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Recruiting 2024: Carrollton at Buford
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Will “JuJu” play? That’s the mystery that enshrouds this GHSA Class 6A semifinal as No. 1 Carrollton plays at No. 2 Buford in the state playoff game pitting the two top-ranked teams in the state’s highest classification
For those in need of a little more information, “JuJu” is Julian Lewis the No. 1 Trojans’ consensus 5-Star rated as high as the No. 2 QB and overall prospect in the nation who on Wednesday signed to play his college ball for the Colorado Buffaloes.
According to reports he appeared to have injured his throwing hand early in the second quarter of the Trojans 46-6 state quarterfinal win over Hillgrove. He reportedly had the hand x-rayed and later showed up on the sidelines in a cast.
The reason for all the mystery is that Carrollton has divulged very little about his playing status or, quoting HIPPA laws, the nature of his injury. When we spoke with Coach Joey King in our weekly conference Zoom call, all he would say is that “JuJu” was day-to-day and “trainers were working extra hard” to try and get him ready for the game.
I don’t blame Coach King and Carrollton for the secrecy. I would play it the same way. This isn’t the NFL or even college football for that matter where weekly injury reports are required. So why give away information when it isn’t necessary? Wolves Coach Bryant Appling says they’re preparing as if Lewis will play. Again it’s the only thing to do. Our GPB Sports Football Fridays in Georgia coverage kicks off from Tom Riden Stadium in Buford tonight at 7:30 p.m. By then, there will be no more secrets.
The Teams
These two programs are the bluest of blue bloods in Georgia High School Football. Both are playing in their 26th all-time semifinal ball game. The Trojans are 14-11 in those semifinals and have won 7 state championships but none since 1998 and that’s the only one in the last 49 seasons. The Wolves are 21-4 all-time in the semifinals and have won 18 of their last 19 semifinal games including a 21-6 win over Carrollton in 2021 when Buford won the most recent of their 14 all-time state titles.
The Carrollton Trojans are 13-0 and since “JuJu” reclassified in January from the Class of 2026 to 2025, in essence skipping over his junior season and making this his senior season, there has been a sense of urgency about this team. And they have played like it. They have not won a game by fewer than three touchdowns since their 24-14 win at 5A No. 9 Woodward Academy on that stormy season-opening night back in mid-August.
As a freshman Lewis led the Trojans to the 2022 state championship game and 14-1 season finish, falling to Mill Creek in a 70-35 shootout in which “JuJu” passed for 500 yards. We all left Center Parc Stadium that night wondering just how many state championships the Trojans would win this young phenom at QB.
But in “JuJu’s” sophomore season, Carrollton was beaten by eventual finalist Walton in the 2023 quarterfinals. Then came the aforementioned reclassification and now time has nearly run out for a storybook ending … if it hasn’t already.
There’s no question had he played another season in this state he would have set the GHSA’s all-time passing TD and yardage record. Math tells you that. He would have been on pace to blow by both of those marks. So here’s hoping he’ll be healthy enough tonight to answer the bell one more time.
Even if he is, there’s no guarantee the Trojans get a shot at the title. The Wolves will be tough to beat whether Lewis can play or not. This Buford team is back. Not that they went anywhere but after winning three straight state championships in Coach Appling’s first three seasons, the Wolves were upset in the 2022 second round and then 2023 quarterfinals. There were people actually wondering out loud ”what’s wrong with Buford?”
I know. I heard them. They were even louder when the Wolves were 13-10 losers at 5A No. 1 Milton in that aforementioned stormy season-opening weekend (that you saw on GPB) and then the following week when they squeaked by 4A No. 9 Benedictine 29-28. But since then, the Wolves have outscored their last 11 opponents by a combined 487-89. They have gotten better every week. You know. You’ve seen them do it. This will be their fourth appearance on GPB Sports Football Fridays in Georgia this season.
