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re: Class of 2018 Recruiting MEGATHREAD: So Long Old Friend Edition
Posted on 5/31/17 at 12:00 pm to TideSaint
Posted on 5/31/17 at 12:00 pm to TideSaint
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Junior college strong-side defensive end Dorian Gerald, who hails from Florence (S.C.) but plays at College of the Canyons in California, has narrowed his recruitment to 12 schools.
The list of 12 schools consists of Alabama, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, Louisville, LSU, N.C. State, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Syracuse, Tennessee and Texas A&M.
The Gamecocks claim the lone prediction on the 247Sports.com Crystal Ball.
Gerald has yet to be ranked by 247Sports.com or the 247Sports.com Composite.
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Posted on 5/31/17 at 12:03 pm to TideSaint
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Any commitments?
Memphis, Tenn., four-star Jordan Davis is listed as a defensive end, but could be an outside linebacker at the next level.
Posted on 5/31/17 at 12:03 pm to TideSaint
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Spring update
Alabama is after several in-state standouts. The biggest one in size is 6-foot-4, 360-pound nose guard Jalen Cunningham from St. Clair County. Multiple sources indicated last month that Cunningham was extremely high up the nose tackle board for Alabama, but he has not committed yet. Why? That's the big question. Things seem to look good for Alabama now, but the picture could clear up after the first camp set for June 4-6.
Jackson-Olin four-star Coynis Miller is a high priority, as is Mobile Christian four-star Andres Fox. Both are ends in high school. Alabama has shown high interest in Lee-Huntsville's Malik Langham and Huffman's Allen Love. Karl Dunbar was at Love's spring game, but they have not received offers yet. Maybe that comes at camp.
National prospects still heavily in the mix include Clemmons, N.C., five-star K.J. Henry, Harrisburg, Pa., five-star Micah Parsons, Baltimore four-star Eyabi Anoma, Salt Lake City, Utah four-star Cameron Latu, Cleveland, Ohio four-star Tyreke Smith, Jackson, Tenn., four-star Greg Emersron, Katy, Texas four-star Max Wright and Seffner, Fla., four-star Malcolm Lamar.
Alabama likely will take a junior college lineman and one to watch is recently-offered Emmit Gooden, especially after he visits Alabama within the next week.
Posted on 5/31/17 at 12:05 pm to TideSaint
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Bottom line
Alabama has several big-time options to pick and choose from in this class. Look for the Crimson Tide to sign one of the nation's top defensive line classes, if not the best.
Posted on 5/31/17 at 12:07 pm to TideSaint
Al.com has a story up on Jack West and the upcoming Elite 11 competition. Here's a blurb that relates to us:
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Best of luck to him at Stanford.
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West said Alabama - his other finalist among many offers - checks in occasionally but says he has no extended conversations with the Crimson Tide or any other school other than the Cardinal. West plans to finish his entire senior year at Saraland since Stanford does not accept early enrollees.
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He hopes to visit Stanford again at some point, though that has yet to be confirmed. However, he doesn't plan any visits to other schools, leaving him plenty of time to join his Saraland teammates when they resume workouts June 12.
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Best of luck to him at Stanford.
Posted on 5/31/17 at 12:08 pm to TideSaint
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The question went out not long after Lakeland, Fla., offensive lineman Deyavie Hammond committed to Alabama.
How do you pronounce his first name?
"Fridge."
OK.
It's actually "Da-yah-vee," or at least the massive offensive lineman in the class of 2019 didn't correct that. Hammond, a four-star recruit ranked as the nation's No. 5 offensive guard and No. 108 overall prospect in the class of 2019 per 247Sports, committed to Alabama on May 23.
He earned the nickname as a kid playing pee-wee football, and it has stuck with him.
Hammond earned his Alabama offer on May 18, and committed less than a week later. He also has offers from the likes of Auburn, Mississippi State, Florida, LSU, Oregon, Kentucky, Florida State and Texas A&M.
"It's always been a big decision in my life, especially growing up watching them," Hammond said. "The older I got, I noticed that the offensive line was top notch was year in and year out and I felt like that was the best program to get to the NFL right now.
"It was unbelievable, actually, to get the offer. It's what I've been waiting on since forever. It took about a week for me to think about it, talk to my family and coaches about it and I was ready to go."
Hammond is Alabama's third class of 2019 commitment and second on the offensive line, joining Hewitt-Trussville four-star tackle Pierce Quick. Hammond said he will make his first trip to Tuscaloosa this summer.
"It was what I was waiting on since freshman year," Hammond said. "I was ready. I noticed how certain colleges, if you don't commit, they can take back your offer and I didn't want to take a chance on that with Alabama."
Alabama offensive line coach Brent Key was the coach who offered Hammond.
"The way he came off and started talking to me was big at first," Hammond said. "He just gave off the best impression and I liked it."
The conversation with Alabama head coach Nick Saban sealed the deal.
