Schools that are small and distant from Atlanta’s bright lights loom large in the AJC’s 40th Super 11 team, which has included the state’s best high school football players annually since 1985.
Only two players are from metro Atlanta, both at powerhouse Milton – quarterback Luke Nickel and wide receiver C.J. Wiley. Nickel, who has committed to Miami, is the state’s leading returning passer, and Wiley, a recent pledge to Tennessee, is the leading returning receiver. They helped Milton win a state championship last year.
The two metro Super 11 players are the fewest since 1989, although that’s largely a fluke. In 2022, Mill Creek’s Caleb Downs led nine metro Atlantans in the Super 11.
This year, small schools are prominent, with three Class A players on the Super 11 team. Savannah Christian defensive lineman Elijah Griffin, Manchester defensive lineman Justus Terry and Schley County linebacker Zayden Walker are consensus five-star prospects playing for schools with fewer than 450 students.
Griffin and Terry, each standing 6 feet, 5 inches and weighing approximately 280 pounds, are the consensus No. 1 and No. 2 defensive-line prospects nationally. Both remain uncommitted, although Georgia reportedly leads for both.
Walker committed to Georgia. He’s a four-year starter who has played Terry’s team three times. Both are the first Super 11s from their schools. Schley County, population 4,500, didn’t have its own high school program until 2000.
Another Super 11, Camden County’s Elyiss Williams, plays in the highest class but grew up in a small town. He played his first two high school seasons at Class A Clinch County. He’s a 6-foot-8 tight end committed to Georgia.
The Class A bragging rights aren’t limited to these few. Of the state’s consensus top 25 players, seven are playing in Class A this season.
“The quality of Class A, from top to bottom, has improved tremendously since I’ve been here,” said Schley coach Darren Alford, in his ninth season. He won a state title with Walker in 2022. “The coaching is better, and the player development is better. If you look at Class A altogether, it’s more complex now than a Wing-T offense and a 4-4 defense. The players understand the game of football better, and that’s given kids more looks.”
The most celebrated Super 11 pick, Carrollton quarterback Julian Lewis, is the only player from the highest class. Committed to USC since last year, Lewis chose in January to reclassify as a senior, so this is his final season. He threw for 48 touchdown passes during his freshman and a sophomore seasons for a Class 7A school and has compiled a 25-3 record in his tenure. His name-image-and-likeness value is $1.1 million, according to On3, and he has signed five NIL deals since April.
Three other Super 11 players are from Middle Georgia and South Georgia, and they are familiar with each other. For the third consecutive season, Lee County’s Ousmane Kromah will play against the other three – Warner Robins’ Isaiah Gibson, Thomas County Central’s Kendarius Reddick and Houston County’s Antwann “A.J.” Hill. All but Gibson are in the same strong Class 5A region.
Lee County coach Dean Fabrizio has good scouting reports by now: “Gibson is a long kid that is tough to run against at the point of attack and will run down plays away from him, and you have to know where he is as a pass rusher. Dee Reddick is one of those rare kids that has the ability to cover like a big-time corner but can come down into the box like a big-time linebacker. A.J. Hill is able to make all the throws. And with his height (6-5), he is able to stay in the pocket so long and still see downfield.”
Thomas Central coach Justin Rogers then called Kromah, a running back with three consecutive 1,500-yard-rushing seasons, “the most impactful player that I’ve ever coached against. If you ask me who else could take over a game like him, I ain’t got nobody.”