The Match-Up
Carrollton Trojans Offense – Averaging 47.5 PPG. If “JuJu” is playing, you’re talking about a young man who in 41 career games has passed for 10,484 yards and 140 TD. That’s good for eighth on the state’s career yardage list and fifth in touchdown passes. As you can see with another season, he would rather easily hold both records. But if he can’t play, junior Dylan Bishop will be the guy. He has lots of starts in his career as the Trojans shortstop in baseball but this would be his first for the varsity football team. First start vs Buford. In the state semifinals. Gulp! My heart is beating fast just thinking about it. But Carrollton has a ton of offensive weapons to help him. Start with 3-Star RB Kimauri Farmer. He’s rushed for 1,182 yards this season and scored 18 TD. He’s caught 34 passes and scored four more TD. Farmer has 12 offers including Georgia State, UAB and Georgia Southern.
Having watched “JuJu” play a lot of games, I would say one of his greatest attributes is that he always seems to find the open receiver. And Carrollton usually has a bunch of them. 2026 4-Star Ryan Mosley has 27 offers including Georgia with 51 catches for 761 yards and 11 TD. 2026 3-Star Peyton Zachary has 25 offers including Georgia and is 57-821 yards and 9 TD. Kiyun Cofer (3 offers) with 37 catches and 5 TD and A.J. McNeil, who just signed with UT-Martin has 25 receptions and 8 TD and both would be No. 1 WRs at most any other school. The offensive line is led by 2026 4-Star Zykie Helton who was once committed to Alabama before the coaching change and rated as high as the No.1 IOL in the country and center Cole Norred just signed this week with ETSU.
Carrollton Defense – Allowing just 13.5 PPG despite being undersized in their front seven by 6A standards. Linebacker Landon Wolfe leads the team with 72 total tackles, 40 solos plus has 8 TFL and 3 QB Sacks. OLB Kaden Spratling has offers from Shorter and UT-Martin with 50 TT, 9 TFL and 5 QB Sacks. Three guys on the DL have double-digit TFL Jacob Ricks (12 TFL, 4 Sacks), D.A. Logan (12 TFL, 4 Sacks) and C.J. Kelley (10 TFL, 5 Sacks). Logan has been offered by Georgia Southern and Kelley has 5 offers including Arkansas State. 3-Star Zion Cooley who was once committed to East Carolina is one to watch. He starts at TE but expect him to see a lot of snaps on defense tonight. He has 12 total tackles this season but 6 are for TFL with 4 more QB sacks. So he gets it done when they need him.
The secondary is where the Trojans star-power shines through on defense. 4-Star Zelus Hicks just signed with Texas this week after reclassifying from the Class of 2026 to 2025 a month ago. He is rated as high as the No. 6 safety in 2025. He was No. 1 in 2026. 4-Star CB Shamar Arnoux just signed with Florida State after a NSD flip from Auburn and decommitting from USC before that. 2026 4-Star Dorian Barney rated as high as the No. 7 junior CB was once committed to Alabama but has 39 other offers from which to choose.
Buford Offense – Averaging 40.5 ppg. Led by what has got to be the deepest RB room in the state, if not the country. The Wolves have four legitimate college football running backs led by 3-Star Justin Baker who just signed with Tennessee this week. I believe he would easily rush for 2,000 yards in a season if he got enough carries but in Buford’s RB-by-committee, that’s not going to happen. 4-Star Ty Green has 35 offers including Georgia and is rated as high the No. 8 athlete in 2026. He starts at safety but he'll get the ball plenty enough. I know statistically I can’t win this argument but for my money he’s the best two-way player in the state. And don’t forget about 3-Star Ethan Ervin who signed with FAU on NSD and Dylan McCoy is rated as high as the No. 3 All-Purpose Back in 2026 and has 11 offers.
