Jardin Gilbert is a four-star safety who has an HBCU in his top five.
Gilbert released his top five schools which included Southern University. The other four schools on his list are all Power Five schools: Alabama, Texas A&M, Mississippi State and Oklahoma.
The 6’1, 175 pound prospect hails from Baton Rouge, so he’s right in Southern’s backyard.
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Here’s how 247Sports National Director of Scouting Barton Simmons described him:
“Loose athlete that has good coverage instincts that can open his hips and drive off the hash naturally,” he said. “Good ball skills with significant experience at wide receiver. Good timing as an alley defender. Triggers downhill with conviction. Intuitive sniffing out running lanes. Shows some encouraging explosive athleticism in basketball. Speed is hard to gauge. Not an emphatic athlete. Willing tackler but not an enforcer. Has the look of an impact power five starter with developmental upside to play multiple positions in the secondary and potential to develop rapidly with physical maturation. Has significant NFL Draft upside.”
He holds a total of 27 offers heading into his senior season. Some of the school’s Southern is ahead of include Auburn, Florida State, Georgia and Notre Dame.
Nearly three months ago, however, that was not the case. Gilbert released his top 10 on May 10th and Southern was not on the list. Miami, Texas, Baylor, Memphis, Ole Miss and Georgia were along with the other four. But somewhere along the line, SU stepped in and stepped up.
Gilbert is a top 10 safety
Last year Southern grabbed a former four-star player in Davin Cotton via the transfer portal. Cotton started his career at LSU before coming across town to SU.
Southern made headlines in 2019 when three-star safety Bertrand Carrell signed with the school directly out of high school over Power Five schools. Carrell never saw the field for SU, though, as he was arrested on rape charges last fall stemming from an alleged incident during his senior season.
Jardin Gilbert, obviously, would be a major get for the Jags. He’s ranked as the ninth-best safety in the country and a top ten player by 247Sports.com.
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