'24 GA S KJ Bolden. (FSU commit)

#4
#4
Top247 Rank: No. 3

The Skinny: Bolden says “Georgia and Florida State” have caught his eye at this point. Regarding the Bulldogs, “I love the culture, the coaches, the fanbase, they make me feel like I’m at home. Regarding the Seminoles “It has similar ways, you know the coaches and the players were interacting with me a lot when I was down there and I feel like I was just loved.” Besides those two programs Bolden got a chance to visit Alabama, Florida, LSU South Carolina and Tennessee during the summer.

-Wiltfong
 
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#18
#18
Almost a year to the day from when KJ Bolden visited Tennessee for the first time, he returned to Knoxville on Sunday to take another look at the Vols during their final camp of the year. He’s already planning to make the trip again in the coming months.
The five-star Class of 2024 athlete from Buford (Ga.) High School said Tennessee again made a good impression on him Sunday during his second visit with the Vols. He enjoyed watching from the sideline during Sunday’s camp and spending time with Tennessee coach Josh Heupel’s staff, and Bolden said he expects to attend one of the Vols’ home games this season.

The 6-foot-1, 185-pound Bolden said he decided to visit Tennessee again for Sunday’s camp because the Vols “talk to me a lot,” led by wide receivers coach Kelsey Pope and senior offensive analyst Max Thurmond.

“I like Coach Pope, coach Max Thurmond,” said Bolden, who’s ranked the No. 5 overall prospect and No. 2 athlete in the 2024 class, according to the industry-generated 247Sports Composite. “They have a good staff. They’re all cool. I don’t know. When I came up here (last year), I just felt home.


“Ninth grade, they offered me, so they offered me when I was young. So I feel like they saw potential in me when I was young, so I definitely felt like I had to get back up here. … They talk to me a lot. Coach Thurmond and Coach Pope, they talk to me, like, every week. They just communicate a lot, so I just had to get down here because it felt like it was home with them.”

Bolden, who has received scholarship offers from at least 35 schools, made his first visit to Tennessee exactly a year ago, attending the Vols’ final camp of 2021. He earned an offer from them with a strong showing at the camp.

After returning for a second look at Tennessee, he said he likes what he has seen and heard from the Vols’ coaches. Heupel’s staff started Sunday’s camp by taking players into meetings that were intended to replicate Tennessee’s pre-practice meetings, and Bolden said he enjoyed seeing the Vols’ staff in that setting.

“The coaching staff, (I like) the way they are chill and laid-back, and they’re real with you when you’re, like, in their meeting room with them and stuff like that. And that plays a big factor with me,” Bolden said.

Pope’s on-field instruction also caught Bolden’s eye during Sunday’s camp.

“I like that he’s into the game,” Bolden said of Pope, who was promoted in March after former Tennessee wide receivers coach Kodi Burns left for the NFL’s New Orleans Saints. “He coaches you. I got to see him coach up a couple guys, and they actually did (what he said), and it helped them winning reps. Stuff like that matters to me.”

Bolden said he’s interested in Tennessee because of the opportunity to play in the SEC, along with the Vols’ history.

“Tennessee is Tennessee,” he said. “Peyton Manning, all the greats coming here — Reggie White, all the greats — so I just like that about the school right here.”

Some schools are recruiting Bolden as an athlete capable of playing on either side of the ball or a defensive back, but he said Tennessee envisions him playing wide receiver. He worked out as a receiver when he attended the Vols’ camp last year.

“They have me as an offensive guy right now, at the outside receiver and a little bit of slot,” he said. “Some schools are recruiting me as, like, both. Ole Miss said I can play both — stuff like that. But (Tennessee is saying) receiver, and some schools are (saying) DB.”

He’s now looking forward to seeing Tennessee play in person this season during one of its marquee home games at Neyland Stadium.

“I’m definitely coming back for either the Alabama game (on Oct. 15) or the Florida game (on Sept. 24),” Bolden said.

The Vols are one of at least a few teams that he expects to host him for games this year.

“I know I’m going to South Carolina versus Georgia,” Bolden said, referring to the Gamecocks’ home game against the Bulldogs on Sept. 17. “I don’t know. I’m really planning out my games, but I’m definitely going to, like, a Michigan game, a Texas A&M game, and then I’m going to go, like, a USC game — stuff like that.”

