Jaheim Singletary, Kendall Milton and Other Georgia Players Discuss Being Recruited by Ohio State, Playing Against the Buckeyes Now
After high school, the Georgia roster, which received scholarship offers from Ohio, has 31 players, and Ryan Day and the Buckeyes once envisioned playing for them at Saturday's Peach Bowl. There will be a lot of players on the opposite sideline. </p><div><p>
Five players from Georgia who seriously considered Ohio State as recruits were Jheim Singletary, Kendall Milton, MJ Sherman, Ernest Green and Kristen Miller. Singletary actually attended Ohio State University and eventually turned Bulldog, while all four of the others had Buckeyes in the last four (or less) schools.
Milton, who is listed as the running back co-starter after running for a career-high 113 yards in the SEC Championship Game, is one of the only Bulldogs likely to play a key role in the Peach Bowl.Pro Football According to Focus, Sherman has only played 42 defensive snaps this season as a backup edge rusher, but the other three are redshirt freshmen.
But for every Georgia player who could attend the Peach Bowl media day, it was an opportunity. <em>11 warriors</em> We caught up with all of them and asked them about their memories of being recruited by Ohio State, what they liked about the Buckeyes back then, why they chose Georgia, and how they feel about playing against Ohio State now. .
CB Jaheim Single Tally
At this point two years ago, Singletary seemed ready to play at Ohio State. He committed to the Buckeyes on January 2, 2021, just one day after the Buckeyes defeated Clemson in the College Football Playoff Semifinals.
concern … #Zone 6 pic.twitter.com/1NOeDcyfiH
—Jaheim Singletary (@Jaheim2_) January 2, 2021
That decision was made when recruits were unable to visit due to COVID-19. Singletary said he committed to the Buckeyes because of his communication with Ohio State coaches at the time, as well as several connections with Ohio State. His high school Trinity He Christian His academy produced former Buckeye defensive his backs Sean Wade and Tyreke He Johnson, and running his back Mark Croley.
“There was so much COVID going on at the time that we weren’t able to visit a lot of places, and Ohio State did a very good job at the time in communicating with coaches,” Singletary said of Eleven. told Warriors. "So it all went with the flow. Then, like my city buddies who went to Ohio, they had a good track record.
However, seven months later, Singletary chose to move out of Ohio after continuing the hiring process.
"At the end of the day, the decision me and my family made wasn't that hard," Singletary said of decommitting. "It was the best decision for me and my family at the time."
In November 2021, the five-star cornerback moved to Georgia, where he began to feel like he was in the right place.
When asked why he chose Georgia, Singletary replied, "It's just a feeling." “The feeling they have given me and my family. Just knowing that Kirby Smart is a great coach and all the staff are great people, all the achievements and the growth that I have as a person. I know that I will be a better soccer player at the end of the day.
He described it as both a "bittersweet feeling" and a "dream come true", playing against the school he had originally promised to gamble for a spot in the national championship game.
"I dreamed of playing for them at one point, but now I'm in Georgia, which I love," Singletary said. "It's crazy because I was talking about the first half of the week when it was first held[Battle for Bowl Week event with Ohio State]. Yes, we know it's a very good team and the level of competition is high, so I'm sure it will be good in the end."
RB Kendall Milton
Milton was a frontrunner for Ohio State's running back in the 2020 recruiting class, and interest in Ohio State from Milton's part was interconnected. Back from California, the four-star running back made several visits to Columbus as a recruit, including an official visit to OSU, after putting the Buckeyes in the top four alongside Georgia, Alabama and LSU. I was.
"I remember going through the process. There was a lot of culture involved in that school," Milton recalled when asked about recruiting from Ohio State University. “Practices, visits, everything, I remember going through a lot of competition practice.
Milton said he has a good relationship with Tony Alford, a running back coach at Ohio State University.
"He was one of the coaches I was in frequent contact with," said Milton. "When I hired him, he was just a nice guy. He was always open and honest. He was honest about his plans, what his goals were, and what he wanted to get out of the whole process."
Ultimately, however, Milton decided that Georgia was the best school for him.
"If I wanted to live after football, I wanted to go somewhere I felt comfortable," Milton said. “I put a lot of things into the decision: business opportunities, living conditions, wanting to finish college, etc. And I felt that Georgia offered them more than any other opportunity I had. That's why I made the decision. And I'm happy with that decision."
Milton, who has already played against both LSU and Alabama, described the opportunity to face Ohio State as a "blessing."
"It's definitely an exciting game because I got the chance to be recruited by the coaches, to be in the facility and to be part of the program a little bit," Milton said. "After all these years, it's a great game to actually be playing against in one of the biggest games of the season."
LB MJ Sherman
Ohio State might have had a better chance of acquiring Sherman if the coaching hadn't changed after the 2018 season. When asked why Ohio State University was one of his last two schools as a recruit, Sherman replied with his two words. "Urban Meyer".
Still, the Buckeyes remained in Sherman's race to the end. announced to be one of his last two schools. However, he said Meyer's departure was a factor in his decision to ultimately choose the Bulldogs over the Buckeyes.
Ranked 33rd overall in the 2020 class, he said he chose Georgia because of its strong family atmosphere and "they pushed you to the T," and he's still happy with the decision he made three years later. There is
"I feel like I'm sitting in a good spot," Sherman said.
Knowing that Georgia and Ohio are CFP contenders every year, it's no surprise he's now going head-to-head with OSU.
"It was inevitable," Sherman said. “We both have dreams, so both schools have dreams and promising futures that will be here anytime, anytime. It was inevitable. We both have great schools and great football programs and we were bound to bump our heads at some point.”
OL Ernest Green
Ohio State is one of the last four schools in the run to win Green, who was one of the Buckeyes' offensive line targets in the 2022 class, and 45th overall prospects. Ranked. Nearly a year after announcing his commitment to Georgia State at his All-American bowl, Green was uninterested in talking about what he liked about Ohio State as a recruit, stating: just now. "
But with Ohio State in mind, he finds it "really ironic" to play OSU in the CFP as a freshman in Georgia.
"When considering the program, everybody knew this was going to happen, so it inevitably happened," Green said. is."
This weekend will be a chance for Green to reunite with former high school teammate Court Williams, who played with him at St. John Bosco High School in California, and Thursday's conversation with the Eleven Warriors will lead to a connection with Williams. Said it would be. .
"I really have to get my hands on Kourt. Kourt was my man," said Green. "He hasn't spoken to him for a minute and you reminded me to contact him."
DT Kristen Miller
Like Green, Miller was one of Ohio State's final goals in the 2022 recruiting class before choosing to sign with Georgia in February. opponent and visited him numerous times during the recruitment process, but he ultimately chose to remain in his home state of Georgia. OSUs.
"Early in my process, I just looked at two good schools. The result was going to Georgia and I made the right decision to go to Georgia," Miller said. "But Ohio State University was a good program. That's why they were in my top 10 schools at the end." I can feel it, so everything is fine."
Kristen Miller made several visits to Ohio before choosing to play for Georgia.
Played in four games during the regular season and theoretically sees action in the CFP after the NCAA passed blanket waivers allowing players to participate in bowl games without affecting redshirt eligibility. Miller said he was thrilled to face Ohio State.His former high school head coach, Miguel Patrick, is on the Ohio staff as a defensive quality control coach. (However, he left the Buckeyes after the season to become UAB's defensive line coach).
"He mentored me in high school and helped me grow, so it feels great to go against him," Miller said. "I can't wait to do it."