Alabama defensive back Kool-Aid McKinstry said he backed off commitment to Auburn

Ga’Quincy ‘Kool-Aid” McKinstry’s path to the 2024 NFL Draft almost went through Auburn instead of Alabama football.

The former five-star defensive back is projected to join several first-round picks under legendary Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban if he is selected in the draft scheduled for Thursday, April 25, in Detroit. But instead of donning the cream and crimson, at one point, McKinstry almost started his career at rival Auburn.

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McKinstry talked about his high school recruitment and the choice between Alabama and Auburn in a clip from “Road to the Pros,” an AL.com series that follows the path to the NFL for Alabama and Auburn athletes, shared on social media.

“I had told Auburn I was going to commit to them publicly. … I woke up three days later and was like, ‘Hell nah! I’m going to Bama,’” McKinstry said in the clip shared on X (formerly Twitter). “I called my mama and told her, ‘I’m going to Alabama, mom.’ I ain’t going to Auburn.”

McKinstry’s mom responded: “I knew that s*** was coming.”

Kool-Aid McKinstry recruitment

According to 247Sports Composite Rankings, McKinstry was the No. 18 overall player in the country and the top-ranked player in the state in the 2021 recruiting class. Former Auburn standout quarterback Patrick Nix — the father of former Auburn and Oregon quarterback Bo Nix— coached McKinstry at Pinson Valley High in Pinson, Alabama.

Ranked as the No. 1 cornerback in the class, McKinstry held 27 offers. He committed to Alabama on Oct. 25, 2020, signed his letter of intent that December, and enrolled at Alabama on Jan. 11, 2021. In 2023, he recorded 32 tackles and seven passes defended for the Crimson Tide, earning first-team All-American honors from the AP and the Sporting News.

Despite a Jones fracture in his foot, McKinstry participated in Alabama’s Pro Day. In an ESPN mock draft by Field Yates and Mel Kiper Jr. released Monday, McKinstry is projected to go No. 30 overall to the Baltimore Ravens.