Some of the top players in the 2022 class has set commitment dates, and a big one will take place this week. On Thursday March 24 around 5:3pm ET, Jefferson (Ga.) athlete Malaki Starks will announce his decision.
Today, experts from the Rivals.com network examine where Jefferson might end up playing his college football. The candidates are Alabama, Clemson and Georgia.
THE SITUATION: Starks is a quiet one. He has not said too much about his recruitment, but has quietly had countless zoom calls with coaches, taken part in numerous virtual visits, and he has made his decision. Before visits were shutdown in 2020, Starks took visits to Alabama and Georgia. He has visited Georgia, a school 30 minutes from home over half a dozen times. Clemson has not received a visit, but his uncle, Jerome Williams, played for the Tigers in the late 1980s, so he knows a lot about that program. Starks is playing things extremely close to the vest, but a decision is just days away, and things coming into focus we asked our team experts to state the case for their respective programs and let National Recruiting Director Adam Gorney issue a verdict.
ALABAMA: “Starks is one of the few 2022 recruits who took an unofficial visit to Alabama. Starks attended Alabama’s Junior Day in early March of 2020 prior to the COVID-19 forcing the NCAA to shut down visits and extend the recruiting dead period throughout the year. He has remained in close contact with Alabama led by the recruiting efforts of Charles Kelly. Alabama has been on the short list since he received the offer, but his decision appears more likely to come down between Clemson and Georgia.” — Andrew Bone, BamaInsider.com
CLEMSON: “Any other time period, a prospect who hadn't yet visited Clemson would be ruled out for the Tigers by default. But pandemic times have taken most bets off the table. Here's still putting odds higher in UGA's corner, but our indications are that Clemson has made this a legit tug of war. His uncle played tight end for Clemson in the late 1980s, and there are family members who might prefer the Tigers as the choice for the program culture. A.J. Terrell, Andrew Booth -- Clemson has shown it probably shouldn't be discounted for elite Peach State defensive back talent, Plus the Tigers have an evident need for upgrade at safety. Not saying Clemson gets him. Just saying it's not that far-fetched to think it could. .” — Paul Strelow, TigersIllustrated.com
GEORGIA: “There's no denying Georgia has a substantial edge when it comes to proximity for Starks, and the hometown pressure is likely immense in Jefferson, a stone's throw from Athens. In addition to being just down the street from campus, Kirby Smart has taken a particularly vested interest in this recruitment and made the Rivals100 athlete a priority for this cycle. All of that working together makes Georgia a sensible choice here and has for some time. We've long projected him to Athens, and while I'm not writing off Clemson down the stretch here, I think home ends up being where the heart — and commitment — is.” — Jake Reuse, UGASports.com
THE VERDICT: “This is a tough call because I think it's between Georgia and Clemson with Alabama trailing for Starks but I'm going to pick the Bulldogs. The four-star basically lives right down the road from both campuses so location isn't a factor in that sense but Athens is right down the road so that could benefit Georgia. Plus, Starks has been to Athens numerous times and has to have a more comfortable feel for everything there even though he has a family connection to Clemson. This is very close between Clemson and Georgia so either could be picked and both will continue to recruit him if he picks the other school but I'm going to side with Georgia here, but only slightly.“ — National Recruiting Director Adam Gorney
