re: Class of 2017 Recruiting MEGATHREAD: Say Your Goodbyes Edition

quote:

---

"I support him because he is my son. [But] I'm hoping he will realize that Maryland is the best place for him because it is close to home, you don't have to sacrifice your education and you're going to be around your family and friends to support you," she said. "I'm hoping to God that he will [change his mind]."

---

quote:

---

So here's something I haven't seen before regarding Marvin Wilson. Since Bo Davis was his lead recruiter and was let go for recruiting violations, our staff cannot visit Wilson until 2016 is over. So January 1st is the first day we can really start recruiting him.

---

quote:

---

We are now less than two months to go until National Signing Day 2017. The day itself shouldn’t be as crazy as 2016’s for Alabama because the majority of the Tide targets will have made their decisions by then.

This class is going to be bigger than the normal 25-man signing class because of the attrition Alabama sustained this past summer and fall. Right now, I have Alabama at 30 signees in the Class of 2017. It’s still a very fluid situation, but 29 or 30 seems like the logical number with the needs Alabama has to fill with its remaining spots. Grayshirts will surely be discussed as signing day gets closer, but it’s way too early for Alabama to discuss that with recruits.

As far as who’s currently committed to Alabama, I don’t expect any of those recruits to flip. That includes Najee Harris, Alex Leatherwood and Tua Tagovailoa — the three recruits I am asked about on almost a daily basis.

With that said, here’s who I think Alabama will sign come Feb. 1, 2017:

---

quote:

---

So, who's next?

Henry Ruggs, 4-star WR, Montgomery, Ala. — We caught up with Ruggs earlier this week, and things are still relatively the same for the electrifying wide receiver from Robert E. Lee High School. He still has a top five of Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Florida State and Penn State. He will take official visits to Alabama, Florida and Florida State and possibly ones to his other two schools. It’s clear though that the Tigers and Nittany Lions are on the bottom of his list right now. What was the most interesting takeaway from my conversation with Ruggs was that if he ended up committing on his original date of Aug. 1, he said he would not have chosen Alabama. I have a hard time believing that, but we’ll take his word for it right now. It’s hard to picture Ruggs anywhere other than Alabama knowing he’s at the top of the big board at wide receiver. With many of his family members being Alabama fans combined with the Tide’s all-out push for Ruggs, I think it’s safe to project him in this class.

LaBryan Ray, 4-star DE, Madison, Ala. — It’s almost a foregone conclusion that Ray will be a part of Alabama’s signing class. He’s visited Alabama countless times and has grown comfortable around the program. It also helps that Alabama has commitments from two of his best friends in 4-star offensive guard Kendall Randolph and 3-star defensive back Kyriq McDonald. Ray is Alabama’s top target at defensive end. It would be shocking to see him choose anywhere other than Alabama.

Javon Kinlaw, 4-star DE, Goose Creek, S.C. — After his de-commitment from South Carolina, Alabama has been viewed as the favorite to land his commitment. Kinlaw has surged up Alabama’s big board at defensive tackle and is now one of the main targets for the Tide. He’ll take an official visit in January, and that comes after a trip to the Iron Bowl. The junior college prospect wasn’t allowed to talk to coaches at the Iron Bowl because he hasn’t finished two semesters of junior college yet. He will be able to officially be recruited on his trip to Tuscaloosa next month.

Phidarian Mathis, 4-star DT, Neville, La. — Alabama and LSU are seen as the favorites to land the Louisiana product, but I think the Tide beat out the Tigers because LSU is seen as the favorite to land the nation’s No. 1 JUCO DL in Isaiah Buggs and there’s a shot 5-star DT Marvin Wilson heads to Baton Rouge, too. LSU also has defensive line commitments from four other prospects. Alabama’s need for defensive linemen is a much more dire situation than LSU hence why I think the Tide win his services.

Jarez Parks, 4-star JACK, Sebastian, Fla. — Parks has quietly had Alabama as his leader behind-the-scenes according to people close to his recruitment. He nearly committed to the Tide in the summer but he chose to hold off to make sure he was making the right choice and not one based off an immediate reaction. He’ll commit at the Army All-American game on Jan. 7. All signs still lead to Alabama right now.

Shaun Wade, 5-star CB, Jacksonville, Fla. — Wade is the recruit I am least sure about on this list. He’s been committed to Ohio State for nearly two years now but still somehow doesn’t know if the Buckeyes is the team he wants to play college football for. The Crimson Tide have been chipping away at his commitment and have remained confident in their chances with the Army All-American. But there’s growing confidence in Columbus, Ohio that he sticks with his commitment. If that’s the case, I think Tariq Castro-Fields, a 4-star cornerback from Maryland, takes Wade’s spot in the class.

Daniel Wright, 4-star S, Fort Lauderdale, Fla. — Wright has emerged as one of the top safety targets for Alabama over the past month. He took an official visit to Alabama for the Mississippi State game and each day since, there’s been growing confidence in flipping the Florida State commit. Multiple Alabama coaches have stopped by his house since the contact period began. Wright is taking an official visit to Florida State this weekend, but I still think he flips to Bama when he makes his mind up.

Many things on this list are likely to change in the next month. Many highly ranked players will decide soon and that will shake up the list. Check back with SEC Country in early January for an update on these projections.

---

quote:

---

ALABAMA

On the field: It was another quiet day for Alabama running back commitment Brian Robinson. While he looks the part physically, he hasn’t gone all out in practice, perhaps because he’s saving his best for Saturday’s game … The Tide’s offensive line commitments had a solid day, with Hunter Brannon setting a good physical tone for the rest of the offensive linemen … Alabama wide receiver target Nico Collins also made a few nice plays and did a nice job of consistently catching the ball. The one knock on Collins is that he seems to play down to smaller defenders and needs to do a better job of using his God-given size and physical ability more effectively.

---