Courtesy photo. Potomac High's Ronald Darby says he is backing out of his verbal commitment to Notre Dame. He played in the Under Armour All-America Game last week in St. Petersburg, Fla.

Published on: Wednesday, January 11, 2012

By Brandy L. Simms

Potomac High senior Ronald Darby, who verbally committed to Notre Dame last spring, announced this week he was rescinding his verbal commitment to the Fighting Irish and will consider other schools.

Darby, a two-way standout at Potomac, was the top-rated player in Notre Dame’s recruiting class. The 5-foot-11, 180-pound cornerback was recruited to South Bend to play defense and special teams.

The Maryland native is rated a five-star prospect by Scout.com and a four-star recruit by Rivals.com and ESPN.

Darby, a three-year starter and state champion sprinter at the Oxon Hill school, participated in the Under Armour All-America Game last week in St. Petersburg, Fla.

The highly-touted cornerback also returned a kickoff 77 yards for a touchdown in the Chesapeake Bowl on Dec. 30 at South River High in Anne Arundel County.

Darby was named to various high school All-America teams including Sports Illustrated and USA Today.

Darby committed to Notre Dame last April after making an unofficial visit to the South Bend campus for the annual spring game. He made his official visit to Notre Dame in September.

“My official (visit) was very great,” Darby said. “I went when they played Michigan State so it was real good. I enjoyed it.”

Besides Notre Dame, Darby has already taken official visits to Auburn and Maryland and is reportedly scheduled to take an official visit to Florida State and Clemson; the NCAA allows student-athletes five official visits.