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Published Oct 23, 2017
Take Two: Will it be Georgia for five-star RB James Cook?
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Adam Gorney  •  Rivals.com
National Recruiting Director
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@adamgorney

Take Two returns with a daily offering tackling a handful of issues in the college football landscape. Rivals.com National Recruiting Analyst Adam Gorney lays out the situation and then receives takes from Rivals.com National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell and an expert from the Rivals.com network.

MORE TAKE TWO: Is Mike Riley in trouble at Nebraska? | Jim McElwain on hot seat?

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THE STORYLINE

James Cook is a five-star and the third-best running back in the 2018 class behind only Georgia commit Zamir White and Miami pledge Lorenzo Lingard.

Tthe Miami (Fla.) Miami Central standout made an early commitment to Florida State, where his brother, Dalvin, starred and it looked like his recruitment was finished. But Cook backed off that pledge in early July and since then many other programs have gotten in the mix.

Georgia is one of those programs and the five-star running back has a lot of interest in the Bulldogs as well. Could the SEC East power be loading up once again at running back like they have with Nick Chubb and Sony Michel leading the way in the Bulldogs’ backfield?

Could White and Cook be the next double-headed monster in Athens, maybe the best of the bunch?

It might be too early for Cook to make that decision and he’s planning some other visits before National Signing Day. A return to Florida State is a possibility, USC has emerged as a major contender and others could get in the game as well, but Georgia is as high as any team and that’s bad news for all the other SEC teams.

FIRST TAKE: ROB CASSIDY, RIVALS.COM SOUTHEAST RECRUITING ANALYST

“He lists Georgia as his leader but he's going to take officials before committing on Signing Day. Logic says UGA will land him, but FSU and even USC are real threats. He's not quite as quick as his brother, but he runs with similar power. It's not fair to compare him to Dalvin at this early juncture.”

SECOND TAKE: MIKE FARRELL, RIVALS.COM NATIONAL RECRUITING DIRECTOR

“I don’t think he’s going to Florida State. Most people think he’s going to Georgia, which is kind of interesting because a lot of people didn’t think he was going to FSU because of (Khalan) Laborn and (Cam) Akers but it was more about following his brother.

“Now you have (D’Andre) Swift and (Zamir) White at Georgia so he’d be going into a crowded backfield there. Louisville is an intriguing option. I know he’s liked them. Based on what everybody thinks, he’s going to end up at Georgia, not back at Florida State. He will probably be one of the two guys at Georgia like we see now with Chubb and Michel or before with Todd Gurley and Keith Marshall.

“He’s not as good as his brother. His brother came on and earned his fifth-star late because he split time in high school. James has had the advantage of not being in the same backfield as Joseph Yearby and then waiting for his opportunity to be the No. 1 guy. When you compare them, they’re both very skilled, but I don’t see the same natural burst. There is something about Dalvin catching the ball and being able to power through tackles where James is more of a finesse guy who can run around people at the high school level.”

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