re: Class of 2015 Recruiting MEGATHREAD - Twilight Edition

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There's no shame in what happened to Jacob Coker in Tallahassee.

Last fall, Coker lost Florida State's QB battle to redshirt freshman Jameis Winston. Winston, of course, broke out in a huge way, winning the Heisman Trophy and leading Florida State to a BCS National Championship, the program's first since the 1999 season.

Winston wasn't going anywhere this fall (and his father says he plans on staying at least two more seasons at FSU, according to USA Today Sports), so it was time for Coker to explore new frontiers. He gets a great opportunity at Alabama, where the job is open following the graduation of AJ McCarron.

McCarron led the Crimson Tide to a pair of national titles with a 36-4 career record as a starter, so expectations will be high. Coker graduated from Florida State in three years and has enrolled at Alabama.

He will be eligible immediately thanks to college football's graduate transfer rule, which allows this eligibility—provided both that the player graduated and that the new stop provides a compatible graduate program.

While senior Blake Sims—who had been McCarron's backup—ended the spring as the top quarterback, Coker stands an excellent chance of supplanting him as long as he picks up new offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin's playbook quickly, even though Nick Saban won't say so yet.

At 6'5" and 230 pounds, Coker is a pro-style quarterback who fits very well with Kiffin's system. Last fall, he completed 18 of 36 passes for 250 yards with no touchdowns and an interception in mop-up duty.

He will have a talented offense around him and could be one of 2014's biggest breakout players.

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Big junior DT impressed with Bama TI 2014-06-25 22:33:56
Ben Frazier
By Lee Richards

Big junior DT impressed with Bama

Defensive tackle Ben Frazier of Buford, Georgia is among the South’s top prospects in the class of 2016. The 6-3, 320-pound Frazier has offers from the likes of Alabama, FSU, Georgia, LSU, Miami, Ohio State, Ole Miss, Tennessee and Vanderbilt. He’s also drawing looks from Arizona State, Florida and Mississippi State.

Several schools have made an early impression on Frazier.

“Right about now, I’m not looking at many schools too heavily,” he says. “But of course Alabama stands out. LSU, of course, and Tennessee sticks out a lot as another top choice. And I like South Carolina and Miami.”

Frazier got his offer from Alabama this past spring.

“I’d say Alabama has been looking at me for a year-and-a-half,” he says. “When I came up to varsity as a freshman, Kirby Smart was hinting that they were looking at me. And when this year’s spring practice came around, they offered me. I was coming in from workouts and Coach Smart pulled me to the side. He said he couldn’t say much to me, but he did let me know that I was being officially offered by Alabama.

“With them being a powerhouse in football, it was kind of shocking. I told my mom and my dad and they were pretty excited about it. But I had to keep a clear head about it and I still have more seasons to worry about -- but it was exciting.”

What sticks out about the Tide?

“It's Alabama,” Frazier says. “They are a powerhouse in the NCAA, period. I love how Nick Saban has his team. Players come in and learn the program and how to be a successful NFL player. As you see, they waste no time in getting their players ready for the NFL. I

"I like how their defensive line plays and how they’re coached up. I love how the school seems to be like a family, and it’s something I’d like to be a part of. I plan on visiting with my father and mother. I want to see the campus and what they can offer me academically and athletically.

“The thing that sticks out to me about their defense is their tenacity and how all 11 guys swarm to the ball. I like how the defense never quits and they go 110-percent on every play in every quarter. I like how they attack teams and wear them down.”

Last season, Frazier was credited with 56 tackles and eight sacks.

“Coming in as a sophomore, you’re playing behind a pretty good senior, but you’re expected to perform when your name is called,” he says. “I feel like I performed when the team needed me to. Being a junior and upperclassman this year, coaches will look to me to lead more. They want you to perform on a high level and do what you’re supposed to be doing to get a win. I feel like I’m in a position to fulfill that role.”

Notes: Frazier runs a 5.4, bench presses 325, squats 415 and power cleans 295. He carries a 2.8 GPA and will take the ACT and SAT this summer.

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Alabama Football: What History Tells Us About Tide's Ability to Bounce Back

Don't look for Alabama to be anywhere but atop the college football world for a while.

You hear the naysayers about the University of Alabama football program after it just missed winning its third straight national championship, and fourth in five seasons.

Who’s to say they’re wrong?

Perhaps the Crimson Tide have peaked under Nick Saban. Although oddsmakers have Alabama as one of the favorites to qualify for the first national playoff, no one is projecting it to be the team to beat this season.

Auburn won the Iron Bowl and Oklahoma won the Sugar Bowl, resulting in a relatively long offseason in Tuscaloosa.

Only there aren’t any vultures circling Bryant-Denny Stadium, and Steve Spurrier is still taking verbal shots at Nick Saban, recently reminding everyone that he’s won only won two Southeastern Conference titles with the Crimson Tide.

