Thompson reopens his recruitment

One week after committing to Cal at its junior day, Shaq Thompson has decided to reopen his recruitment. That doesn't mean the Golden Bears still aren't a favorite but the Sacramento (Calif.) Grant standout wants to consider other options as well.

"He went to their junior day and got caught up in the moment and then he came home and we talked about it and Cal is still very, very high on his list but he wants to be open to seeing other places and doing other things so he could make a better choice," Grant coach Mike Alberghini said. "He's uncommitted right now."

There are still many things going in Cal's favor - Grant teammates Viliami Moala and Puka Lopa signed in the Golden Bears' 2011 recruiting class and Thompson's brother, Syd'Quan, played at Cal - but Alberghini said he and Thompson have decided it's best to at least look at other schools.

Thompson, a 6-foot-1, 185-pound safety and running back, will have numerous options because he's one of the nation's top players and taking a look at other programs seems like the more preferable option for him at this point.

"I imagine if he had to make an absolute final choice right now with the two kids we have going there, with his brother having graduated from there, he always liked it, it's way up there on his list but he's a young man who's going to have the opportunity to see a lot of places and make a choice," Alberghini said.

"It may very well be Cal but right now he just wants the opportunities. He's going to have many. He's been offered by many schools and it's so early to commit. I would much rather do what he's done now than do this later if he changed his thought process because then he would have done a disservice to Cal. He decided and I agree with him that it's best he's not committed anywhere."

Thompson rushed for 1,882 yards and 25 touchdowns in his junior season. He also had about 54 tackles in Grant's secondary.

"Sometimes you can get caught up," Alberghini said. "He's going to go to a lot of places he likes but just come back and go through it all and then make that decision when everything in your head is really clear."