2024 Georgia Tech Football Transfer Profile: E.J. Lightsey

Lightsey is joining Georgia Tech after beginning his career at Georgia.

Brent Key, Georgia Tech’s head coach, is set to receive a potential impact transfer from the Georgia Bulldogs for the second consecutive year.

Last season, Dominick Blaylock and Brett Seither transferred from Athens and made an impact for the Yellow Jackets. This season, former Bulldogs linebacker E.J. Lightsey decided to go to the Flats and try to assist improve one of the worst run defenses in the country.

Lightsey joined the Yellow Jackets on signing day in December and hopes to fill a void on the defense. Georgia Tech is losing linebackers Paul Moala, Andre White, Braelen Oliver, and others and has forced to use the gateway to replace them.

Lightsey will now have to demonstrate his ability to maintain his health. He was unable to do so last season and did not feature in any Bulldogs games. In 2022, he played 19 total snaps and received a 66.8 grade on defense and a strong tackling mark. Despite the limited sample size, Key and his crew believe this is a good gamble. Lightsey is the highest-rated transfer heading into Georiga Tech, according to 247Sports.

From his biography at Georgia Athletics:

2022: Appeared as a reserve LB in four games…made his collegiate debut in a win over Samford…credited with one solo tackle against the Bulldogs…also participated in wins over Auburn, Vanderbilt, and Georgia Tech…had two stops against the Commodores.

Fitzgerald HS is coached by Tucker Pruitt. According to 247Sports.com, this three-star recruit is listed as the #44 inside linebacker in the nation, the #34 prospect in Georgia, and the #490 prospect overall.PrepStar Magazine three-star prospect is ranked #469 nationwide…ESPN.com ranks him as a three-star recruit, the #21 ILB in the country, and the #67 prospect in Georgia.He is a three-star prospect on Rivals.com, the #36 inside linebacker nationally, and the #52 prospect from Georgia. He led Fitzgerald HS to the GHSA Class 2A championship with a 13-2 record in his 2021 senior season.The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and GHSF Daily have named him to the 2021 Georgia Class 2A All-State First Team Defense.AJC and GHSF Daily recognized him as the Class 2A Defensive Player of the Year. selected to the 2021 MaxPreps Small Town All-America Football First Team.

Lightsey will be one to watch this spring as he bids for a starting position among the linebackers. He lacks experience, like do several of the other linebackers in this group, and there is little data to evaluate whether he will be a high-level player. I still believe this is a good gamble for the Yellow Jackets defensive staff because, if he performs to his talent level and stays healthy, Lightsey could be one of the transfer portal’s best finds.