The comparison between former Georgia nose tackle and fan favorite Jordan Davis is unmistakable.
Not only does early enrollee Jamal Jarrett hail from Davis’ home state of North Carolina, but the two linemen are basically the same size.
Georgia coaches ultimately count on Jarrett playing like Davis and plugging the middle of the Bulldog defensive line.
While there’s work to do from a physical standpoint, there obviously plenty of promise.
As we continue our series taking a look at Georgia’s early enrollees, let’s break down Jarrett and his game.
Jamaal Jarrett
Height: 6-5
Weight: 350
Position: Defensive Line
Ranking: 68th overall
High School Career
Don’t let Jarrett's size fool you. He’s not just a big body. He can move.
As a senior, he helped lead Grimsley to a 15-1 record and NCHSAA state runner-up finish, finishing the season with 63 total tackles (all solo), 18 tackles for loss, three quarterback hurries, an interception, and a sack.
Not bad.
As a junior, he registered 30 total tackles, with nine tackles for loss and a QB hurry.
The biggest question about Jarrett, however, is his weight. Although UGA listed him as 350 pounds, he reported to Georgia at approximately 370.
Getting his weight to a manageable level will be Job One for Jarrett, but he’s known as a hard worker, so expect him to get to wherever coaches want him to be.
Quoting Jamaal Jarrett
"Conditioning. I’ve got to get a little bit slimmer. I want to get in there my freshman year. I already slimmed up, so conditioning won’t kill me. Coach Scott already said it, so that’s pretty much what I’m working on. They want me to be at a good-muscled 340. I’m at 350, 355." Jamal Jarrett on his weight.
What they're saying
“Great kid. We call him Big Jolly. He’s a kid who I know is going to be willing to learn and grind the same way that (Bear) Alexander did, just because that’s how it’s supposed to go. You get one of your bigger bros to say, ‘Hey bro, I’ve been through that, let me show you. Just learn, listen, and you’ll be good. Do that, and he’ll transition from there.” - Tray Scott on Jamaal Jarrett
What's Next
Rivals’ Adam Gorney summed Jarrett up perfectly when he wrote about him in October stating the following:
“It’s not easy finding a comparison for Jarrett, since he’s a 6-foot-6, 340-pound high schooler. Former Greensboro (N.C.) Grimsley teammate Travis Shaw could be one, but I think Davis fits better in this case.
Davis was dominant up the middle for the Bulldogs’ run to the national championship in 2021. While he didn’t post incredible statistics, he drew double teams and was so disruptive so often that he turned that into being a first-round NFL Draft pick.
Jarrett has those capabilities. For someone so massive, and so wide at the shoulders, he can make himself skinny to get in the backfield, he can bull rush, and almost no one has the power to slow him down. He’s a gap-shooter at that size.”
However, Jarrett's first step will be getting himself in shape.
With the depth the Bulldogs have on their defensive line, he’ll be able to focus on that during his freshman year. But like Davis, don’t be surprised if he receives some early looks, perhaps on the goal line or short yardage situations.
