Recruiting: Georgia loses five-star recruit

We normally don’t do de-commitments, but when it’s one of the nation’s top high school running backs, we’re happy to get some words in.

Derrick Henry, formerly a commitment for the Georgia Bulldogs, decided Athens is not going to be his home after all.

He said in a statement – covered by the AJC said:

“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.

“For the rest of the summer, I am focusing on helping my team have the best season that we can have and achieve our team goals. Please refer any questions about my recruitment to my head coach. 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.”

The de-commitment, while big news in SEC country, probably isn’t that surprising bearing in mind his visit to Alabama last weekend.

BOTTOM LINE: The move follows Henry’s visit to Alabama last weekend, in which he was seen wearing an Alabama shirt. And also, there’s the Nick Saban Factor, in which Saban’s history of great running backs (Mark Ingram, Trent Richardson) definitely seemed to turn Henry’s head. Do not be surprised if he commits to Alabama.