye on in 2024.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>#9 Elbert Co</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Jayvyn Hickman </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>2025 6'1 210 QB: The rising Junior dual threat QB had an outstanding Sophomore season accounting for over 2000 total yards. Workout warrior that has a PC max of 255 and 280 in the bench. Has been officially clocked at 4.7. He has an accurate arm and the throwing speed to get the ball quick to the flat. Always a threat to pull the ball down and run. Excellent student in the classroom carrying a 3.9 GPA. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>#10 Trion</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Toby Maddux</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>2024 5'11 185 ATH: Maddux totaled over 1400 yards total offense last season mostly as RB2 splitting time with the Region Player of the Year. He will move to RB1 this season. Strong, tough kid that is a competitor. Two State Wrestling Champion. Is slated to be one of the top LB in the Region in '23. Overall POY candidate in 7A.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->