Georgia picked up the No. 1-ranked prospect in the state of Georgia on Wednesday when ESPN 300 linebacker Smael Mondon announced his commitment to the Bulldogs.
Mondon is the No. 11-ranked recruit overall and a 6-foot-3, 220-pound prospect from Paulding County High School in Dallas, Georgia. He chose the Athens school from his top list of Auburn, Florida, Georgia, LSU and Tennessee.
"Consistency. [Georgia has] been consistent throughout the whole recruiting process and a consistent program," Mondon said at his announcement.
While he had five hats on the table at his high school to announce his decision, Mondon conceded that the choice was down to Auburn and Georgia and said he made his final decision Sunday. Without the ability to take visits or see coaches in person because of the recruiting restrictions from the coronavirus pandemic, Mondon said he hasn't been in front of a coach since January.
That likely made it difficult for any other schools to take over the top spot from Georgia. Mondon said he had to go off the relationships he was able to build and what he knew about the programs up until the restrictions were made.
The Bulldogs had been thought to be the leader for quite some time, and Mondon is Georgia's third top-50 commitment.
He is the top-ranked recruit in Georgia's class, followed by offensive tackle Amarius Mims (No. 19) and quarterback Brock Vandagriff (No. 34). Prior to Mondon's commitment, Georgia had the No. 5-ranked recruiting class overall and now has 13 ESPN 300 commitments in 2021.