Washington lost a huge commitment in Zaydrius Rainey-Sale in the wake of Kalen DeBoer’s departure.

DeBoer is taking over for Nick Saban, who retired on Wednesday after 17 seasons with Alabama. Rainey-Sale reopened his recruitment on Friday via social media.

Rainey-Sale is a 4-star linebacker in the 2025 class out of Spanaway (Wash.) Bethel. The 247Sports Composite ranks him as the No. 21 LB and No. 1 prospect out of Washington. He comes in at 6-foot-2, 220 pounds.

Here’s what the recruit had to say about the decision:

“With the uncertainty surrounding the UW Football program I have decided to de-commit and open back up my recruitment,” said Rainey-Sale. “Please respect my decision.”

No SEC teams, including the Crimson Tide, have offered the prospect yet. His list of offers includes Florida State, Miami, Arizona, Colorado, Washington, Nevada, Oregon, Oregon State, Penn State, Stanford, and Washington State.

DeBoer comes to Tuscaloosa after leading Washington to the national championship game. DeBoer went 25-3 over the last 2 seasons at Washington. Before then, he was the coach at Fresno State (2020-2021) and Sioux Falls (2005-2009). He led Sioux Falls to multiple NAIA Championships and won 3 of them. DeBoer went 12-6 while at Fresno State.

It will be interesting to see if DeBoer recruits Rainey-Sale to Alabama.