Featured Photo Credit: Doug Strickland – Times Free Press
Settled in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains is Northwest Whitifeld High School, the home of quite possibly the most underrated defensive lineman in the state of Georgia, Jon Tant. The All-State lineman plays with a fiery passion out there on the field that very few can match on a play-to-play basis.
In fact, his endless energy produced the highest tackle total out of any returning defensive lineman in the entire state of Georgia. At 6’1″, and 230 pounds the star defender had 122 tackles, out of which he amassed an amazing 72 solo tackles and 27 tackles for loss.
This offseason Tant worked hard, which gave him extra time to recover from an old shoulder injury he played through his sophomore year, and had him sidelined for the first two games of last season. “The offseason for me has gone really good,” Tant said. “Nothing has kept me back this time around, unlike last year, so I’ll be a lot bigger going into this season than last!”
Only two linebackers in his region ended up with more tackles than Tant last year, and once he was fully healthy he was hard to stop. This offseason he worked hard in the weight room and has been turning heads at camps, even earning him several accolades. “I went to an elite talent camp held at Ridgeland High School and won MVP. I also went to a MVP Camp down in Atlanta, and did well, plus the Blue and Grey camp, which got me invited to play in their All-American bowl game!”
Tant’s success comes to no surprise. When we watched his film earlier this year his quickness off the ball was evident, and he does a great job of playing with leverage. He is a deceptive player, and has the best pass rush spin move we have seen in the state of Georgia.
Heading into his final season, the senior wants to set the record straight on who the best North Georgia lineman truly is. “Honestly, my goal has not changed. I just want to prove that I’m the best at my position in the area, and to hopefully bring a lot of success to my team by doing that,” Tant concluded.
Interested in recruiting pass-rush specialist Jon Tant click HERE to visit his profile.
