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re: Class of 2017 Recruiting MEGATHREAD: Say Your Goodbyes Edition
Posted on 4/11/16 at 12:05 pm to TideSaint
Posted on 4/11/16 at 12:05 pm to TideSaint
LINK
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NEW ORLEANS — Tyler Shelvin admitted he “lost focus” on his longstanding commitment to LSU shortly after visiting Alabama a few weeks ago, and that could only be considered good news for the Crimson Tide.
Shelvin, a five-star defensive tackle from Notre Dame High School (Lafayette, La.), told SEC Country at Nike’s “The Opening” regional camp in New Orleans Sunday that Alabama is currently his No. 2 school.
“I like (defensive line coach) Bo Davis. I like Coach Saban a lot,” Shelvin said. “They are both great people. My recruiting coach at Alabama, (running backs coach Burton) Burns, is also great. They have a lot of good people there.”
The 6-foot-3, 345-pounder did say that he is 100 percent committed to LSU, yet he’s still looking around. Normally, when recruits say they are 100 percent committed “for now,” or they are “still looking” means the players aren’t fully committed to their school of choice.
He said as much when asked what he would tell Tigers fans who may be nervous about the status of his commitment.
“Just be patient. I’m going to be a senior next year,” Shelvin said. “I’ll keep it 100 (percent) with you though, I’m still looking around.”
Shelvin did not want to discuss what it would take for Alabama to flip him from LSU,saying he wanted to keep that personal.
The nation’s No. 2 defensive tackle said he wants to visit Nebraska, Southern Cal and Texas A&M in the coming months. He did not say if he planned on returning to Alabama or LSU anytime soon.
Although, Shelvin did reflect on why he committed to LSU in the first place. Playing in his home state means something to him and the coaches at LSU have shown him that it could be his second home if he does end up signing with the Tigers come February.
“I talk to (LSU defensive line coach Ed) Orgeron a lot and he’s a great guy,” Shelvin said. “They have a really great atmosphere. I really love Coach Miles. I just love the atmosphere there.”
Shelvin is the state of Louisiana’s No. 1 prospect.
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Posted on 4/11/16 at 12:06 pm to TideSaint
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NEW ORLEANS — The first part of the recruiting process for Alex Leatherwood is over. Now it’s time to really buckle down and make a decision.
The nation’s No. 9 offensive tackle may be committed to Alabama, but after another visit to LSU this spring, he considers the Tigers’ chances of flipping the elite lineman as good as any of his top choices.
After spending much of Saturday at the LSU scrimmage, then sitting in the meeting rooms with offensive line coach Jeff Grimes and dining with coach Les Miles, the four-star tackle from Pensacola, Fla., saw all he needed to make an informed final decision.
“It was a great day,” Leatherwood told SEC Country during Nike’s “The Opening” regional camp in New Orleans on Sunday.
I saw my opportunity to play early. That’s what I saw … Coach Miles was telling me they don’t really have a genuine left tackle ready to play, so I’d know I’d have the opportunity to play early.”
When it comes to Leatherwood’s decision, there is nothing that carries more weight.
“It’s the biggest factor, of course,” Leatherwood said.
The 6-foot-5, 297-pounder felt it was a natural fit sitting in the meeting room with Grimes and then enjoyed a personal conversation with Miles over dinner in Tigers Stadium.
Leatherwood, who grew up as a Tigers fan three hours to the east in Florida, truly relished the experience.
“I got to see how Coach Grimes related and talked to his players,” Leatherwood said, “so that was a good experience. (Coach Miles and I) ate a lot of stuff, a lot of seafood. It went very well. He’s a good one on on and great to talk to. He’s real funny, and that made it easier to talk to him.”
Leatherwood made it clear he has strong ties to both Grimes and Miles, and those relationships are of paramount importance.
“They’re about as equally as important to me as early playing time,” Leatherwood said.
