Five-Star Plus+ DB KJ Bolden discusses finalists ahead of commitment

Decision day is nearing for Buford (Ga.) Five-Star Plus+ safety KJ Bolden as he prepares to begin his senior season of high school football. The No. 8 overall prospect in the 2024 cycle, per the On3 Industry Rankings, will announce his college commitment on the On3 YouTube Channel on Aug. 5 at 7:30 p.m. ET, choosing between Alabama, Auburn, Florida State, Georgia and Ohio State.

Ahead of his commitment, Bolden sat down with 247Sports to discuss his five finalists and why each could receive the speedy wideout’s pledge.

Auburn: “Coach (Hugh) Freeze is probably one of my favorite coaches. He always talks about how he’s gonna rebuild Auburn, and I like that, cause the idea he has and the mindset he’s on, I feel like he could do it. Just that Ole Miss team he brought in, they beat Alabama two years in a row. I feel like he’s trying to build a type of class like that, with Laremy Tunsil and all of them boys down there, I feel like he’s trying to build a class like that. I feel like Auburn’s gonna be back on the rise very soon.”

Alabama: “I feel like i’d just fit right in with the team. Just knowing a lot of people, talking to them about it, how it goes, they kinda tell me ‘it’s like Buford, you’re gonna be ready for it when you come in.’ They run their program exactly like Buford, they’ve got that winning mentality. Who wouldn’t want to play for Coach Nick Saban? He’s a legendary coach, one of the greatest coaches in college football, so that would be awesome to play with him, for sure.”

Florida State: “Coach Mike Norvell…after Coach (Willie) Taggart got fired, he took the job, and ever since then he told me he was going to rebuild that team up. I remember when Florida State wasn’t winning how they used to be winning, and he always told me ‘just trust in us, trust in us, we’re gonna get back to the top this year,’ and my junior year they went 10-3. They had a great season and coming into this season they brought a lot of returning players back, so Coach Norvell’s definitely flipped the program back to where it’s supposed to have been at the whole time. Florida State’s got great coaches, Coach (Patrick) Surtain, Coach (Adam) Fuller, they’re all important to the guys, they all know what they’re talking about. And the way they’re going to use me, I feel like that’s a great way to use me.”

Georgia: “If I was to pick Georgia, it would be definitely because of Coach Kirby Smart. I feel like he’s going to be there for a long, long time. Me and his connection, he definitely has one of my top connections right now. I can talk to him about anything. He’s definitely a family guy, he’s always asking about my mom and stuff. We always talk about football, but he mainly talks about family and how life… and school and stuff like that is going. He’s one of those type of coaches and I like that about him.”

Ohio State: “The platform Ohio State can just put you on, and their branding for social media…that definitely can raise you — for college football you’d be one of the big names with how they promote their players. Then Coach Ryan Day, he’s one of the coolest coaches i’ve probably ever sat in an office with. He’s always got a relaxed tone when he’s talking to you. At Ohio State, i’ve got a lot of family up there, my cousin’s the safeties coach. So if I go up there i’d be getting coached by my cousin, so that would definitely be something big to me.”