Georgia’s No. 1 QB talks about picking Virginia over Alabama; UGA and Georgia Tech add recruits

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Georgia’s No. 1 college prospect at quarterback, Greyson Lambert, made his college decision over the weekend, with Virginia narrowly edging out Alabama in an intense recruiting battle.

The 6-foot-6, 195-pounder from Wayne County High School was also being recruited by Arkansas, LSU, Tennessee, Florida State, Florida, South Carolina and Clemson, among others, over the last year and he camped at many of his favorites in July.

“Yes, Virginia and Alabama, those were my two favorite schools,” Lambert told the AJC. “I just felt like the whole situation at Virginia is better for me. It was really tough to pick between those two. I was born in Alabama, and I have family still there. But I was just blown away by everything Virginia had to offer. It’s kind of weird saying that, when you’re talking about a school like Alabama right there. I don’t know, I just had a different feeling about Virginia … it was just a better fit for me.”

You’ve got to give props to Virginia coach Mike London for using a state-of-the-art recruiting tactic to seal the deal. When the blue-chip QB made an unofficial visit to Virginia’s campus on July 30, London wasn’t even there to make his salespitch. However, like any good football coach, he made an adjustment. We’ll let Greyson explain:

Georgia's No. 1 college prospect at QB for 2012, Greyson Lambert, committed to Virginia over Alabama

“They showed me a team video and at the end of it, there was a 10-minute segment that started out with Coach London sitting at his desk, saying ‘To Greyson and the Lambert family.’ He couldn’t be there because of a prior engagement, so he made a video and told me everything he wanted to tell me through that video. I thought it was really, really neat that he took the time out to make a video for me and my family that was there with me. He talked about his philosophy and the team rules, why he came to Virginia, what his players had learned from his coaching staff both on and off the field, and how thankful he was to be at Virginia.

“It was like he was talking to me in person. I just felt like for him to take the time out and do that, it was pretty special. My dad asked the coaches to rewind the video so he could tape it on his phone and show it to my mother. It meant a lot.”

The video clinched the deal for Virginia, although Lambert was  just about there anyways for other reasons. “I felt comfortable with the coaches and their vision for the football program, Charlottesville is the best college town in the country … and then you come back to academics at Virginia, which has maybe the best Business School in the nation. It was a great fit for me in all areas.” [Note: Lambert said he has a 3.8 GPA and plans to study Business]

“I’ve been praying a lot about [my decision] for the longest time. With all the signs I had been getting, my family and I felt like Virginia was where I was supposed to go. I really feel blessed for this opportunity. I want to thank my friends, family, teammates and coaches for all of their help in getting me to this point, and also says thanks again to the colleges that looked at me.”

Then came the hard part — delivering the news to runner-up Alabama. But it went rather well after the Lambert family contacted Alabama defensive coordinator Kirby Smart, according to the QB. “Alabama wished me the best of luck, said they were excited for me and that if I still wanted to visit them this year that I could come to any games that I wanted to. I thought that was very nice and classy of them.”

For more background on Virginia’s new QB recruit, go here.

• RELATED: Georgia DB, nephew of Olympian Gail Devers, commits to UVA (click on story link)

IN CASE YOU MELTED IN THE HEAT OVER THE WEEKEND

• Can you remember less than a month ago when fire alarms were going off with UGA fans about recruiting? It was because the Bulldogs had Z-E-R-O commitments at the team’s absolutely, positively, biggest recruiting need — offensive linemen. Boy have things changed quickly with 3 OL commits in the last few weeks. Bang, bang, bang. Now everybody take a deep breath. UGA beat out Virginia Tech and Penn State for OL No. 3, Baltimore’s Greg Pyke (click on story link)
• The state of Georgia may have its deepest pool ever of college basketball prospects, with at least 24 holding high D1 offers. Both Georgia Tech and UGA are off to good starts with the homegrown talent. UGA landed Milton High School combo guard Charles Mann, while Georgia Tech beat out a host of schools for combo guard Chris Bolden, who was the hero of last season’s state championship game. Georgia Tech first-year coach Brian Gregory was impressive with his recruiting skills, both offering Bolden a scholarship and landing a commitment in the same day. Click here for more
• Brookwood DB Zach Jackson picks Illinois over SEC, ACC schools (click on story link)

RELATED FOOTBALL RECRUITING STORIES

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• What if a Georgia HS led nation in D1 football recruits and none of them signed with UGA or Georgia Tech (click on story link)
• Florida RB picks Georgia Tech over FSU & Tennessee, among 30 offers (click on story link)
  

  Virginia has also landed one of Georgia's top college basketball prospects for 2012 -- Milton High School swingman Evan Nolte (No. 12 in white jersey) committed to Virginia over UGA last spring (AJC photo)

• Georgia OL Joe Harris commits to South Carolina over UGA and Clemson (click on story link)
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• Lifelong UGA fan will play for archrival Georgia Tech (click on story link)
• Nephew of 3-time Olympic gold medalist Gail Devers to play football at Virginia (click on story link)
• Georgia Tech lands DB from same Florida HS as UGA’s Aaron Murray and Orson Charles (click on story link)
• Georgia’s No. 1 point guard picks UGA over NCAA champ UConn & FSU (click on story link)
• Armchair QB Q: Should UGA have signed another RB to go with Isaiah Crowell? (click on story link)
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• UGA’s Mark Richt gives a “group hug” after 4 commit together at Dawg Night (click on story link)
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• Who is the best DUNKER in Georgia history? State your case by going here
• UGA is ranked No. 2 in the nation in recruiting over the last 10 years (click on story link)
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– By Michael Carvell, AJC Recruiting Blog Got a recruiting item? mcarvell@ajc.com

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