Less than two months ago, Alius Mayo stood inside Lincoln High School’s Spanos Stadium, put on a Cal hat and announced his college commitment.
“Whenever you dream, the best ones come from home,” Mayo told those in attendance.
Now, that dream is taking him somewhere else.
The 6-foot-4, 190-pound Modesto College sophomore cornerback and No. 1 junior college player in the country has flipped his commitment from Cal to Georgia, he announced on social media Tuesday, Sept. 29.
Mayo made his first trip to Athens over the weekend for an official visit, with the Lincoln graduate taking in Georgia's matchup with Oklahoma. The Bulldogs, ranked No. 2 in the AP Top 25, beat Oklahoma 41-13 to move to 4-0.
Back at
Cal, the Golden Bears have opened 2-2 after most recently falling 45-24 to UCLA. They are ranked No. 51 nationally in the CBS Sports Rankings.
"This is something I've always seen for myself, even with no offers coming out of high school," Mayo said Aug. 2 after announcing his commitment to Cal. "I spoke it into existence every single day because I believed in myself. I believed in the God-given abilities I have, and I gave it everything I had. Anything I put my mind to, I was going to accomplish."
Born and raised in Stockton, Mayo did a little bit of everything during his senior season in 2025. In 11 games, he totaled 51 tackles, two tackles for loss, one sack, two interceptions, one fumble recovery and two defensive touchdowns while also catching a 30-yard touchdown pass.
Interest came from Fresno State, Sacramento State, Portland State and UC Davis, but an official scholarship offer never did. Mayo instead began his college career at the junior college level.
It didn't take long for him to show what recruiters had overlooked.
As a freshman at Modesto Junior College, Mayo totaled 30 tackles, one tackle for loss, five interceptions and five pass breakups in 11 games, earning first-team All-Valley Conference honors.
Then came an even bigger jump.
Once unranked, Mayo emerged as a four-star recruit and the No. 1 junior college player in the country.
"It feels great," Mayo said. "Just to finally be home, somewhere I know I'm going to develop and get to the league early."
At the time, Mayo chose Cal over Alabama, LSU, Arizona State, Mississippi State, Louisville and Kentucky.
"Now that this weight is off my shoulders, it's back to square one," Mayo said. "Just keeping the main thing the main thing and giving it 100% every day."
This article originally appeared on The Record: Georgia lands nation’s No. 1 JUCO prospect Alius Mayo after flip from Cal
