DB Richard LeCounte III, No. 8 in ESPN Junior 300, commits to Georgia

New Georgia football coach Kirby Smart landed his first commitment from the No. 8-ranked player in the ESPN Junior 300, Richard LeCounte III, on Sunday afternoon.

The 5-foot-11, 174-pound defensive back from Hinesville (Georgia) Liberty County High School made his pledge to Georgia less than 12 hours before the recruiting dead period begins. Smart will head back to Alabama to begin the college football playoff bowl preparation for the Crimson Tide.

LeCounte, who also held offers from Alabama, Florida, Clemson, Auburn, Florida State and many others, is the top-ranked safety in the junior class. He announced his decision via twitter.

#AllGloryToGod pic.twitter.com/OnuN1Gy5Z9

— Richard LeCounte III (@LilEasy_35) December 13, 2015

Though Smart is not publicly allowed to mention recruits by name, the first-year head coach sent out a cryptic tweet referencing Georgia's newest commit.

COUNT one for #SicEm17 #homeGrown #CommitToTheG

— Coach Kirby Smart (@KirbySmartUGA) December 13, 2015

Georgia is adding an electric playmaker. In his three years of playing varsity football, LeCounte has totaled 299 tackles, 25 tackles for loss, 11 forced fumbles and 11 interceptions. The talented athlete has also rushed for 1,358 yards, caught 47 passes for 883 yards and thrown for 688 yards. In all LeCounte has totaled 26 touchdowns in his high school career.

With the addition of LeCounte, Georgia now has four 2017 commits, all of which are in the ESPN Junior 300.