The GEICO ESPN High School Football Kickoff returns for its 14th year, Friday, Aug. 18 – Sunday, Aug. 27. The seven-game slate features 54 players ranked in the ESPN 300 and ESPN Junior 300 and will be featured on ESPN, ESPN2 and the ESPN App. Of the ESPN 300 athletes participating, 32 have already committed to top Division I college football programs, including Alabama, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, LSU, Maryland, Miami, Michigan, Ohio State, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Wisconsin and USC.
Friday, August 18
Langston Hughes (Ga.) at Carrollton (Ga.)
6 p.m. ET on ESPN2 from Carrollton High School in Carrollton, Ga.
Langston Hughes is the reigning Georgia 6A state champion, having gone undefeated in 2022. The Panthers will be hard to stop again this season with Air Noland returning at QB. The Ohio State commit is the No. 28 ranked senior in the nation, and he is protected up front by No. 162 ranked junior Dontrell Glover, an Alabama commit.
Carrollton came up just one game shy of a state title last season, losing only to Mill Creek in the Georgia 7A finals. TE Caleb Odom is the No. 112 ranked senior (Alabama commit) and will have QB Julian Lewis passing to him again. The sophomore signal caller is considered the top recruit in the class of 2026, if not the top overall high school prospect in the country.