Why Rockvale 4-star safety Jaylan Morgan committed to Georgia football

Rockvale (TN) senior safety Jaylan Morgan has had a close relationship with Georgia co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach Travaris Robinson since the early stages of his recruitment.

That's a major reason Morgan chose the Bulldogs, announcing his commitment to Georgia on Monday.

"Coach TRob was at Alabama before, which I was swaying toward Alabama when he was there," said Morgan, a 6-foot, 180-pound safety on Robinson, who joined Georgia's staff in January. "He obviously ended up moving to Georgia. That's what kind of swayed my decision."

Morgan chose Georgia over his other final four teams, which included Florida, Ole Miss and Mississippi State.

"I chose Georgia because I wanted to be the best me possible, and that I have to be with the best and practice with the best," Morgan said. "Iron sharpens iron. I felt like Georgia gave me the best opportunity for that."

He also had offers from SEC schools Tennessee, Alabama, Missouri and Vanderbilt, as well as Power Five schools Colorado, Oklahoma, USC, TCU, Georgia Tech, Indiana, Purdue, Michigan State and Wisconsin, among others.

A four-star prospect, Morgan is ranked by 247Sports Composite as the No. 6 player in Tennessee and No. 23 safety nationally in the 2025 class.

He has taken four visits to Georgia and was offered by the Bulldogs in April. He took an official visit to Athens on June 21.

"That really (made up) my mind," said Morgan, who had 20 tackles (one for loss) during his junior season at Rockvale.. "It was a hard decision. All the schools were great options. In my gut I just felt like Georgia came out on top, due to that visit and getting in-depth conversations and getting to see the vision of the program with me in it."

He also cited academics as a factor, as Georgia is listed in the top 20 public universities in the nation by several publications.

"I grew up in an education household, so I obviously want to get academics right," said Morgan, whose mother, Jamara Deberry, is a longtime educator and administrator.

Tennessee was the first Power 5 school (and second overall) to offer Morgan, coming in May 2022. Alabama wasn't far behind, offering him after a visit there in March 2023.

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Robinson moving from Alabama to Georgia was a big reason the Crimson Tide fell off Morgan's list. Why did the Vols not make it?

"It just really wasn't the right fit for me," said Morgan, who has had several friends commit to the Vols. "I feel like I had a better opportunity, for my needs, at Georgia. I don't believe in following your friends. I wanted to do what's right for me and my future. You can't go following the trend."

He didn't have a No. 2 from his final list, saying it was Georgia and "the other three." He also said he had no intentions of taking visits to any other universities.

"It's going to be a lot of weight lifted," Morgan said. "I really don't have to think about it anymore. I'm going to focus on my senior season, putting my all out there and not having to worry about traveling somewhere on Saturdays. I'm not visiting anywhere else, unless it's Georgia."

Cecil Joyce covers high school sports and MTSU athletics for The Daily News Journal. Contact him at cjoyce@dnj.com and follow him on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, @Cecil_Joyce.