Change of Command for Historic 48th Infantry Brigade Combat Team

The Georgia Army National Guard’s 48th Infantry Brigade Combat Team held a change of command ceremony July 19, 2026, at Volunteer Headquarters in Macon, Georgia. Brigadier General Jason Fryman, commanding general of the Georgia Army National Guard, presided over the ceremony in which Col. Nate Stone relinquished command to Col. Matt Johnston.

In his remarks prior to the change of command, Fryman recounted the brigade’s long lineage of service and leadership noting that elements of the brigade were already 25 years old when our nation declared independence.

“July is a crowded month in the history of this brigade,” observed Fryman recounting the brigade’s combat exploits from the American Revolution through deployments in 2024-2025. “Today’s generation of 48th Brigade Soldiers share in that legacy of service… The men and women of this brigade have always answered the call to arms.”

During the ceremony, Col. Nate Stone, outgoing brigade commander, passed the brigade colors to Fryman symbolically relinquishing command. Fryman, in turn, transferred the colors to Col. Matt Johnston, the incoming commander, who then passed them to Command Sgt. Major David Creamer, the brigade’s senior enlisted leader for safekeeping.

Reflecting on Stone’s two years in command, Fryman noted that the outgoing commander had served in leadership positions at all levels within the brigade, serving in five of its seven battalions. “(Colonel Stone) is a battle-tested warrior, one of our most highly decorated for valor who is still wearing the uniform,” said Fryman. “He knows how to prepare units for combat and that has been his task and purpose… culminating with a division level exercise with the 29th Division.”

Colonel Matt Johnston becomes the 32nd commander of the 48th since the post World War II establishment of the 48th Division. His military career began with the brigade as a platoon leader in Company A, 1st Battalion, 121st Infantry Regiment. In addition to mobilizing with the brigade to Iraq in 2005, Johnston deployed multiple times to Afghanistan and commanded 1st Battalion, 121st. He served as the deputy commander of the 48th during the brigade’s 2024 overseas mobilization and currently serves as the deputy chief of staff for personnel for the Georgia Army National Guard.

In his comments at the conclusion of the ceremony Col. Johnston observed that over the next two years, the 48th will convert to a mobile brigade combat team and plan for a Joint Readiness Training Center preparatory to the Brigade’s next overseas deployment.

“We will navigate this transformation through strict non-negotiable tactical discipline and the formation of highly cohesive teams,” said Johnston. “But above all, we will rely on trust, the bedrock of our profession… To the Soldiers of the 48th Brigade, my commitment to you is absolute.”

An organization of more than 4,000 Soldiers, the 48th IBCT traces its lineage to the founding of the Macon Volunteers in 1825. The 48th IBCT is composed of units whose history and battle honors predate the American Revolution. Units within the brigade have served in the American Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, Seminole War, Mexican War, American Civil War, Mexican Border Service, both world wars, Iraq, and Afghanistan as well as Bosnia Herzegovina and the Sinai.