"He was a really cool guy," Hammond said. "He told me to make sure I was ready to commit before I did it and make sure I was ready to commit to the program and bettering myself. He just explained the whole school to me and what he expected. I know the high expectations he has for his program."
Hammond indicated that he has an agenda when he steps between the lines.
"I like to prove that I'm the best lineman on both sides - better than any defensive lineman I'm going against and any peer on my side," Hammond said.
He said he plans to also take visits to Florida, Florida State and Miami this summer, but isn't sure what those schools could do to make him flip his commitment.
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Posted on 5/31/17 at 12:09 pm to TideSaint
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B.C. Rain coach Tellis Stone describes rising senior Nicholas Safford simply as a "playmaker."
"He's very elusive on offense," Stone said. "On defense, he just has a knack for the ball. He makes things happen on both sides. He's a unique talent for sure."
Colleges are taking notice of that.
The 6-foot-2, 205-pound Safford has been offered already by South Alabama, UAB, Troy, Jacksonville State, Miles College and Alabama A&M. Stone said he will make a trip to Tuscaloosa to be evaluated by the Alabama coaches June 4-6.
Safford plays all over the field for the Red Raiders, but Stone said he would likely play safety in college. He scored three touchdowns in B.C. Rain's spring game against St. Paul's earlier this month.
"Schools love him in the defensive backfield," Stone said. "He has great game speed. He can cover sideline to sideline and that is rare these days."
A year ago, Safford made 22 solo tackles and nine assists on defense and had three interceptions. On offense, he rushed for 216 yards and a pair of touchdowns on 17 carries and caught 33 passes for 635 yards and seven TDs.
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Posted on 5/31/17 at 12:23 pm to TideSaint
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Emory Jones still hearing from Alabama
SNELLVILLE, Ga. — Alabama is still searching for its Class of 2018 quarterback. Most of the top signal callers in the current recruiting cycle have already committed elsewhere, so many of the Crimson Tide’s top options will have to flip their commitment if they ended up choosing Alabama.
One of those quarterbacks is Emory Jones. Jones, a 5-star prospect from Heard County High School (Franklin, Ga.), committed to Ohio State last July and hasn’t wavered on his commitment, despite taking trips elsewhere. Jones is very active in recruiting other top players for the Buckeyes, including two major Alabama targets: 5-star offensive tackle Jackson Carman and 5-star running back Zamir White.
Jones told SEC Country that he believes Ohio State has a good chance at landing both elite players when they make their decisions.
“I think it’s really realistic,” Jones said. “They both have visited a couple of times and we were all up there at the same time. We hung out a lot, and I got to know them. We had a good bond.”
The nation’s No. 2 dual-threat quarterback has also established a bond with the other Ohio State commitments. Jones said all of them are in a group text conversation and they talk to each other every day. He called his relationship with the commits a “brotherhood.”
I use that as a preface to say that Alabama hasn’t given up on recruiting Jones. The Crimson Tide — like many other top teams across the country — don’t stop recruiting a player just because he’s verbally committed.
Jones said Alabama and Florida are the only two schools still coming after him, but he’s still “solid with Ohio State.”
The Elite 11 finalist said he spoke with Nick Saban just last week. The message to Jones is that Saban wants him to get back to Tuscaloosa for a visit.
“We had a good talk,” Jones said. “He just wanted to talk to my mom. He hadn’t talked to her before. He was just giving her information about Alabama. He just wants all of us to get back there.”
SEC Country had a brief conversation with Jones’ mother, Trina, just last month, and she reaffirmed her son’s commitment to Ohio State was 100 percent. Though Columbus, Ohio, and Franklin, Ga., aren’t short car rides away, that will not play any factor into possible second thoughts when it comes time to turn that verbal commitment into a binding one.
“She doesn’t want me to worry about anything like that,” Jones said. “She wants me to pick the school that’s right for me, no matter where it is.”
And that school is Ohio State right now. He once again said that the only way he could ever see himself de-committing from that program is if a major coaching change went down such as Urban Meyer leaving. That doesn’t seem likely.
He’s also not concerned about depth charts.
Like Alabama, Ohio State has young talent at the quarterback position. The Buckeyes signed Tate Martell in the Class of 2017 and Dwayne Haskins in the Class of 2016. The Crimson Tide have sophomore Jalen Hurts and freshmen Tua Tagovailoa and Mac Jones on their roster.
It doesn’t seem likely that Jones will end up an Alabama commit, but the good news is that he is still listening to the Tide’s pitch, and his mother was interested in what Saban had to say last week.
“I think every parent would want their son to be at Alabama,” Jones said with a laugh. “I think she’s sold on Ohio State, but she took away some good things from Coach Saban.”
Jones said he doesn’t have any visits set just yet.
Posted on 5/31/17 at 12:25 pm to TideSaint
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Jacob Copeland gets high praise
Jacob Copeland is one of Alabama’s top targets in the Class of 2018.
