Landon Dickerson, a 4-star star offensive lineman from North Carolina, explained to the AJC why UGA made his list of finalists.
The Bulldogs were joined by Michigan, Auburn, Florida State, Virginia Tech, and Tennessee.
“I’ve been thinking about top schools for a while now,” Dickerson said. “The six schools that I picked, they all seemed to fit me the best so far. That can always change.
“There could be another school that comes along that could top all those guys. But right now, between how I communicate with the coaches and how I like their personalities, where the school is, what their beliefs in football and education are — education, overall, if they have engineering and how good it is — altogether, those just kind of played a role in picking those six.”
The 6-foot-5, 293-pound tackle says he’s been thoroughly impressed with the coaching staff. He’s also conceded to the AJC in recent weeks that he’s felt like a priority for the Bulldogs, particularly because of a few recent decommitments.
“UGA is kind of a new leader in my group here, but they made it into my top six,” Dickerson said. “I really like (offensive line coach Rob Sale), great guy. (Offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer), (coach Mark Richt), they’re all just great people. They’re just genuine people.”
UGA may have gotten into the fold a bit later than its competitors, but Dickerson maintains that it won’t factor into his decision.
“I really don’t see coming into the game late as a bad thing,” Dickerson said. “There still will be teams coming in after this, I think. I’m giving everyone a fair shot in this process. Georgia really impressed me, so, that put them in my top six.”
Check out what Dickerson had to say about his other leaders below.
On Michigan: “Michigan is definitely a big engineering school. (Head coach Jim Harbaugh) has done great things in college and in the NFL. I think he can do some great things there. Hopefully, with my official visit in September, I’ll be able to see some of those things.”
On Auburn: “(Head coach Gus Malzahn) and (offensive line coach J.B. Grimes), they’re just really great people. I like how they play football. It’s a running-style offense, and that’s what I’ve sort of done here in high school.”
On Tennessee: “Tennessee, they’ve been in the mix for a while now. (Head coach Butch Jones), he’s a great coach and he’s had some great recruiting classes here. And I think with the talent he has coming, he’s going to do some great things in the future.”
On Florida State: “Definitely (head coach Jimbo Fisher) and (offensive line coach Rich Trickett). I don’t think I’ve talked to anyone who is more up front and real with me. That’s really what I kind of like. I like genuine people in this world. It’s hard to find that these days. Everyone wants to tell you how great you are and get you to come to their school. Those guys, they told me straight up. They said, ‘You’re a decent player and I can make you better and I can prepare you on to the next level.’”
On Virginia Tech: “Virginia Tech being a family school does help. Also, they have fantastic engineering. (Head coach Frank Beamer), his lineage. They’re all just great coaches. I think they have a good quarterback now, and I think they’re going to do some good things here in the future. I really like Virginia Tech, especially (offensive line coach Stacy Searels), we just have a relationship that, really, I don’t think any coach can really trump just because we’ve been at it for so long.”
Dickerson told the AJC that he would take an unofficial visit for UGA’s home game against South Carolina on Sept. 19
