One of Georgia football's most important targets remaining on the recruiting trail is five-star running back Derrek Cooper. Cooper has had a very back and forth recruitment lately, but his recruitment is finally coming to and end as he shared on Thursday that he will announce his commitment on July 20.
— Derrek Cooper (@DerrekCooper80) July 10, 2025
Cooper also shared on Thursday that he will be deciding between Georgia, Florida State, Texas, Ohio State and Miami (FL) when he makes his final decision on July 20.
Derrek Cooper's recruitment is as close as it gets with commitment looming
A few weeks ago, Cooper was planning to announce his commitment on July 12. For whatever reason though, he decided to cancel that commitment date while not giving the public a reason why.
This move scared a lot of Georgia fans because multiple recruiting experts named Georgia the favorite going into his July 12 commitment date. But a last second cancellation made Georgia fans question where they actually stood with Cooper.
However, soon after this cancellation occurred, Dawg Post insider Matt Debary reported that his sources still believed Georgia was the leader for Cooper. This obviously gave Georgia fans some hope again, but DeBary was the only insider who named UGA (or any team for that matter) Cooper's leader, so there is still some doubt as to where Georgia stands with Cooper.
As July 20 draws closer, more intel about Cooper's recruitment likely will be made public. But as it stands today, Georgia may have a small lead in this recruitment with Miami and Texas not far behind.
Georgia is still after three five-star recruits including Cooper, but Cooper might be the most important recruitment to win. Pairing him with five-star quarterback Jared Curtis would be as big of a win as Georgia has ever had on the recruiting trail during the Kirby Smart era, and would give UGA one of the best offenses in the country for years to come.