Three-star 2027 safety Jalani Culpepper decommitted from Arizona in a post to X on Wednesday night. Culpepper was the only defensive commit in the 2027 Arizona class before his decommitment. Arizona has three commits in the 2027 class following the decommitment from Culpepper.
Culpepper is the 1,146th prospect, 124th safety and 137th player in Texas in the Rivals rankings out of Georgetown, Eastview. At 5'10 and 190 pounds, Culpepper is undersized for a safety. Culpepper has 79.0 tackles, 1.0 tackle for loss, seven pass breakups, two interceptions and two forced fumbles in the past two seasons.
Sam Spiegelman of Rivals reported Houston, SMU, and Baylor will receive visits from Culpepper this spring following his decommitment from Arizona. Culpepper initially committed to Arizona in October 2025. With the new candidates for Culpepper emerging, he likely wants to stay in Texas.
Arizona safeties coach Brett Arce was the lead recruiter for Culpepper with the Wildcats, per Rivals. Safeties, Malakai Taufoou and Jeovanni Henley visited Arizona earlier this month, according to Rivals. With four defensive backs selected in the 2026 NFL Draft, Arizona should be able to sign high-level prospects in the secondary.
After prayer and conversations with my family and coaches, I’ve decided to decommit from the University of Arizona. I appreciate Coach Viney and the entire staff for believing in me and for the opportunity. Thank you to the Beardown nation for the support.
— Jalani Culpepper (@JalaniC8) April 30, 2026
My recruitment is 100%… pic.twitter.com/JkykfxsXJM
Looking ahead
Official visits begin the weekend of May 29. Arizona is hosting four prospects the first weekend, which includes three-star safety Dillon Davis. Davis is the only safety currently listed as taking an official visit to Arizona per 247Sports. The number of official visits should grow as the dates get closer.
Three-star prospects, tight end Max Markofski and wide receiver Trey Smith, are the only current commits in the 2027 Arizona class. Arizona currently has the 46th-ranked 2027 class nationally and is ninth in the Big XII in the Rivals rankings. The Wildcats need to build on their 2025 season, winning nine games and losing four with the 2027 class.
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