Former Alabama commitment now focused on three schools

Defensive end Aaron Sterling of Tucker, Ga., put himself back on the market in the middle of September with a decommitment from Alabama. He’s limiting that market to South Carolina, NC State and Tennessee.

The Gamecocks have recruited Sterling (6-2, 260) for an extended period and kept up their interest even when he committed to the Crimson Tide. That diligence is being rewarded by Sterling’s strong interest in them.

“They are pretty high (on the list). I think highly of South Carolina,” Sterling said. “Coach T-Rob and Coach Muschamp, they were honest with me and told me straight up how they want to use me and told me my chances of playing and stuff. They were totally honest with me.”

Sterling was at USC last summer for a camp and had a chance to see the coaches work up close, and he also checked out the football facilities.

“I liked the facilities. They showed me a lot of stuff,” Sterling said. “I talked to the academic adviser and she told me some good stuff. Chilling with the coaches was a fun experience. And the players were cool to be around. They are basically like a family up there.”

Sterling said he’s hearing from the Gamecocks every week with Robinson, Muschamp and Mike Peterson checking in. And he’s kept an eye on the Gamecocks this season.

“It’s a building program,” Sterling said. “They didn’t get to rolling yet but eventually they are going to get to rolling once they get all their pieces together.”

Sterling said he will visit USC for a game this season but he’s not sure when. And he said he will also take an official visit to Columbia but no date has been set.

Sterling will also visit Tennessee and NC State at some point. And he plans to visit Georgia as well. He did visit NC State unofficially earlier in the season for the Old Dominion game.

Sterling said he has no favorite at this point.

“It’s neck and neck,” he said. “Everybody has their pros and cons. All three schools are recruiting me pretty hard.”

This story was originally published September 30, 2016 at 1:16 PM with the headline "Former Alabama commitment now focused on three schools."