Several small schools, including Mississippi College, Faulkner and Birmingham-Southern, offered Thompson lineman Alex Pearman the chance to continue his football career.
The 6-foot, 250-pound had other ideas.
"Honestly, I wanted to compete and play at the highest level I thought I could," he said.
Now he'll to get his chance.
Pearman has accepted an invitation as an invited walk-on at Alabama, meaning he has a roster spot but no scholarship when he reports to Tuscaloosa in May.
"This opportunity," he said, "I know I'll be competing against the best of the best.