Alabama Football: Tide lands Justice Haynes, stunning Georgia

Catching recruiting experts off guard, Alabama Football landed highly rated running back, Justice Haynes. It wasn’t supposed to happen. Haynes is a Georgia Bulldog legacy with his father, Verron having been a Bulldog running back.

According to the top recruiting sources, the 2023 class rating for Justice Haynes is between the No. 1 running back to the No. 4 RB.

Adding to the embarrassment for Georgia is Justice Haynes plays high school football just 50 miles from Athens in Buford, GA.

According to On3.com, he is the No. 2 player in the state of Georgia and the No. 45 player nationally in the 2023 class. Haynes had much to say about why he chose the Alabama Crimson Tide.

"The thing that stood out the most was definitely the development and the accountability. Coach Saban‘s gonna hold you accountable and keep the main thing the main things …Bama’s strength coaches and training staff are the best in the country. They’re going to keep you healthy, and at peak performance. Bama is going to develop me as a man on and off the field the most.… it’s the school that felt like home to me. I resonated with a lot of the players, with Coach Saban, and coach Gillespie. I feel like I can go into Bama, leave a legacy, and do great things."

Haynes is a two-sport guy and also expects to play baseball for the Crimson Tide.

While his choice was a surprise to almost everyone, something else Haynes said after committing to the Crimson Tide was as surprising.

For several weeks the majority opinion, among well-informed and credible recruiting experts, has been Haynes would choose Georgia, while 5-Star, running back, Richard Young would commit to and later sign with the Alabama Crimson Tide.

The Richard Young to Alabama thinking has not changed with the decision by Justice Haynes. What is surprising is that Haynes is openly recruiting Young to join him in Tuscaloosa. By all counts, Richard Young is the No. 1 running back in the 2023 class. Not many lower-rated recruits work hard to get a higher-rated prospect in their position group to come to the same program.

For Haynes to do this shows strong confidence in his own ability to compete with anyone. It also might indicate a young man willing to put team first.

Response to the Alabama Football swoop of Haynes

Georgia fans claim Haynes picked the Tide because the Bulldogs were unwilling to allow him to also play baseball. An Alabama fan asked does Haynes “bring a hobnail boot with him.”

Other tweets from Georgia fans were predictably negative but not worth including in this post.

Alabama football fans have another reason for excitement. Justice Haynes and 5-Star safety, Caleb Downs are friends. Supposedly the pair like the idea of choosing the same school.