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Jaylen Mbakwe to stay at Alabama after originally planning to enter transfer portal

(This story has been updated with new information.)

Alabama freshman cornerback Jaylen Mbakwe has opted to remain at Alabama after expressing an intention on Monday to enter the transfer portal, telling On3 Sports that he's "here to stay."

Mbakwe confirmed the reversal in a social media post referencing a popular scene from the 2013 film "The Wolf of Wall Street."

A Pinson, Alabama native, Mbakwe was a five-star recruit that was rated as the No. 12 overall prospect and No. 2 cornerback nationally in the 2024 class, according to 247Sports’ composite rankings.

Mbakwe had committed to and signed with the Crimson Tide under Nick Saban, but stuck with the program after Saban’s retirement and Kalen DeBoer’s hiring last January.

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In his first season with Alabama, Mbakwe played 11 of the team’s 12 regular-season games and finished with 15 tackles, one tackle for loss, two pass break-ups and an interception.

In a since-deleted post on Instagram, Mbakwe described his move away from the program as a “business decision.”

“This was not an easy decision, but I believe it’s the best step for my personal and professional development and the future I’m working towards for myself and my family,” he wrote.

Prior to his change of heart, Mbakwe no longer appeared on the 2024 Alabama football roster and a link to his profile page on the team's official website came up with an error message.

Given his lofty standing coming out of Clay-Chalkville High School in Pinson, Mbakwe’s announced departure drew significant interest and curiosity from those around college football, but particularly those in Alabama, who were trying to parse social media posts from other Crimson Tide football players to decipher any possible meaning from them.

Alabama star freshman wide receiver Ryan Williams posted an Instagram story Monday night of a picture of him and Mbakwe, along with the caption “Bingo we got action,” with elephant and bullseye emojis. Williams and Mbakwe are close friends and co-hosts of a podcast, “The New Wave.”

Alabama will face off against Michigan in the ReliaQuest Bowl on Dec. 31 in Tampa, Florida.

It will cap off what has been an underwhelming first season in Tuscaloosa for DeBoer, the former Washington coach, whose team went 9-3 in the regular season and wasn't selected for the inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff.

Hopefully for Mbakwe, things will work out better for him than Jordan Belfort.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jaylen Mbakwe to stay at Alabama after planning to enter transfer portal