Jalen Perry took an official visit to Michigan over the weekend, and it was then that he knew he wanted to be a Wolverine.
The four-star defensive back out of Dacula (Ga.) at one time was looking to visit South Carolina instead, but Jim Harbaugh and the Wolverines convinced Perry to return for a second visit and it paid off.
Florida was in the mix, but the Gators finished third. Michigan beat out South Carolina and Perry will be moving to Ann Arbor in early January.
IN HIS OWN WORDS
"This decision was extremely tough and I did go back and forth some in my mind, but I feel very comfortable with my decision," said Perry.
"The main reasons I chose Michigan was the academic and football combination and knowing that both of those areas are towards the top of the nation. Also, I have a great relationship with the coaching staff and love the atmosphere every time I'm on campus.
"There was no particular moment where I said, Michigan is the place for me, it was really the entire official visit that made me realize that Michigan is the school for me.
"Michigan was in mind before the official visit but this visit really confirmed that this is the school I wanted to go to. I loved everything about it; including hanging out with players talking to coach Harbaugh, Zordich, Brown, and several others.
"I told Harbaugh about my decision Sunday morning on the official visit while at breakfast. His reaction was very excited and happy, he said, 'it was a great feeling'.
"When looking at my future in Ann Arbor, I'm most excited about competing to get better every day and exceeding in the classroom as well. I look forward to becoming the best player I can be there and I'm excited to play at such a great university with amazing fans. I am extremely close with several of the current 2019 commits so that helped a lot as well as far as being confident with my decision."
RIVALS REACTION
Perry is a versatile athlete. He does it all for his high school team, but he will be in the defensive backfield for the Wolverines. He has great ball skills, he could line up anywhere in the secondary and he is as coachable as they come. Perry just wants to help his team. This is a great get for Michigan. They came in a little late, but getting Perry on campus twice over the last month really changed things. This looked like it would be a South Carolina victory on the recruiting trail after Perry decommitted from Georgia last month, but the combination of football and life after football sold Perry.
