Alabama and safety Javier Morton have parted ways.

Once the longest-tenured commitment in the Crimson Tide’s 2020 recruiting class, Morton officially announced a de-commitment on Wednesday, he tells BamaOnLine.

"I'm de-committed," Morton told BamaOnLine. "Really just been trying to focus on myself as far as my personal life. Really just working by myself. Alabama gave me the best opportunity. I always wanted to go to Alabama. Unfortunately things just didn't go as planned -- how we've seen the plan, how they've seen the plan, and how I've seen the plan. It's time to take a different route and re-open my recruitment."

If you’ve been following the Stone Mountain (Ga.) Stephenson product’s process, Wednesday’s news doesn’t come as much of a surprise as it’s been clear that UA and the four-star safety have been going separate ways for quite some time. Morton did not visit Tuscaloosa, nor any other programs, throughout this past summer.

"I'm looking where I'm needed and not wanted. I'm needed at LSU. I think they could use me at LSU ... Miami, South Carolina, Auburn, Georgia Tech ... just different schools I could go in and be a factor at."

Morton committed to the Tide in December of 2017. He was the first recruit on board in the UA’s 2020 class, which now sits with 22 members.

Alabama is ranked No. 2 in the nation, according to the industry-generated 247Sports Composite Team Recruiting Rankings.

As for it current status in the area of defensive back recruiting, the Tide has four commitments in its class — Malachi Moore, Jahquez Robinson, Kristian Story (ATH), and Brian Branch. The Tide is continuing after others in the secondary like four-star junior college cornerback Nadab Joseph and four-star athlete Joel Williams. Depending on Joseph’s timeline, both he and Williams could be members of UA’s 2020 class sooner rather than later. Williams has a set commitment date of Sept. 9.

The Tide hasn’t recruited a position better in the last three cycles than it has the secondary. In 2019, Alabama signed a loaded haul of DBs, headlined by Jordan Battle, among a number of other elite names. In 2018, Nick Saban and company signed a class that featured Patrick Surtain II and Josh Jobe.