With the second visit to Baton Rouge, La., in the rearview mirror, Leatherwood is now preparing to enter his own phase of recruiting in which he strongly considers both LSU and Alabama, as well as a handful of other SEC schools.
Florida and fellow in-state power Miami are also in the mix, as well as national powers Southern California and Michigan.
Leatherwood hopes to finalize a decision — to stick with the Crimson Tide or flip — before December, when he signs his letter of intent and becomes an early enrollee.
There is nothing any school can do at this point, Leatherwood said, as he has gathered about as much information to this point as he can.
“Every school has shown me what they have to offer,” Leatherwood said, “and now it’s just time for me to make my decision. I don’t know how long it will be take, but it will be before December.
“LSU is tied with Florida and Miami, but I’m also considering USC, which is somewhere I’d like to go this summer for an official, and Michigan. Now it’s an equal playing field.”
Posted on 4/11/16 at 12:07 pm to TideSaint
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HOUSTON — Walker Little’s brother and sister both attend Ole Miss, but he’s clear that every school he’s considering is on equal footing, and that includes Alabama.
Little, a four-star offensive tackle from Episcopal High School (Bellaire, Texas), told SEC Country at Nike’s “The Opening” regional in Houston that he’s very high on the Crimson Tide.
“I’m definitely interested in Alabama especially because of their recent success they’ve had winning the national championship last year,” Little said. “They always have a great offensive line and they were one of the best ones in the country last year. They are going to be a top school for me.
“They’ll definitely be a contender. They’ll be near the top of my list throughout the entire recruiting process.”
The 6-foot-8, 305-pounder named Alabama and Ole Miss as two of his top schools along with LSU, Florida, Georgia, Texas A&M, TCU and Texas.
When it comes to Alabama, Little said that of all the coaches at the different schools that stay in contact with him, he feels at ease when he talks to defensive line coach Bo Davis, who is his primary recruiter.
“He’s a real personable guy. It’s really easy to talk to him,” Little said. “You don’t really feel a lot of pressure like I have with some other college coaches. It’s always a really laid-back conversation, which really helps a lot.”
Little, who was invited to “The Opening” finals at Nike headquarters in July, said he plans on making another trip to Alabama over the next several months. He will commit at some point during the coming season.
It should be noted that Little is high school teammates with priority Alabama target Marvin Wilson, the nation’s No. 1 defensive tackle.
Little is rated as the nation’s No. 25 offensive tackle and the No. 21 prospect in the state of Texas.
Posted on 4/11/16 at 12:10 pm to TideSaint
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MADISON, Ala. — Monty Rice received a Twitter direct message from Lane Kiffin on Sunday, two days after visiting Alabama. What Rice saw almost resulted in a permanent smile on his face.
“Kiffin messaged me telling me that Nick Saban wanted me to commit,” the three-star linebacker from James Clemens High School (Madison, Ala.) told SEC Country. “I smiled for a long time. That was great.”
Admittedly, Rice says Alabama is a school he’s wanted to play at for a while now, but the Crimson Tide do not lead. They are in the mix with Georgia, Auburn, LSU, South Carolina, Ole Miss, Michigan and Florida State.
Some of Rice’s family members have attended Alabama, and they’ve made it known where they would like him to play college football.
“Every time they see me they make sure to mention Alabama,” Rice laughed.
Besides his family connections at Alabama, Rice said the other big reason for why he’s so high on the Crimson Tide has to do with how elite the defense has been over the years.
“Their defense is always in the mix for one of the top defenses in the country,” Rice said. “They always have a great defense and great linebackers.”
Linebacker may be Alabama’s deepest position, especially when you consider that the Crimson Tide signed two five-stars at the position in 2016.
We’ve already seen one five-star recruit, Dylan Moses, drop Alabama as his top school to No. 2 because of the depth at linebacker. Rice doesn’t care about the depth at Alabama. He believes he can play with anyone.
His coach said that last statement explains Rice’s alpha-male mentality.
“Monty is focused on finding out who the best is and trying to beat them,” James Clemens coach Wade Waldrop said.