3-Star QB Dayton Raiola is committed to Nebraska where his brother Dylan is the freshman starting QB and his dad Dominic was a Remington Trophy winning center. He threw for 80 yards last week vs North Gwinnett and the Wolves still won by 5 TD. 3-Star WR Jordan Allen is fast in the likes of former Buford stars K.J. Bolden and Isaiah Bond and signed with Georgia Tech two days ago after flipping from Louisville. The offensive line is strong and Coach App says may be their most cohesive group since 2019. Name to remember there is OT Graham Houston a 6-4, 300-lbs, 4-Star junior who already has 15-plus power conference offers including Georgia.
Buford Defense – Allowing just 10.0 PPG. Good luck scoring on these guys. The Wolves have not allowed more than one TD for six straight games and two TD just once in their last nine games. And that’s playing a schedule with nine Top 10 ranked teams in their first 13 games. So you won’t be surprised when I tell you that all but one of their starters on that side of the ball have either signed with or have offers from power conference teams and seven more “second teamers” have power offers. Geesh!
Where to start? We always do with 2026 4-Star DE Bryce Perry Wright. I’ve yet to see anybody consistently block him. He’s rated as high as the No. 3 junior DL with 39 offers including Alabama, Auburn and Georgia. 3-Star Nicco Maggio joins BPW on the DL and just signed with Wake Forest. 2026 4-Star James Morrow has 23 offers including Auburn, Georgia, and Alabama.
4-Star Jadon Perlotte doesn’t always rack-up a lot of stats with the LB position that he plays but he’s the highest rated senior on the team and just signed with Tennessee Wednesday after flipping from USC and Georgia before that. Try running the ball on linebackers A.J. Holloway (3-Star signed with South Carolina), Mantrez Walker (4-Star signed with Colorado) and Kenyon Rivera (3-Star signed with Memphis).
In the secondary don’t forget about the aforementioned 4-Star Ty Green at safety (you know also star RB) and 3-Star CB Chris Garland who’s had a great season and just signed with Stanford.
Recruiting Game Guide
Buford Prospects – Nine 4-Stars, 12 3-Stars and 36 total players with college offers, 13 of which signed Wednesday.
Seniors
#5 Jadon Perlotte – 6-4, 215, Senior – Signed with Tennessee over 34 other offers after flipping from USC on NSD – Highest Rating: ESPN 4-Star and #21 LB 2025
#21 Devin Williams – 5-9, 160, Senior – Signed with Auburn over 34 offers including Alabama and Tennessee – Highest Rating: ESPN 4-Star and #17 CB 2025 – Injured: Has not played this season
#8 Mantrez Walker – 6-1, 225, Senior – Signed with Colorado over 27 other offers – Highest Rating: Rivals 4-Star and #19 LB 2025
#2 Justin Baker – 5-11, 205, Senior – Signed with to Tennessee over 19 other offers including Michigan – Consensus 3-Star RB
#4 Jordan Allen – 5-8, 185, Senior – Signed with Georgia Tech over 32 other offers after decommitting from Louisville – Consensus 3-Star WR 2025
#44 A.J. Holloway – 6-3, 225, Senior - Signed with South Carolina over 17 other offers – Consensus 3-Star – Highest Rating: ESPN No. 25 LB 2025
#80 Hayden Bradley – 6-4, 220, Senior – Signed with Ole Miss over 37 other offers – Consensus 3-Star – Highest Rating: Rivals #33 TE 2025
