Inside the Decision: Anthony Lonon Jr. Completes Unique Story Committing to Georgia

It wasn’t long ago, February in fact, that Georgia’s newest four-star defensive line commit, Anthony Lonon Jr., was an unranked prospect with only one Power-Four offer. But that is when things started to rapidly change for the Clarke Central High School standout.

After Wake Forest became his first Power-Four offer, he’d receive others in the months following. Including one from Georgia in June, which came after outside linebackers coach Chidera Uzo-Diribe saw him in a spring practice.

Fast forward a few weeks to Saturday, when London joined Georgia’s 2026 class as its 31st commit. A decision that he told UGASports was made a few weeks earlier.

“[It was the] middle of July, where we were like, okay, this is the date we want to do this, where a lot of my family could come into town and we could have people come,” Lonon said. “And then around that same time, it was just like, okay, I figured out where I wanted to go, had to talk with my family, and UGA was the place.”

The son of two Georgia grads, with his dad, Anthony Lonon Sr., being a former teammate of now head coach Kirby Smart, Lonon Jr. will be staying home and following in his parents’ footsteps.

“My dad played at UGA. So, you know, they truly believed that there wouldn’t have been a better place besides UGA for the goals that I’m trying to meet,” Lonon Jr. said of his parents’ reaction. “So, they were, of course, relieved, and they were happy with the choice I made.”

Following the decision with his family, it was time for Lonon to make some phone calls—one to Smart, one to Uzo-Diribe, and another to defensive line coach Tray Scott.

All of them were “hyped” and “excited,” having convinced a legacy target to stay in Athens, rather than heading down the road to Georgia Tech. But it was the call to Smart that had a memorable reaction.

“He was with his son. So, when I told him, they really started barking and saying, ‘Go Dawgs,’ and things like that,” Lonon said. “So, it was hype. They were both excited.”

That excitement mirrored what the reaction would be inside Clarke Central’s weight room when Lonon pulled a red hat out of a black bag with the Georgia logo on it.

“At first, it’s like I can be nothing but grateful, because every time I think back where I didn’t have any offers but I’m performing like somebody who should, it was all about trusting the process, believing that, okay, you’ll get what you deserve,” Lonon said of his recruitment. “You’ll get the big power five schools and things like that. I look back, and I’m just proud of myself, but I know there’s still work to do.”