That attitude is what helped Rice gain a spot on the varsity team at James Clemens in his 10th grade year. After two games in junior varsity, Rice accumulated around 30 tackles. The JV offensive coordinator told Waldrop that Rice needed to be on the varsity team. Since then, Waldrop called Rice one of the most-gifted athletes he’s ever come across.
“Monty is in the top 1 to 2 percent of most athletic kids I have ever coached,” Waldrop said. “He’s physically talented, explosive, fast, he can do it all.
“When you ask what an SEC athlete is, that’s an SEC athlete.”
Posted on 4/11/16 at 1:16 pm to TideSaint
Good write up on Jacob Free. He looks pretty good on the highlights linked in the article. I say give him a chance LINK
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If Alabama pulls the trigger, that could make the decision easier. "To be honest with you, it would probably shut it down," said Free, when asked what an Alabama offer would mean to his recruitment.
This post was edited on 4/11/16 at 1:19 pm
Posted on 4/11/16 at 2:00 pm to Cobrasize
In addition to LaBryan Ray, who is mentioned above as a pending commitment, I'd keep an eye on Ryan Johnson committing at A-Day or shortly afterward.
Posted on 4/11/16 at 3:44 pm to Bama3714
For those in the know....
Does the staff consider Nico Collins a must get? Who are the schools to look out for competing for his services? Big Physical WR like that is in high demand for any team.
He's a need if you ask me for this class considering most of our WR's will be Jr/Sr going into 2017 season.
He need for a TE or 2 in this class. What are some names to be really high on as potential commits?
Thanks
Does the staff consider Nico Collins a must get? Who are the schools to look out for competing for his services? Big Physical WR like that is in high demand for any team.
He's a need if you ask me for this class considering most of our WR's will be Jr/Sr going into 2017 season.
He need for a TE or 2 in this class. What are some names to be really high on as potential commits?
Thanks
Posted on 4/11/16 at 4:05 pm to MrBiriwa
We may have a TE privately committed from in-state whose name I'm drawing a blank on (someone help me). He's about 6'6" 220 from my recollection.
Collins, according to redfish and pretty much every Mod on the net, is a very high priority guy for us. We will load up at WR this year.
Collins, according to redfish and pretty much every Mod on the net, is a very high priority guy for us. We will load up at WR this year.
Posted on 4/11/16 at 4:12 pm to Bama3714
Zech Byrd is the TE I was trying to think of.
Posted on 4/11/16 at 6:15 pm to Bama3714
Vandarius Cowan doing some recruiting:
LINK
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"I'm recruiting well," Cowan told Campus Insiders. "I've been recruiting for my class, and he is Nick Saban. He only wants the best."
"[I'm] not gonna say," Cowan said with a laugh. "But just know, I'm flipping a couple more people."
LINK
Posted on 4/11/16 at 7:54 pm to T Rich3
Thank God. We needed a player to step up and be a lead recruiter for us.
Posted on 4/12/16 at 8:36 am to Cobrasize
LINK
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NEW ORLEANS – At The Opening Regional in New Orleans, you'll typically find elite talent at defensive back, a few freaks on the defensive line and a future NFL wide receiver or two. Sunday's event followed that model with one addition. As has been the case at most regional camp stops this spring, offensive line ruled the day.
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Alpha Dog
The biggest, baddest dude in New Orleans was Alex Leatherwood. The Pensacola (Fla.) Washington offensive tackle had a strong showing at this event last year as just a pup. That pup has grown up. Leatherwood is massive. He's extremely athletic. He's got a nasty streak. On top of all of that, Leatherwood was coachable. He's an Alabama commit and he's the type of prospect that can allow the Tide to continue to dominate physically.
Posted on 4/12/16 at 8:37 am to TideSaint
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Next five offense
1. Devonta Smith, WR, Amite (La.) High School – Even when he wasn't catching passes, Smith was flashing with his length and route-running. For a guy that isn't supposed to be polished, is a multi-sport, multi-position athlete, Smith's natural feel for the receiver position mean big things in his future. Alabama is the Crystal Ball leader.
