The recruiting cyborg that is Nick Saban is at apparently it again.
Rumors have abounded in recent weeks that five-star -- or four-star, depending on the service -- recruit Derrick Henry was wavering on his longtime verbal commitment to Georgia. This past weekend, Henry took an unofficial visit to Alabama, which has been described as making a “steady and unrelenting pursuit” of the Florida running back.
Wednesday, Henry released a statement announcing that he has decommitted from Georgia and has reopened his recruitment. While no specific schools were mentioned, it’s believed that his most recent visit to the Tide was the tipping in his decision.
Here’s a portion of the statement:“This has been a great experience getting to know so many great coaches and visiting some of the best college football programs in the country. Even though I’ve worked really hard to put myself in this situation, I know I’m blessed to have this opportunity I’m very thankful for that.”
“For me personally, this is one of the biggest decisions I’ll make in my life and probably the most important to this point. I want to be 100 percent sure I am making the best choice on where I go to college and to play football. I’m going to open up my recruitment and take some more visits, get as much information as I can, and then decide from there. I was probably a little too quick in making my initial decision and got caught up in the moment so I apologize for that. I’m still considering Georgia and I have nothing but great things to say about their program, but I want to be honest with everyone in the fact that I am going to go over all my options and do what is best for me and my athletic and academic career.”
Henry added in the statement that he wants to focus on his senior season of high school football and that any future questions should be referred to his head coach.
As the first verbal of UGA’s 2013 class, Henry has been committed to the Bulldogs since July of last year. The player himself stated that “I’m not sure when I’ll make a final announcement, but when I have no doubts at all about where I’m going, I’ll let everyone know.”
In addition to Georgia and Alabama, Tennessee and Florida, among others, are believed to be high on the list for the 6-3, 241-pounder, who is listed as the No. 1 “athlete” in the Class of 2013 by Rivals.com.
(Photo credit: Yulee (Fla.) High School)