#0 Kenyon Rivera – 6-3, 215, Senior – Signed with Memphis over 25 other offers after decommitting from Kansas – Consensus 3-Star LB
#23 Chris Garland – 6-0, 185, Senior – Signed with Stanford over 21 other offers including Duke and Boston College – Rated as high as 247 Sports 3-Star CB
#58 Nicco Maggio – 6-2, 280, Senior – Signed with Wake Forest over 8 other offers including Duke and West Virginia – Consensus 3-Star and ESPN No. 33 DL 2025
#1 Ethan Ervin – 6-0, 185, Senior – Signed with Florida Atlantic over 11 other offers including Nebraska – Rated as high as ESPN 3-Star RB
#59 Marcus Major – 6-1, 310, Senior OL – Signed with Air Force
#11 Cooper Berry – 6-1, 205, Senior TE – Signed with Mercer over 8 other offers including Jacksonville State and UAB
#15 Jayvin Bennett – 6-2, 230, Senior H-Back/DE – 9 Offers include Wofford and The Citadel
#9 Sam Harkness – 5-10, 175, Senior WR/DB – Offered by Dartmouth
Juniors
#3 Bryce Perry-Wright – 6-2, 255, Junior – 39 offers including Alabama, Auburn and Georgia – Consensus 4-Star – Highest Rating: Rivals No. 3 DL 2026
#13 Tyriq Green – 6-1, 195, Junior – 39 offers including Georgia – Highest Rating: ESPN 4-Star and #8 ATH 2026
#24 Nassir McCoy – 6-2, 185, Junior – 31 offers including Georgia – Rated as high as Rivals 4-Star and #8 Safety 2026
#75 Graham Houston – 6-4, 300, Junior – 15-plus power conference offers including Georgia – Highest Rating: ESPN 4-Star IOL (Interior Offensive Lineman)
#41 C.J. Sibley – 6-1, 192, Junior – 19 offers including Auburn - Rated as high as Rivals 4-Star and #13 LB 2026
#34 James Morrow – 6-4, 240, Junior – 23 offers including Auburn, Georgia, and Alabama – Rated as high as Rivals 4-Star and #9 DL 2026
#7 Dylan McCoy – 5-11, 215, Junior – 11 offers including Mississippi State, Ole Miss and NC State – Rated as high as Rivals 3-Star and #3 All-Purpose Back 2026
#10 Dayton Raiola – 6-3, 205, Junior – Committed to Nebraska September 22nd over two other offers – Rated as high as Rivals 3-Star and #32 QB 2026
#65 Ben Mubenga – 6-5, 255, Junior – Nine offers including Auburn, West Virginia and LSU – Rated as high as Rivals 3-Star DL
#14 Jax Pope – 6-0, 190, Junior – Five offers including Florida Atlantic, Indiana and Wake Forest - Rated as high as On3 Recruits 3-Star Safety 2026
#96 Cameron Simmons – 6-3, 230, Junior Edge – Offered by Wake Forest and Troy
#18 Hannibal Navies – 6-2, 185, Junior WR – Offered by Colorado, FAU, and Indiana
#17 Deion Miller – 6-0, 205, Junior LB – Offered by Duke
Sophomores
#25 Ethan Hauser – 6-2, 175, Sophomore ATH – Nine offers including Georgia Tech
#43 Joshua Echols – 5-10, 175, Sophomore LB – Three offers including Ole Miss
#28 Jameer Cantrell – 5-10, 175, Sophomore ATH – Four offers including Arkansas, Maryland and Duke
#35 Brayden “Tank” Watson – 6-3, 190, Sophomore ATH – Offered by Southern Cal
#39 Ryan Tharpe – 6-0, 180, Sophomore LB – Offered by Florida Atlantic
Freshmen
#90 Christian Webb-Scott – 6-5, 222, Freshman Edge – 12 offers including Georgia State, Tennessee and South Carolina
#89 Luke Nabors – 6-4, 190, Freshman DL – Six offers including Florida State
#84 Kevin Hughes – 6-0, 180, Freshman WR – Offered by Georgia State
Carrollton Prospects – One 5-Star, five 4-Star, five 3-Stars and 23 total players with college offers, six who signed on NSD.
