Three-star defensive back D’Arco Perkins-McAllister released a top seven on April Fool’s Day consisting of Tennessee, LSU, South Carolina, Kentucky, Ole Miss, Oklahoma and Georgia.

Now, Perkins-McAllister is focused on narrowing down his list of favorites from seven schools to three as he looks to commit ahead of his senior season at Stratford Comprehensive High School.

“Those seven schools, I put them in my top seven because they actually show love to me,” Perkins-McAllister told Volquest. “Others school show love, but those seven schools, they showed a different type of love and the relationships with some of the coaches were different. We talked about more than just football.”

“It’s getting ready for commitment time. I don’t want to drop a top three, but I want to get a top three in my head so I can focus on them right now. So, I’m working on them right now. Not too long from now, I should be committing. I want to commit before the season starts.”

Part of reaching a final three consists of taking visits. Perkins-McAllister has already scheduled official visits to Kentucky on June 11 and South Carolina on June 25, and intends to use one of his official visits on the Vols at some point. He plans on using all five official visits.

“Tennessee, they’re a good school for me,” Perkins-McAllister said. “They’re close — that’s good. My people like Tennessee, I like Tennessee. I got a good relationship with the coaches on that staff.”

The 6-foot-1, 180 lbs. defensive back has a “good relationship” with Vols head coach Josh Heupel and speaks with defensive coordinator Tim Banks frequently. Perkins-McAllister also speaks with defensive backs coach Willie Martinez.

“They love that I’m physical and they see that I’m a ballhawk,” Perkins-McAllister said. “Where the ball is at, I’m on the ball. Coach Banks keeps it real with me. He tells me that I have a chance to play freshman year.”

Most schools are recruiting the mid-state product as a safety, but he’s recently grown fond of the cornerback position. At the end of the day, Perkins-McAllister can play either defensive back position and is open to both.

Rivals ranks Perkins-McAllister as the 39th-best safety prospect in the 2022 recruiting class.