Please allow me to beat you to the punch: “well, duh!”
With that out of the way, it appears Deon “D.J.” Johnson’s connection to the Alabama football program has come to a not-exactly-unexpected end.
Five months after verbally committing to Alabama’s 2013 recruiting class, the 19-year-old Spanish Fort (Ala.) high schooler was arrested on second-degree rape and sodomy charges stemming from some type of relationship with the alleged victim, who is a juvenile. Less than three weeks after that arrest, Johnson was again arrested, this time on a first-degree rape charge in an incident separate from the first.
As a result of one or both of those incidents, and citing multiple sources close to the situation, TideSports.com is reporting that Alabama is no longer recruiting the athlete.
The Tide will be able to neither confirm nor deny the development as NCAA bylaws preclude them from speaking publicly about a potential student-athlete who has not signed a Letter of Intent. Johnson’s high school coach has thus far refused to comment on his player’s recruitment.
Johnson is out on bail but has been placed under house arrest, with the exception of school hours during the week. As a result of the restrictions placed on him by the courts, which prevents him from playing football for his high school this season.
Rivals.com had Johnson rated as the No. 13 player at any position in the state of Alabama. As a junior last season, Johnson caught 63 passes, 19 of them for touchdowns.
In addition to the Tide, Johnson also held offers from, among others, LSU, Auburn and Mississippi State. It’s unclear if any of those schools have continued recruiting the player.