2. Nick Brahms, OT, Pensacola (Fla.) Navarre – Remember the name. Brahms has been exploding of late and he proved in New Orleans that his recent flurry of offers is warranted. There's not a team in the country Brahms isn't good enough to play for and with wish list programs like Auburn, Stanford, Duke and Miami yet to offer, they all should take a close look.
3. Creed Humphrey, OC, Shawnee (Okla.) High School – Big, powerful, physical and with great feet for a bigger guy, Humphrey delivered a punch on every rep on Sunday. He's got the size to play across the line of scrimmage but showed a lot of value as a center. Texas and Texas A&M are big recent offers.
4. Saahdiq Charles, OT/OG, Madison (Miss.) Madison-Ridgeland – If this guy got his hands on a defensive lineman, it was game over. Maybe the most powerful offensive lineman at the event, Charles recently landed an LSU offer and the Tigers should be tough to beat here.
5. Cam Akers, RB, Clinton (Miss.) High School – The best athlete at the event but Akers is all muscle too. It can be tough for running backs to really shine at events like this but Akers looks built for the game in pads. Georgia, Ohio State and others are giving chase for the one-time Alabama commit.
Posted on 4/12/16 at 8:37 am to TideSaint
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Top five defense
1. Grant Delpit, S, Houston (Texas) Lamar – Take your pick at defensive back. There were several to choose from but Delpit was my guy on this day. He's 6-foot-3.5 with range, physicality and he ran a nice 4.61 40 to showcase enough speed to get the job done. LSU is the current leader.
2. Davin Cotton, DT, Shreveport (La.) Evangel (Class of 2018) – It was eye-opening when Cotton took his reps. He's really explosive off the snap, explosive with his hands and he was the best defensive lineman I saw.
3. Michael Lee, CB, New Orleans (La.) Landry-Walker – He was the most exciting defensive player in New Orleans. He plays with energy and quickness that makes you anxious to watch all of his reps. Though size limits him some, Lee is just a playmaker.
4. Todd Harris, S, Plaquemine (La.) High School – An easy, natural safety, Harris is as comfortable in his backpedal as any cornerback and he can plant and drive on the football as well as anybody. When the ball is in the air, he competes too. LSU is the favorite.
5. Brad Stewart, CB/S, New Orleans (La.) McDonogh 35 – I don't know if he's a safety, a corner or a nickel but the kid is just always making plays. He's got really good instincts. When he's beat, he has a great ability to fight his way back into the play. Florida and Mississippi State are among the current favorites.
Posted on 4/12/16 at 8:38 am to TideSaint
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More offensive standouts
It wasn't a deep group at quarterback and there weren't any invites to the Elite 11 finals that emerged but the flashes that we saw out of Lowell Narcisse were encouraging. It's all about finding consistency with Narcisse. He has all the physical tools he just needs to cut down on the errant passes that show up from time to time with him. In an offense that features his legs, he can be a very dangerous threat.
On the offensive line, Ole Miss commit Ben Brown was very competitive and looks like he has some versatility along the front to play guard or tackle. Harve (La.) West Jefferson offensive lineman Mikhail Hill falls under the 'pleasant surprise' category. He has a handful of mid-level offers but he was one of the day's best offensive linemen. He should be getting some BCS major college offers to go with his UTSA, Tulane level offers already on the table.
At running back, Travis Etienne out of Jennings (La.) High School has four-star traits. The kid is all of 6-0, he ran a 4.38 40 – twice – and was the fastest player in attendance. He also rushed for more than 2,900 yards as a junior. Arkansas, Missouri and Mississippi State are among his offers.
LSU commit Clyde Edwards-Helaire is short but he is thick at 194 pounds and on Sunday he showed that he's fast too. A 4.47 40-yard dash time, along with a productive day running the football and catching the ball were impressive to watch.