Seniors
#10 Julian “JuJu” Lewis – 6-1, 181, Senior – Signed with Colorado over 39 other offers after decommitting from USC – Highest Ranking: ESPN 5-Star QB and No. 2 overall prospect and QB 2025
#3 Zelus Hicks – 6-2, 181, Senior – Signed with Texas over 33 offers - Consensus 4-Star – Highest Rating: ESPN No. 6 Safety 2025 (90.77). Hicks reclassified from Class of 2026 to 2025 on Nov. 6
#15 Shamar Arnoux – 6-2, 177, Senior – Signed with Florida State over 33 other offers after decommitting from Auburn and USC – Highest Ranking: Rivals 4-Star and No. 12 CB 2025
#0 Zion Cooley – 6-4, 220, Senior TE/Edge – 11 total offers including East Carolina from which he decommitted October 28 – Highest Rating: 247 Sports 3-Star Edge
#12 Kai Callen – 5-10, 170, Senior – Signed with James Madison over 11 other offers – Consensus 3-Star ATH
#70 Cole Norred – 6-3, 270, Senior – Signed with ETSU over 9 other offers after decommitting from Army – Highest Rating: ESPN 3-Star Interior OL
#93 C.J. Kelly – 6-0, 233, Senior DL/LB – Five offers including Arkansas State
#7 Antonio Cromartie – 5-11, 168, Senior DB – 4 offers including UT-Martin and Southeast Missouri State
#1 Kiyun Cofer - 5-10, 180, Senior WR – Offered by Reinhardt, Jackson State and Point University
#5 Kameron McClure – 5-7, 159, Senior ATH (CB) – Offered by Tuskegee
#65 Ryan “R.J.” Sizemore – 5-10, 264, Senior OL – 16 offers including Reinhardt and Berry
#13 Aaron “A.J.” McNeil – 5-11, 179, Senior WR – Signed with UT-Martin over two other offers
Juniors
#18 Dorian Barney – 6-1, 170, Junior – 40 Offers including Texas A&M and Alabama from whom he decommitted November 10 – Consensus 4-Star – Highest Rating: 247 Sports No. 7 CB 2026
#4 Ryan Mosley – 6-2, 197, Junior – 27 offers including Georgia, Alabama, and South Carolina - Highest Rating: On3 Recruiting 4-Star and No. 13 ATH 2026
#52 Zykie Helton – 6-3, 248, Junior – 20 offers including Alabama who he originally committed to July 2023 but then decommitted March 16 – Highest Rating: Rivals 4-Star and No. 1 Interior OL in the country 2026
#9 C.J. Gamble – 6-1, 200, Junior – 8 offers including Tennessee - Highest Rating: 247 Sports 3-Star LB
#21 Kimauri Farmer – 5-9, 174, Junior – 12 offers including Georgia State, UAB and Georgia Southern – Highest Rating: 247 Sports 3-Star RB
#6 Peyton Zachary – 5-5, 153, Junior – 25 offers including Georgia – Highest Rating: On3 Industry Recruiting 3-Star WR
#53 Beau Ball – 6-3, 301, Junior OL – Offered by Georgia Southern and UT-Martin
#2 Jay Hagan – 5-10, 175, Junior DB – Offered by Georgia Southern
#95 D.A. Logan – 6-2, 252, Junior DL – Offered by Georgia Southern
#34 Kaden Spratling – 6-1, 221, Junior LB – Offered by Shorter and UT-Martin
Freshmen
#54 Kweli Fielder – 6-4, 308, Freshman OL – 7 offers including Florida
So, join Wayne Gandy, Niki Noto Palmer, Jon Nelson, Hannah Goodin and me for our Emmy Award-winning Football Fridays in Georgia Game of the Week as the Carrollton Trojans play at the Buford Wolves in the Semifinals of the GHSA 6A Playoffs.
Remember, you can watch Football Fridays in Georgia in so many ways. You have traditional TV (GPB), online at GPB.org, GPB Sports app, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and Twitch.
Now if you miss the game live or just want to watch it again, don’t worry, we replay the entire Football Fridays in Georgia Game of the Week at 11:15 p.m. or you can watch it on demand anytime at GPB.org.
Enjoy your Dec. 6, 2024, Football Friday in Georgia!
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