On Tuesday, Georgia was considered the favorite to land 5-star athlete James Wilder, a top five prospect from the 2011 recruiting class.
On Wednesday afternoon,Wilder officially committed to FSU and passed up the chance to play for Georgia and his childhood favorite, Florida.
Later that same evening, 5-star running back Malcolm Brown, another top five prospect from the 2011 recruiting class, became the 23rd recruit to commit to Texas; Alabama was the second of his finalists and many considered a commitment to the Crimson Tide a strong possibility.
So with Alabama missing out on their top target and Georgia doing the same, both schools find themselves in a new hunt for a running back; this time against each other.
Georgia was planning on using Wilder as a big, bruising back and likely would have utilized him early and often as a true freshman.
Alabama would have slated Brown behind Trent Richardson in 2011 and continued to pump out arguably the top running game in all of college football.
The backup plan?
Isaiah Crowell.
Crowell, listed as the No. 2 running back on Scout and the No. 4 running back on Rivals, has long been one of the hot topics of conversation for Alabama and Georgia fans hoping to hear his commitment for their respective schools.
That talk is going to heat up in a big way now that both schools' top choices are off the market.
Crowell's top five choices are Alabama, Georgia, Clemson, Miami, and FSU, but most observers feel that it's really a two-horse race between the two SEC rivals with the other suitors sitting distantly in the stands.
Crowell has already said that he will be making his commitment at the Under Armor All-American game if he's ready or on National Signing Day, but it will definitely come on one of those two dates.
That means this one could drag out for quite some time and will only get more heated as the top running back options continue to fall off the board.
Check out the full breakdown of Crowell's decision for more in-depth coverage.
With Brown and Wilder committed, this becomes the most important recruiting war for Alabama and Georgia.
The most important question still remains though.
Where will the coveted prospect take his game?
On Wednesday afternoon,Wilder officially committed to FSU and passed up the chance to play for Georgia and his childhood favorite, Florida.
Later that same evening, 5-star running back Malcolm Brown, another top five prospect from the 2011 recruiting class, became the 23rd recruit to commit to Texas; Alabama was the second of his finalists and many considered a commitment to the Crimson Tide a strong possibility.
So with Alabama missing out on their top target and Georgia doing the same, both schools find themselves in a new hunt for a running back; this time against each other.
Georgia was planning on using Wilder as a big, bruising back and likely would have utilized him early and often as a true freshman.
Alabama would have slated Brown behind Trent Richardson in 2011 and continued to pump out arguably the top running game in all of college football.
The backup plan?
Isaiah Crowell.
Crowell, listed as the No. 2 running back on Scout and the No. 4 running back on Rivals, has long been one of the hot topics of conversation for Alabama and Georgia fans hoping to hear his commitment for their respective schools.
That talk is going to heat up in a big way now that both schools' top choices are off the market.
Crowell's top five choices are Alabama, Georgia, Clemson, Miami, and FSU, but most observers feel that it's really a two-horse race between the two SEC rivals with the other suitors sitting distantly in the stands.
Crowell has already said that he will be making his commitment at the Under Armor All-American game if he's ready or on National Signing Day, but it will definitely come on one of those two dates.
That means this one could drag out for quite some time and will only get more heated as the top running back options continue to fall off the board.
Check out the full breakdown of Crowell's decision for more in-depth coverage.
With Brown and Wilder committed, this becomes the most important recruiting war for Alabama and Georgia.
The most important question still remains though.
Where will the coveted prospect take his game?
