re: Class of 2018 Recruiting MEGATHREAD: So Long Old Friend Edition

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Looking for the next big name among in-state recruits? Meet James Clemens defensive tackle Daevion Davis.

The 6-foot-2, 315-pounder is coming off a dominant junior season in which he caught the eye of plenty of college coaches. Davis, rated there stars, has offers from the likes of Ole Miss and Louisville, and more SEC schools are knocking on the door. Auburn and Tennessee are among the teams Davis is hearing from.

"I hope so," Davis said of getting an Auburn offer. "I'll be at Bama Saturday. Tennessee is showing some interest and hopefully that will be the next offer."

Two seasons ago as a sophomore, Davis was part of a star-studded James Clemens defense that included Alabama signee's LaBryan Ray (DL) and Kyriq McDonald (DB), and Georgia signee Monty Rice (LB).

"I'm trying to take (recruiting) slow, get everything I can out of it," Davis said. "The guys before me were great and I'm just trying to follow in their footsteps."

Davis started on the Jets defensive front with Ray, who was rated the state's No. 1 recruit as a senior.

"You learn everything from a guy like him; how to stay composed and poised, techniques and just getting all the little things right," Davis said.

After Ray's departure, Davis became leader of the James Clemens line and excelled. He averaged 11 tackles per game, made 14 stops for a loss, forced three fumbles and blocked both a kick and a punt en route to be named a Class 7A Lineman of the Year finalist.

Davis even got to show off his pass-catching skills, scoring on a fake field goal against Gadsden City.

"We'll see," Davis said with a smile when asked about lobbying Jets coaches for playing time on offense. "We didn't want to use it, but we had to to try to get a win. It was pretty fun."

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Huntsville center Jackson Roby is the latest Rocket City-region standout to accept a preferred walk-on spot at Alabama.

Roby's former Panthers teammate, receiver Will Cooper, was a freshman walk-on for the Tide last season. Other area walk-ons on Alabama's 2017 roster were Westminster Christian's Jacob Parker, a senior tight end; James Clemens' Ryan Parris, a junior snapper; and the Bob Jones trio of receiver Jonathan Rice (junior) tight end Sean Goodman (sophomore) and punter Mike Bernier (junior).

The 6-foot, 275-pound Roby helped Huntsville go 6-5 last season and reach the playoffs for the first time since 2013.

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It remains possible that the streak could continue, that — even after getting off to such a slow start with this year’s recruiting class — Alabama could finish with the nation’s No. 1 class for an eighth straight year.

Likely? No. But possible? Yes.

It looks like the Crimson Tide is poised to finish strong with this year’s class, which has eight open spots remaining.

Here’s a look at where things stand for the Tide with National Signing Day now less than a week away:

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Tight end

Michael Parker, a three-star Huntsville native who has been committed to the Tide since December, is likely going to blueshirt.

Another tight end, three-star Louisiana product Glenn Beal, recently took an official visit to Alabama. But it’s probably unlikely that he ends up signing with the Tide.

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Defensive line

The three names to know: Bobby Brown, Malik Langham and Moro Ojomo.

Brown, a four-star ex-Texas A&M commit, has been committed to Alabama since December. Langham, a four-star Huntsville product, visited Bama January 19 and will pick between the Tide, Auburn and Florida. Ojomo looks like a backup option if Alabama loses Brown and/or misses on Langham.

The three-star Texas native received a scholarship offer from the Tide earlier this week. Probably the youngest member of this year’s recruiting class, he’s only 16 and doesn’t turn 17 until August.

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Defensive back

This is where Alabama could make a huge splash.

The Tide has already signed three highly-ranked defensive backs and could sign two or three more.

Alabama remains in the mix for five-star Florida cornerbacks Patrick Surtain and Tyson Campbell. Bama also looks to be in good shape with four-star California cornerback Isaac Taylor-Stuart as well as three-star Louisiana cornerback Eddie Smith.

All four visited Alabama in January. So did five-star California cornerback Olaijah Griffin. But many in the recruiting world think it’s unlikely Griffin chooses Alabama. USC looks like the favorite to get him.

One other name to know: Leon O’Neal. It looks like the four-star Texas safety is set to visit Tuscaloosa this weekend.

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Auburn High head coach Adam Winegarden called 2019 defensive end Mohamoud Diabate into his office a year ago and talked to him about the future.

"He basically prepared me for all this recruiting attention," Diabate said at this week's Mr. Football luncheon in Montgomery. "Coach Winegarden talked to me about how to handle it. After that, I tried to start carrying myself a little different. I knew the (college) opportunity would come if I kept working hard."

Diabate, a Class 7A Lineman of the Year finalist, received his first offer from Virginia on Feb. 28, 2017. Fifteen more have followed, and it appears to be just the beginning for the 6-foot-4, 220-pound junior.

"It's been really exciting," he told AL.com. "I'm really blessed to have an opportunity to play for these colleges. It's encouraging that they are interested in my abilities. It shows me that hard work is starting to pay off a little."

Diabate is ranked fifth among Alabama's 2019 prospects, according to the 247 composite ranking. The four-star Diabate is rated the 12th overall outside linebacker in the nation. He said he is comfortable playing either defensive end or linebacker.

"I think I'm a versatile guy," he said. "Wherever a college needs me, I think I can play. I can stand up or put my hand in the ground with equal success. I think my coaches can testify to that. I don't feel like anything is outside of my comfort zone."

Winegarden said Diabate has played mostly defensive end for the Tigers, but his college position may be determined by how much weight he puts on.

"I think 210 or 220 is a little light for an end spot in college," Winegarden said. "If he doesn't add a lot of weight, he will have to play up for sure, possibly play behind the football and also be a third-down edge guy. I could see him the way Alabama has used (former Auburn High star) Rashaan Evans."

As a junior, Diabate had 82 tackles, including 20 for a loss, and 10 sacks for the 10-2 Tigers. He was a first-team All-State selection. He has yet to receive an offer from either Auburn or Alabama, though he hopes to visit both in the coming weeks.

He said the SEC teams showing the most interest at this point are Florida, Texas A&M, Mississippi State and Georgia. Other offers include Louisville, Michigan and Nebraska.

"I'm really open right now," Diabate said. "I'll probably start trying to narrow it down this spring or summer. At that point, I'll have a rough idea of where I might want to go. I might commit before the season or I might commit on Signing Day. I'm just not sure yet."

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