DeKalb alums play key role in UGA championship

For the second consecutive season, University of Georgia has won the College Football Playoffs’ (CFP) National Championship, and several DeKalb County schools’ alumni helped fuel the victory – for the second season in a row.

Lithonia High School alum Broderick Jones played left tackle for the Bulldogs in the title game and won his second CFP championship ring in the process.

Jones was monumental for the Bulldogs – playing 31 pass block snaps and allowing zero quarterback pressures with an 83.8 pass block grade, according to Pro Football Focus.

During Jones’ postgame interview with ESPN, veteran UGA starting quarterback Stetson Bennett interrupted Jones to tell the audience that Jones is the “best tackle in the draft.”

NFL Rookie Watch reported that “multiple NFL scouts believe Broderick Jones ‘will’ be the first tackle taken in the NFL Draft,” on April 27.

Jones was a five-star recruit coming out of Lithonia—where he was coached by Marcus Jelks—and one of the country’s top targets.

The former Lithonia star was selected to represent Team Pressure in the 2020 Under Armour All-America Game. Jones was also named a unanimous selection to the 2019 Class 5A All-State First Team offense by the Georgia Sports Writers Association.

ESPN’s most recent mock draft has the Lithonia alum going No. 15 overall to the New England Patriots.

Nazir Stackhouse also capped off another productive season with another championship ring. The Columbia High School alum won the SEC Defensive Lineman of the Week award earlier this season and has anchored the Georgia defense from his defensive tackle spot.

Stackhouse didn’t put up big stats in the CFP championship game, but the defensive tackle used his size and speed to occupy TCU’s offensive line so that his fellow defensive linemen could pick up sacks and tackles for loss.

247Sports reported that Stackhouse said he is “definitely coming back” to UGA next season.

At Columbia, Stackhouse was coached by Brian Montgomery and named the 2019 Region Defensive Player of the Year and a Class 5A All-State first team selection by the Georgia Sports Writers Association. Stackhouse also played for Stephenson and MLK high schools during his DeKalb career.

Two UGA freshmen from Cedar Grove High School won their first championship rings as Christen Miller and CJ Madden were both part of the Bulldog team this season. Both were key parts of Cedar Grove’s state championship during their senior seasons of high school.

Miller tweeted after the game that “God is Amazing. Year 1 was amazing onto Year 2. Let’s up the score.”

In high school, Miller was selected to play in the 2022 All-American Bowl and was ranked as a four-star prospect and a top 20 defensive lineman.

Madden was also a four-star and ranked as the No. 13 linebacker in the country. Before attending Cedar Grove, Madden played at Arabia Mountain High School.

Madden and Miller finished their high school careers under Cedar Grove head coach John Adams.