The Georgia Tech football team is expected to land a key player for its new-look defense on Wednesday when the second National Signing Day takes place.
The Yellow Jackets are expected to sign JaQuon Griffin, a defensive lineman from Rome. Griffin had previously committed to LSU, but changed his month in December and Georgia Tech jumped back into the hunt.
Griffin posted his decision to sign with Georgia Tech on a video that was posted on his Twitter account. The two-minute video was a highlight reel that concluded with Griffin wearing a Georgia Tech jersey.
Griffin (6-0, 265) is a two-time all-state lineman who led his team to back-to-back state championships. He is generally considered a three-star recruit. Griffin is expected to fit in well under the new 3-4 defensive scheme being installed by defensive coordinator Nate Woody.
Georgia Tech is still waiting on a signature from C’Bo Flemister, a running back from Pike County. He was a verbal commitment to the Yellow Jackets in December, but failed to sign. Flemister (5-11, 190) is still being squired by other schools, among them Notre Dame.
The Yellow Jackets signed 18 players in the first national signing period, among them Peach County’s Jaquez Jackson. Georgia Tech signed eight offensive players and 10 defensive players in December. That includes quarterback James Grantham, of Fitzgerald, who was a late flip from Virginia Tech.
Georgia Tech also got a transfer in January when offensive tackle Jack DeFoor transferred from Ole Miss. DeFoor (6-5, 200) will have to sit out this season, but will have three years to play. The Calhoun native considered the Yellow Jackets prior to signing with Ole Miss.
Georgia Tech has extended an offer to safety Thompson Rudolph of Spartanburg, South Carolina, as a preferred walk-on. He will be a third-generation Yellow Jacket, joining his grandfather John Rudolph (1957-59) and his uncle Coleman Rudolph (1989-92). Another preferred walk-on spot went to kicker Cliff Gandis of Greenville, South Carolina.
Until this year, National Signing Day was the biggest moment for high school recruits. That changed this year when the NCAA added an earlier signing day in December. Players had the option to sign early and end the process or they could continue to wait until the existing date in February.
It is estimated that nearly 72 percent of this year’s signees signed their letters of intent in December.
“The player pool has shrunk from a pool to a puddle,” said Tom Luginbill, ESPN’s national recruiting director. “The early signing period made an impact outside of the Power Five conferences, as well.”
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