4-star DL Preston Carey commits to Georgia

Georgia has added yet another commitment to close out an impressive June. On Monday, the Bulldogs beat out Florida, Auburn and Rutgers for IMG Academy (Fla.) four-star defensive lineman Preston Carey.

The 6-foot-4, 305-pounder becomes the third pledge of the day for head coach Kirby Smart and the UGA staff. Monday also brought commitments from top-100 defensive lineman PJ Dean and junior four-star cornerback Donte Wright.

“Just consistency how they recruited me and genuineness,” Carey said. “Looked more at the real more than fluff. Looked for a coach that’s going to develop me so I can reach my goals going in the first round and the big things but obviously just focusing on the now.”

Carey is the No. 298 overall prospect and No. 30 DL in the 2026 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He’s also the No. 42 player in Florida.

Carey’s official visit to Georgia was a game-changer

An East Northport, N.Y. product, Carey took an official visit to Georgia last month and kept the SEC juggernaut amongst his top contenders heading into his decision. UGA D-line coach Tray Scott offered Carey in eighth grade and has been on his radar for a long time.

“I think it’s a very good spot and the coaches recruited me hard,” Carey said. “I think it’s just the elite players playing against elite players.”

From Kirby Smart to Glenn Schumann to Tray Scott, Carey felt connected to all the coaches.

“All those guys named 100 percent,” Carey said. “Just how real they kept it the whole time and plan to develop me into a first round pick”

Carey gave Georgia high marks following his official visit in May.

“The environment in Athens for the OV was elite!” Carey said. “The biggest takeaways about Georgia is that for the past five years they have been the best at developing first round talent at defensive line. The culture is also very different at Georgia than any other college in America, you have to buy into the want to be elite at Georgia, Georgia produces talent all the time because the people that go there buy into the developmental piece Georgia has.”

The blue-chipper now joins a class that’s unequivocally loaded on the defensive line.

“Scott has been recruiting me hard since [eighth grade],” Carey told DawgsHQ’s Jeremy Johnson ahead of his decision. “He’s stuck with me and continued to build the relationship. He’s done a lot of great things over the years with development and producing first round talent. I have a great relationship with him.”