5-Star TE Arik Gilbert Pulls off a Shocker and Commits to LSU Over Georgia and Alabama

With the way recruiting works these days, it's not often for a recruit to shock us all when he makes his decision. Arik Gilbert went ahead and pulled a fast one Wednesday night, though.

For a while now, it seemed like almost a virtual lock he'd be going to play his college ball either at Georgia or Alabama. Instead, he's LSU-bound, as Gilbert announced his commitment to the Tigers moments ago.

Down goes Bama. Down goes Georgia. Just last weekend, Gilbert took his official visit to Athens and the staff appeared to make an impact on him. He had a Top 5 of LSU, Georgia, Alabama, Clemson and Texas A&M, but again, most experts out there had figured it was down to either the Crimson Tide or the Bulldogs.

Checking in at 6-5, 253 pounds and ranked the No. 1 tight end in the country, Gilbert had 26 offers to his name. On 247Sports, 88 percent of his 'Crystal Ball' predictions were in favor of him going to Nick Saban and Co. Instead, LSU won the monster recruiting battle for the nation's No. 10 ranked player overall.

Ed Orgeron must be enjoying some gumbo this evening to celebrate. What a pick up for him and his coaching staff.