It’s still early in the recruiting process for Bolden, who also has visited Clemson, Georgia, South Carolina, Florida, N.C. State and Duke, among others, since June 1.

“I plan on committing, like, the beginning of our senior season,” he said. “But I’m dropping my top 13, like, late July. Tennessee will definitely try to be in that top 13 after this visit.”
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-Callahan
 
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#20
#20


"I really like Coach Pope, Coach Max (Thurmond) and Coach Heupel," the elite prospect said of why he wanted to return to Tennessee. "Good staff and they're all cool. When I came up here, just felt like I was home. They offered me when I was in ninth grade, so I feel like they saw potential in me when I was younger, and I definitely had to get back up here."
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"They have me as an offensive guy right now, as an outside receiver with a little bit of slot," he said of this. "Some schools recruit me as both. Tennessee is receiver, and some schools are DB. There's a mixture."
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"I like that he's into the game and coaches you," Bolden said of Pope. "I got to see him coach some guys and it was working. They won their reps. That matters to me."

It is early in his recruitment, but after having made two stops to Tennessee, Bolden admits he likes the way the coaching staff has approached his recruitment and the legacy of great players to come through Knoxville.
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#21
#21
From ga Rivals:

Who’s next at receiver in 2024?

With Ny Carr (Colquitt County/Moultrie, Ga.) in the fold, Jed May took a look at which receivers are potentially next for the Bulldogs in the 2024 class. One of the top priorities Georgia will focus on is KJ Bolden (Buford/Buford, Ga.), who is technically designated as an athlete.

“Bolden has emerged as one of Georgia's top 2024 targets regardless of position,” May wrote. “The Buford High School product is electric with the ball in his hands, showing out as a sophomore last season with several senior Division I recruits on his team. Bolden is a frequent visitor to Athens and has been building a strong relationship with Bryan McClendon. In one unique twist, Bolden and McClendon played for the same youth football organization. Georgia figures to be a prominent player here throughout.”
 
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#22
#22
247 update from today.....




There wasn’t a more touted player on Tennessee’s campus this past weekend for the Vols victory over Florida than Buford (Ga.) High five-star KJ Bolden.

The Top247’s No. 3 prospect has close to 40 offers.

“The atmosphere at Tennessee was electric, the stadium was rocking,” Bolden said.


The blue-chip Bolden could play receiver or defensive back on the next level. What Tennessee has going on excites him on either side of the football.


“I like how much the Vols throw the ball and they find ways to get the ball into their playmakers hands,” Bolden said. “On defense everyone is playing together and flying to the ball.”

Bolden has also taken in games at Ohio State and Georgia this season.
 
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#23
#23
Defensive guys speaking highly of what they’ve “seen” from our style of defense and how it excites them has me more convinced that scheme and coaching isn’t the issue with Banks. It’s just personnel. I do hope we can continue to land some of these studs. I’d love to see what our defense looks like under this scheme with the talent of an SEC defense.
 
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#24
#24
TheMookieMonster said:
Defensive guys speaking highly of what they’ve “seen” from our style of defense and how it excites them has me more convinced that scheme and coaching isn’t the issue with Banks. It’s just personnel. I do hope we can continue to land some of these studs. I’d love to see what our defense looks like under this scheme with the talent of an SEC defense.
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I’ll be the first to admit our defense and specifically the DBs need to play better. However the people overly complaining about how we played a against UF are just nitpicking if you ask me. AR hadn’t thrown a TD all season but is a great athlete who can run. I think we schemed in a way that was going to make him beat us with his arm and we did that. There were issues with tackling and mistakes don’t get me wrong I don’t think we are great defense but i think we played the game we wanted to play this week. The end of the game managment was a little scary. Wish we would have taken the FG however if we get one more yard we knew out the game with a double digit win. We moved the ball and hadn’t punted all day but we needed to for sure burn clock. However the coaching and play was overall really good for most the game.
 
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#25
#25
Hayes Fawcett
@Hayesfawcett3
12h

Five-Star Safety KJ Bolden has narrowed his 40+ offer list down to 15 Schools! The 6’1 185 S from Buford, GA is ranked as the No. 4 Player in the ‘24 Class (No. 1 S)


FlbcWAuXkAETBLb
 
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