Northport native Preston “P.J.” Carey, a class of 2026 four-star defensive lineman from IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., announced his commitment to the University of Georgia during a live ceremony at Oheka Castle in West Hills on Monday, June 30.
Since middle school, Carey had received more than 50 college offers and his announcement was highly anticipated.
Carey, who is entering his senior year of high school, grew up playing travel football on Long Island. His father, Ben, founded the Long Island Elite football program that provides an opportunity for elite youth football players to play around Long Island and travel to locations such as Georgia, Texas and Florida to showcase their abilities. Playing for the program allowed Carey to garner exposure from a young age.
In high school, Carey led St. Anthony’s High School in South Huntington to their first state championship during his freshman season before transferring to IMG Academy between his sophomore and junior seasons to face better competition. According to the 247Sports class of 2026 rankings, Carey is a top-300 recruit in the country and the 45th-ranked recruit in the state of Florida. He has been earning Division I offers since he was in eighth grade and racked up 51 of them during his recruitment.
“To be the best, you have to play with the best,” said Joe Benincasa, Carey’s agent with Atlas Empower Sports. “Although he loves Long Island, and that’s why he’s coming back to Oheka Castle to do the event and will always call Long Island home, talent is down in the southeast region of the country and having the opportunity to play for one of the top programs in the country is not something you can pass up.”
The commitment ceremony is being organized by Atlas Empower Sports, Carey’s agency that helps collegiate athletes navigate NIL agreements with their universities as well as third-party sponsorships. They also provide business and financial literacy to their athletes.
The two-hour ceremony will feature a formal cocktail event and a recognition of Carey’s accomplishments to date — namely his achievement of being a rare football player from Long Island to earn over 50 Division I offers — prior to the commitment announcement. Then, he will choose from his narrowed list of seven power conference schools: Georgia, Alabama, Rutgers, USC, Auburn, Florida and Ohio State. He said he was making his decision based on several factors, including the playing opportunity, the coaching staff and the ability of the program to help him achieve his ultimate goal of making it to the NFL.
“It’s about the program, it’s about the fit, it’s about the opportunity, which program he can come in and really help and where his skillset and abilities will be utilized to the best of their ability,” Benincasa said. “But also, [which program] is giving him the opportunity to put the best tape out there … getting him to that next level, preparing him for that next level.”
The event will also host various public figures, including former NFL players Kendall Langford and Olivier Vernon, and a total of nearly 200 attendees, made up of Carey’s former coaches, friends, family, other public figures, and event sponsors.
“We’ll have some news outlets there and some prior NFL talent,” Benincasa said. “[We are] trying to get some current NFL and college guys there as well, so it’ll be a great event.”
The ceremony was live-streamed on Varsity Media.
