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Helena safety Jeremiah Alvis officially committed to Troy University for football as the three-star senior turned down SEC offers for a chance to blaze a different trail with the Trojans. (For the Reporter/Jeremy Raines)

By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor

HELENA – One of the key members of the Helena Huskies defense will stick around Alabama a little bit longer as he will stay in-state to play college football.

Helena safety Jeremiah Alvis committed to play football at Troy University during a special commitment ceremony at the Helena Sports Complex on Saturday, Aug. 24.

“It feels great,” Alvis said. “It’s a good feeling.”

Alvis committed to Troy over SEC offers from Arkansas, Mississippi State, Missouri, Ole Miss and Texas A&M as well as other Power 4 offers from Cincinnati, Duke, Georgia Tech, Penn State and West Virginia.

What ultimately sealed the decision to play for the Trojans over the other schools who offered him was how much the people in the program made him feel valued.

“I’ll say just the people,” Alvis said on what led to his decision. “They made me feel like a priority. I was the number one safety on their board.”

Alvis enters his senior season ranked as a three-star safety by 247Sports and as the 44th best athlete in the state of Alabama among the Class of 2025.

Those accolades and offers came as part of his unique journey to success, from returning to football in seventh grade to starting in the varsity secondary as a freshman in Class 6A.

Alvis wants to set an example for the kids in the Helena area both on and off the field, and he sees his decision to go to Troy as another way where he can lead.

“Really what made me want to commit to Troy was to show people that you don’t have to go to the biggest schools to make it to your ultimate goal, which is the NFL,” Alvis said. “So, I wanted just to take a different path because I feel like I’m a very unique person in my way.”

Now with his recruitment behind him, Alvis hopes to make a big impact for the Huskies in his senior season.

He wants to show the improvements that he has made to make him a more all-around player, including becoming a bigger tackling threat in addition to his lockdown coverage game.

“Just look out for a big season for me from me, and I’m just coming for everything,” Alvis said.

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