Up in our Georgia Tech Football 2021 signee profiles is local product, three-star offensive tackle Jakiah Leftwich out of Westlake High School in Atlanta.
At 6-foot-6 and 302-pounds, Leftwich is already bigger than most FBS live offensive lineman and is a player with tremendous upside. Ranked as a top-800 player in the country and top-70 player at the offensive tackle position by 247Sports’s composite rankings, Leftwich committed to the Jackets over 18 other reported scholarship offers. A strong offer list, among the schools that showed interest in him include Arizona State, Florida State, Maryland, Minnesota, Miss St, South Carolina, TCU, Virginia, and West Virginia.
The streets of Atlanta are waiting. Welcome to the 404, @JakiahLeftwich #meGaTron21#4the404 /// #NSD21 pic.twitter.com/MAafxQm2Xz
— Georgia Tech Football (@GeorgiaTechFB) December 16, 2020
A highly-regarded recruit as seen by his offer list, the Jackets during his recruitment made him a top target and high priority early on and it ultimately paid off as Leftwich committed early in the process to the Jackets, all the way back on May 22 of last year. He stayed committed throughout the process and showed no signs of wavering before signing with the Jackets during the early signing period in December.
His highlights and what he brings to Georgia Tech:
The first thing that you will be able to tell in Leftwhich’s HUDL tape above is he is every bit of 6-foot-5 and 302-pounds as well as that he has immense raw power. Leftwich has great feat and mechanics with quality but not great kickback, allowing him to get out in front of an opposing defensive lineman. He shows the ability to move as well which will serve to his advantage when the Jackets pull him across the line on certain plays. Perhaps an undervalued trait is that Leftwich shows the “mean dog” mentality per se that you love to see in an offensive lineman. He finishes his blocks and isn’t afraid to punish defenders who try to get by him, he’s not out there trying to hurt anyone but he’s going to remind them who owns that part of the line of scrimmage. Overall, there is a ton to love about Leftwich and it should be exciting to see the results once Brent Key can get to work with him and work on his mechanics. His ceiling is pretty high thanks to his size and raw power and once he gets his mechanics figured it out, his ceiling is only going to get higher.
His future on The Flats:
Groff a Collins and Brent Key has shown in the past they will play true freshman on the offensive line. We saw it this past season with Jordan Williams and we could see it again with Leftwich. It will be intriguing what direction they go with him, he is probably from a physical standpoint ready to play this upcoming season. That being said, a redshirt season to work on his weight as well as technique could really help his development as well. Either way, we wouldn’t be shocked but we do expect him to at least crack the ATL at some point in 2021. Long term, Leftwich should be a mainstay on the offensive line and a future starter for the Jackets.