Inside the last days of Rivals100 DB Daylen Everette's recruitment

Daylen Everette decommitted from Clemson four days ago and the final days of his recruitment have been a whirlwind. The Rivals100 IMG Academy defensive back has been entertaining a few schools but Everette, a Virginia native, took an official visit to Alabama over the weekend.

Everette's father, Darren, went in-depth on his son's decision to decommit from Clemson, their visit to Alabama, their interest in Georgia, and how they're going to come to a decision.

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On reopening the recruiting process: "I think with Daylen (decommitting from Clemson) he just was kind of concerned about the movement and maybe the possible domino effect of everything with all the movement with the coaches and with Venables leaving," Darren Everette said. "There was just kind of a little uncertainty, so he wanted to open up his recruitment. Not saying that Clemson's out of the running. They're still in the running but it's just it was kind of like, 'Yeah, you guys have a lot of movement. Maybe I should check out my other options before I have to sign on Wednesday.' That's the thought process of what was going on.

"So Alabama we talked to, of course, Georgia as well too," he said. "We had an official visit to Georgia already so we've been communicating with the Georgia coaches. There was no real need to go back to Georgia. When we had an official visit there they showed us everything. We, of course, liked what they were doing. Then we talked to Nick Saban last week. Of course you're going to listen to Nick Saban. He invited him for the official visit so Daylen went down Friday night and I got there Saturday night."

On the Alabama visit: "That was a great visit as well," he said. "It's funny because a lot of what we saw at Georgia and Alabama were very similar, very impressive facilities and programs, and stuff. The one thing that definitely stood out at Alabama was just the awe of when I got there I walked into the dinner and I was trying to figure out what they were watching. I thought it was like one of those promo videos they always show you when you're in there. Then I realized like, 'Oh wow, this is the Heisman ceremony. We're watching Bryce Young's speech.' I mean, that's something you don't see at other visits when you walk into the school and everybody's watching one of their players win the Heisman. I would say that probably was a highlight.

"All the other things, of course, was stuff that you know but it was just enlightening seeing it in person," he said. "We knew about the National Championships, all the stuff going back to Bear Bryant, all of the success that Nick Saban has had since he's been there with the National Championships and the players going into the league, and all that stuff. That's all stuff that we knew about but then it's another thing to actually go there and actually see it in person.

"We were very comfortable," he said. "The coaching staff was really, really nice. One thing I liked and why we kind of considering mostly the ACC and SEC is just because the Southern hospitality. Everybody was very, very nice. You could see they have a good family environment as far as their coaches and their staff. They have a lot of structure and a system. When you talk to Nick Saban face to face you see he's a no-nonsense, system-oriented, goal-oriented person. We would be comfortable with him there for sure."

On Georgia: "We've talked to Georgia a lot during this process because they were recruiting him kind of early in the process," he said. "We're very comfortable with the familiarity that we have with coach Addae. Those SEC schools are kind of a system. A lot of coaches come there to get better and get head coaching jobs but they always seem to have a really good backup plan for if a coach leaves. To be honest with you, between coach Addae, who will be coaching Daylen directly as the corners coach, and then Kirby Smart and Will Muschamp there too, they're just so personable. We've had a really good relationship with them. We call each other back and forth and text each other back and forth. They have a really good personable relationship with Daylen. They seem to kind of want him as a priority, so we would definitely feel comfortable with him going there as well."

On how a decision will be made: "We've just got to do a pros and cons thing," he said. "I talked to him briefly about it. I told him to definitely digest it. Then we're probably going to talk about it Monday night or Tuesday. They're very, very close. I was telling Daylen, 'You can't really make a bad choice.' We've met both of their staffs and got familiar with them. It'll be tough. I told him this is going to be a hard decision but not to overthink it because either way I think he'll be good. I feel comfortable with Daylen in any of those three schools."

This is very tight race and it's gotten even tighter since Everette's visit to Alabama. There aren't many recruits or family members that leave an official visit to Alabama unimpressed and the Crimson Tide coaches are hoping that momentum is enough to carry them past Georgia and into the lead. Everette's parents have signed off on both schools so it's up to Everette himself to sort out where he wants to go. Georgia's relationships with Everette and his family are stronger and Everette's father's comments about the coaching staff turnover at Georgia should relieve some of Georgia's concerns heading into Signing Day.