Those who have been around the league for a while know that those kind of comments are not only a good sign for South Carolina, but Alabama as well. They also know that Saban won’t be taking Spurrier’s suggestion of slowing down a little.

“Travel doesn't wear on me as long as I get home at a decent hour,” Saban said about recruiting in December. “I guess the only tough night I had is I didn't get home til ... (Alabama’s) plane broke down in St. Louis and I didn't get home one night until two in the morning.”

While the Crimson Tide will go into training camp with uncertainly at quarterback, at least seven new defensive starters and everyone from Arkansas to Texas A&M still looking to take them down, history says it’ll be anything but an easy task.

Since The Associated Press poll came into existence in 1936, there had been 10 programs to finish No. 1 in back-to-back years, including Southern California (which has since vacated the 2004 championship), before Alabama in 2011-12.

While none successfully pulled off a three-peat, hardly any saw a significant slide either—at least immediately.

Here’s how well the other nine, minus the Trojans, managed to rebound:

Bernie Bierman (right) is considered one of the greatest coaches in college football history.
1940-41 Minnesota: Coach Bernie Bierman hadn’t lost a game in two years when he left the program to serve as a Marine during World War II (he served during World War I as well). In his absence, George Hauser took the Gophers to a 5-4 finish in both 1942 and 1943. Bierman returned in 1945, but never won another title.

1944-45 Army: Both the 1944 and 1945 teams went 9-0 and allowed just 35 and 46 points, respectively. Earl Blaik had the program on the edge of a three-peat, but a scoreless tie against Notre Dame at Yankee Stadium snapped a 25-game winning streak and eventually led to a controversial title for the Fighting Irish. The Black Knights went 5-2-2 in 1947, but were a combined 25-1-1 over the subsequent three seasons.

1946-47 Notre Dame: Both Fighting Irish titles were controversial, especially 1947 when a non-binding poll taken after the bowl games had Michigan at No. 1. But after finishing 9-0-1 and second to the Wolverines in 1948, Frank Leahy’s team responded with a perfect 10-0 season to claim the 1949 championship.

1955-56 Oklahoma: The back-to-back titles came during Oklahoma’s incredible 47-game winning streak that was eventually snapped by Notre Dame in 1957. Bud Wilkinson’s program still managed to finish the season 10-1, a record it matched in 1958.

Joe Holloway Jr./Associated Press
Paul W. "Bear" Bryant is the only coach to have college football dynasties in two different decades.
1965-66 Alabama: The 1966 season is still a sore point with Crimson Tide fans who refer to it as the “lost” championship. After getting breaks to finish No. 1 in 1964 and 1965, when the AP switched to holding its final poll after the bowl games instead of before, Alabama went a perfect 11-0 only to finish third in the rankings. Instead, Notre Dame and Michigan State, which had played to a lackluster tie, finished 1-2. The Tide finished 8-2-1 in 1967, but after coach Paul W. “Bear” Bryant changed the direction of the program, claimed three more titles in the 1970s.

1970-71 Nebraska: Bob Devaney’s title teams combined for a 24-0-1 record, and Nebraska went 9-2-1 during his final season of 1972. Following the promotion of assistant coach Tom Osborne, the Cornhuskers remained a powerhouse and won at least nine games every season until 2002.

1974-75 Oklahoma: After a 10-0-1 and No. 2 finish in 1973, Barry Switzer’s teams lost just one game over the two championship seasons before posting a 9-2-1 record in 1976. Nevertheless, the Sooners remained a perennial power until the coach stepped down in 1988 due to numerous scandals.

1978-79 Alabama: After a controversial finish in 1977, when voters leapfrogged No. 5 Notre Dame over No. 3 Alabama in the final poll (after the Irish beat No. 1 Texas, 38-10, No. 2 Oklahoma lost and the Crimson Tide topped No. 9 Ohio State, 35-6, in the bowls), it won back-to-back titles. Alabama followed with a 10-2 finish in 1980.

1994-95 Nebraska: Osborne’s teams absolutely destroyed the competition while combining for a 25-0 record, and the 1995 team won its regular-season games by an average of 38.7 points. Arizona State stopped the winning streak at 26, as Nebraska went 11-2 in 1996, but it rebounded with a 13-0 season. While AP voters preferred Michigan for the 1997 title, the coaches’ poll rewarded the retiring Osborne, resulting in a controversial split championship.

Under Saban, Alabama is already in rare territory, but history dictates that the Crimson Tide probably aren’t going anywhere from the top of the college football world for a while.

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Sonny Shipp ?@Sonny247 20h
No 7 CB for 2016 on LSU offer says LSU is real definition of DBU school

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heres to a rousing 0-0 tie. Zzzzzzzzzz

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chattabama

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