Fields stands firm with Dogs

ATHENS, Ga. -- Dalton High defensive end Jalen Fields became Georgia's first commitment for its 2010 signing class when he pledged to coach Mark Richt last March.

Nearly a year has passed, but Fields remembers as if it happened an hour ago.

"Coach Richt called me in his office, so we sat down and talked with my parents," Fields said. "We came to an agreement, and I told Coach Richt that I didn't want to look at any other schools. My main reasons for picking Georgia were the atmosphere, the players, getting to play in my home state, and having a great coach like Coach Richt and a great Christian community."

Those factors will be in place when Fields heads off for summer workouts, but a lot about the program has changed.

The 6-foot-5, 250-pounder committed when Willie Martinez was the defensive coordinator and Jon Fabris was defensive ends coach. Martinez and Fabris were fired Dec. 2, along with linebackers coach John Jancek.

"I was kind of upset, but at the same time I had to think of it as a business," Fields said. "College football is a business. I had built relationships with them, but I know sometimes bridges are burned and that you have to build new ones."

Fields tallied 63 tackles, four sacks, two forced fumbles and a 35-yard fumble return for a touchdown this past season for the Catamounts after amassing 78 tackles, eight sacks and two forced fumbles as a junior. He is rated by Rivals.com among the top 250 players nationally and the No. 14 strongside defensive end.

Yet he may not be a defensive end much longer. Fields took his official visit to Georgia a couple of weeks ago and met new defensive coordinator Todd Grantham, who has decided to try him as an outside linebacker in his 3-4 scheme.

"He's coming in new, and I think you take guys like that and you put them in a two-point stance, and you let them rush and do some drop," Grantham said. "You just kind of see how they can handle it. Then you evaluate how the player can play from there, but I think it's best to start him out like that and move on from there.

"He's obviously a guy we're excited about and look forward to working with this summer."

Dalton coach Adam Winegarden said Fields never played out of a two-point stance with the Catamounts but has seen his ability to run in space.

Early playing time for Fields could be quicker at linebacker now that there is one extra spot. The Bulldogs also lost three linebackers -- Rennie Curran, Darius Dewberry and Marcus Washington -- from last year's team.

So Fields soon will be off to Georgia, which has been his favorite school since he was 7, though not in the role he once expected.

"I loved it when Coach Grantham made me a linebacker, because I can use my speed and my strength," he said. "He told me the Will (or weakside) linebacker will be blitzing 75 to 80 percent of the time, so I loved it when he said that. I love to pin my ears back and go."