Five-star defensive lineman Elijah Griffin of Savannah (Ga.) Christian Prep will announce his college decision on Friday at approximately 1:20 p.m. ET during a ceremony at his high school gymnasium.
Griffin, a top-five prospect, is the highest-ranked uncommitted prospect in the 2025 class.
The three formal finalists are Georgia, Miami and USC.
Here’s additional context in anticipation of Griffin’s announcement.
RECRUITMENT
Griffin picked up his first offer from Georgia when he was in the eighth grade. It’s fair to bill the Dawgs as the longtime leader in this recruitment.
Kirby Smart‘s staff has done an excellent job of prioritizing Griffin, while also not assuming anything — and not aggressively pushing for a commitment in the summer, when many prospects were taking their official visits and making decisions.
In fact, while Griffin took June official visits to Miami and USC, he picked his UGA official visit for the fall. The Dawgs hosted him on that official visit last weekend for the Mississippi State game. Griffin subsequently publicized his commitment date coming off his official visit to Athens.
UGA’s patience and diligence are on pace to be rewarded Friday afternoon barring a last-minute upset by the Trojans or Hurricanes. Both USC and Miami should be commended for attracting Griffin to campus on multiple visits and resonating with him and his family. But it would be a surprise to all onlookers if either program pulled off the coup in the end.
EVALUATION
Griffin (6-foot-5, 285 pounds) moved up four spots in 247Sports’ Top247 update earlier this week. He is now the No. 4 overall prospect in the country (and remains the nation’s top-ranked defensive lineman). He’s the No. 1 prospect in the state of Georgia.
Below is a scouting report of Griffin via 247Sports director of scouting Andrew Ivins:
“Disruptive interior force that fuses exceptional physical traits together with an advanced feel for the game. Has proven to be no match for the competition that he has faced at the prep level and enters senior season with a startling 69 tackles for loss and 35.5 sacks to his credit. Equipped with the size, length, quickness and power to handle both one and two-gap responsibilities in a variety of different alignments as he can charge up field or take on double teams in the middle.
“Tends to launch out of his stance with what might be the best snap anticipation in the entire 2025 cycle. Active hands and a slick long arm frequently give him an advantage in tight quarters, but relentless energy causes just as many issues for opponents as there are stretches where he creates negative play after negative play. Could improve the pad level in the coming years and will likely need a developmental semester or two before he’s ready to provide valuable snaps for a College Football Playoff contender, but is tracking to see the field sooner rather than later.
“Should be viewed as a potential impact defensive lineman with some position flexibility based on the early returns from his 12th grade campaign. Likely to morph into an early-round selection in the NFL Draft with some seasoning, especially with his testing history: 34.6-inch vertical jump and a 5.1-second effort in the 40-yard dash at just over 6-foot-4, 275 pounds.”
CRYSTAL BALL
The 247Sports Crystal Ball is unanimous in its forecasts — all for the Dawgs.
WHAT IT WOULD MEAN
Should Georgia (currently No. 6 in team rankings), land Griffin, the Dawg’ class would leap Auburn and LSU to claim in the No. 3 spot nationally behind Ohio State (26 commitments) and Alabama (21 commitments).
Griffin would become Georgia’s 23rd commitment in the class and third 247Sports five-star.
Griffin would become Georgia’s second defensive line commitment in the class, joining three-star JJ Hanne of Rancho Santa Margarita (Calif.) Catholic.
Additionally, Griffin would become the 15th Georgia commitment (of 23) to hail from in-state.
For the latest recruiting scoop on UGA’s ongoing high-level pursuits of many coveted defensive linemen this cycle, click here (VIP).
Stay tuned to 247Sports for expansive coverage of Griffin’s announcement.
