Oak Ridge's Joseph Jonah-Ajonye looked to a higher power in making the biggest decision of his life.
Jonah-Ajonye dropped his top four schools Wednesday morning in Georgia, Georgia Tech, Oklahoma and Oregon.
“I took some time off to pray and focus on myself for three days and I just felt like through prayer Georgia was the right place for me,” Jonah-Ajonye said Thursday.
“Georgia’s competitive nature and willingness to win really drew me there. If you’re a true competitor in football, especially as a defensive lineman, the easiest choice is Georgia. Coach Kirby Smart and coach Tray Scott develop first rounders... 15 players going in the first round is crazy."
His decision to join the back-to-back National Champs caps off an interesting football journey that may just be beginning.
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The star defensive lineman is one of the top prospects in the country, but his journey in football is different than most. Joseph was born in Nigeria, moved to Maryland and then to Texas before starting high school at Oak Ridge.
“When I first moved to America, I was on vacation with my uncle and we were watching the Philadelphia Eagles against Washington," he recalled. "I was curious what the game was all about because it was so violent. At the time I was a basketball player, so I started asking him what positions he felt like I could play. He said OL, DL and QB because of my size.”
Fast forward to his first year playing football... his freshman year at Oak Ridge High School. The young Jonah-Ajonye still was figuring out the game, but it took one play to find his love for the game.
“I remember my first practice was very hard and I was getting hit a lot as a wide receiver. I didn’t like it very much,” Jonah-Ajonye laughed.
“My coach moved me to the defensive line shortly after. I got my first tackle ever and I just fell in love with the feeling of the pads hitting together and making that crack sound. That’s when I found out I really like being the person hitting people,” he said with a laugh.
Jonah-Ajonye is still relatively new to the sport, but is a student of the game. He watches film on the likes of former Oak Ridge star Joseph Ossai, Aaron Donald, John Randall, Nick Bosa and former Georgia Bulldog Jordan Davis to hone his game.
The journey has been long for Jonah-Ajonye and his development from his freshman year to now has really been incredible. From being under recruited to one of the top linemen in the country, is a remarkable.
“To put it simple, it's been a blessing," he said. "In December, I remember praying to God to help my hard work pay off and becoming a top player in the country.”
So now that he’s made his commitment, Ajonye has big goals for his upcoming senior year.
“My goal is to be the best player in the country,” he said. “I want to help my team become the best defense in the district, go undefeated and have a long run in the playoffs.”
Joseph Jonah-Ajonye has become one of the best players in the country in the span of 4 months and isn’t done proving his talent to the doubters.
“Just wait till they see me this year….They’re going to be shocked,” he said.