At wide receiver there were several good big underclassmen that made their mark on the day. Jaray Jerkins out of Jena, La., Dantreize Scott out of Ferriday in Louisiana and Brennan Eagles out of Houston (Texas) Alief Taylor all flashed on the day out of the 2018 class.
In the 2017 class, two Mississippi receivers had good days in Kalem Reddix out of D'Iberville (Miss.) St. Martin and Austin Williams, a big-bodied sure-handed target out of Ocean Springs. Also out of Mississippi, Brandon Smith was as impressive physically as any wide receiver in attendance and showed some playmaking ability on the outside.
Though he worked out at wide receiver, Anthony Williams out of Boutte (La.) Hahnville is really an all-purpose back that could work out of the backfield or out of the slot. The class of 2018 four-star put up crazy testing numbers and will be a name to watch for spread teams moving forward.
Posted on 4/12/16 at 8:38 am to TideSaint
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More defensive standouts
On the defensive line, LSU commit Tyler Shelvin was certainly a load to handle but he's begun to morph into strictly a stout space-eating type of defensive tackle. His versatility along the front has become limited as his weight as gone up.
Alabama 2018 commit Dare Rosenthal saw his day come to an end early due to a sprained ankle. When he was competing, it was at defensive line not offensive line that he spent his time. That's where he says he'd like to play on the next level.
Two of the most exciting talents on the defensive front on Sunday came out of the class of 2019. Ishmael Sopsher out of Amite (La.) High School will develop into a national recruit over the next three years. He has his first FBS offer from Memphis and should add 10 more early ones this spring.
Also out of the 2019 class, Trevis Hopper has already gotten a bunch of early offers and he looked totally at home competing against upperclassmen. At times he was even dominant. Miami and Auburn are sticking out early to the rising sophomore.
One of the better speed rushers on the day was 2018 Memphis (Tenn.) Southwind defender Jordan Davis. He needs to get stronger but as purely an athletic edge guy, Davis has a lot of upside and gave offensive tackles fits on Sunday.
The MVP of the defensive line group was Juan Monjarres. Like Davis, he's an underclassman with really good speed and athleticism. He just needs to continue to develop strength
There were a few linebackers that flashed on Sunday, particularly the guys that were supposed to flash. LSU commit Patrick Queen is made for the camp setting. He's undersized and really could be working with the safeties so athletically he makes everything look easy.
Bruce Jordan-Swilling and Christopher Allen don't have those same size concerns, especially Allen. The Big 6-4, 235-pounder is diving in at linebacker after transitioning from defensive end and he was surprisingly fluid and athletic in space at his size. Jordan-Swilling also managed to show off effortless movement skills in the pass game and in cat and mouse drills.
On the back end, a few players that helped themselves with strong performances include 2017 cornerback Adam Sparks out of Dutchtown High School in Louisiana. Alabama native Marcus Jones is undersized but was all over the field getting his hands on footballs. Tre Swilling was one of the biggest cornerbacks at the event and could easily transition to safety on the next level. Keldrick Carper also flashed some range out of the secondary as a long safety.
This post was edited on 4/12/16 at 8:39 am
Posted on 4/12/16 at 10:59 am to TideSaint
A lot of talent suddenly coming out of the tiny town of Amite, LA.
Posted on 4/12/16 at 11:30 am to BlackPawnMartyr
From Steve Wiltfong on QB Tua Tagovailoa:
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Following his visit to Alabama last week, a source that has talked with the family believes the Crimson Tide are now the team to beat. I hope to have more soon.
This post was edited on 4/12/16 at 11:31 am
Posted on 4/12/16 at 11:39 am to Rizzy
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Tua Tagovailoa:
Wow...Alabama with a Mexican QB. Who would have thunk it.
Posted on 4/12/16 at 11:44 am to Alabamya
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Wow...Alabama with a Mexican QB. Who would have thunk it.
He's Hawaiian.
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