Copeland, a 4-star wide receiver from Escambia High School (Pensacola, Fla.), is strongly considering Alabama and Florida, amongst other schools. It’s likely that he chooses one of those schools when he makes his commitment, which is scheduled to happen at the Under Armour All-America Game.
Escambia offensive coordinator Brett Bennett told SEC Country’s Zach Abolverdi what makes Copeland so special.
“He’s just one of those guys where you want the ball in his hands,” Bennett said. “I’m always thinking about what ways I can use him. You watch the film and you’re like, ‘How did he make that play?’ He’s not human.
“He makes freak catches. He beats guys 1-on-1. He runs a 4.4. He can jump out the gym. He benches 365 pounds. The kid looks like a Greek God walking out onto the field. As soon as you see him, he automatically gets your attention.”
Alabama has made a big move for Copeland over the past few months. He wasn’t considering the Crimson Tide at all until a late February visit for junior day. He then followed up that trip with two more visits to Tuscaloosa. The second one was for A-Day.
The nation’s No. 9 wide receiver was treated like a star that day. Copeland sat in the front seat as Saban drove his car to the stadium for the scrimmage. Five-star wide receiver Justyn Ross also was in the car. Those two recruits were the only players in town that weekend to receive that treatment.
Alabama is in a good spot for Copeland, who will play receiver, running back, quarterback and defensive back this season for Escambia.
Posted on 5/31/17 at 12:26 pm to TideSaint
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South Carolina leads, still with Horn
Four-star cornerback Jaycee Horn (Alpharetta, Ga.) continues to favor South Carolina over Alabama and Tennessee.
Horn, who is 6-foot, 174 pounds, quantified his interests during an interview with SEC Country reporter Chris Kirschner. The Gamecocks are at 100 percent, Horn said. The Tide stand at 90 percent and the Vols are at 85 percent.
Tennessee is scheduled to have Horn for a visit on June 17.
Don’t be surprised if there’s a shift in Horn’s interest after that trip to Knoxville. South Carolina must fend off what could be a heavy push by its SEC East rival. Horn’s close friend, 2018 wide receiver Jatavious Harris of Baldwin High School (Milledgeville, Ga.), is committed to the Vols.
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Posted on 5/31/17 at 12:30 pm to TideSaint
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His friends and teammates call him “Mack 10.”
They give Cortez Andrews that name because of the way he flies into contact like a Mack truck. Is it a coincidence that the manufacturer of that American icon has a trademark Bulldog hood ornament?
It might be. Might not. The 4-star safety has a UGA offer, visited Athens for G-Day and will be back on campus this week for another unofficial visit.
The young man from Tallahassee would be an example of the Bulldogs poking into FSU’s backyard for the Class of 2019. But not a single one of those talking points is as interesting as this: Andrews is blessed with more football men in his life that he can trust than any recruit could ever hope for.
His father Carlos Andrews played football at Alabama from 2001-2004. His uncle Del Roberts played football at North Carolina. Dennis Andrews Sr., another uncle, played football at FSU. His son Dennis Andrews Jr. played at Georgia Tech but has since transferred to Middle Tennessee.
If that doesn’t hit the quota, then his high school coach Corey Fuller played 10 seasons in the NFL. He starred at FSU and was a second-round draft pick in 1995. Fuller was also the interim head coach at Florida A&M for one season in 2014.
“I wear No. 10 because it is a family tradition,” Andrews said. “My father wore that number. So did all those other members of my family. I wear No. 10 to honor all of them. They all made it to college to play football, but none of those guys have made it to the NFL. I want to be the one that makes it. Those guys are my inspiration.”
He rates as the nation’s No. 13 safety and the No. 244 player overall in 2019. The 6-foot-2, 206-pounder can fly down into the box and splatter running backs.
There’s the thought he could even be an outside linebacker at the next level. Guys with a “Mack 10” nickname tend to have the skills and temperament to do more than shadow slot receivers.
“For me, my favorite part of the game would have to be two things,” Andrews said. “The first would be hitting. But the second thing would be the mental aspect of the game. Just knowing if I can be better than my opponent both mentally and physically, then there’s no way that I can’t beat him.”
Check his film below. A lot of his best plays on that reel came after he was able to diagnose the play before it happened. What can he improve upon? He said those moments have taken place when he was too aggressive coming up on receivers in coverage.
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Andrews oddly doesn’t have an offer from hometown FSU yet. That’s Fuller’s alma mater, too. He’s not sure why. The fact his father played at Alabama might have something to do with it.
“I can say that when I was coming up I had an article on me awhile back where I said that I grew up watching SEC football because they were always the toughest conference to me,” Andrews said. “When you think of the SEC you think of teams like Georgia, Alabama, LSU and Auburn. I mentioned that one time I was a big SEC fan because of all that and my Dad. I don’t know if that was some of the reason why there but I don’t get into stuff like that.”
He made it clear that he is open to schools in the ACC. His Maryland interest is just one example of that.
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The 4-star safety has no leaders. Andrews made it clear he also liked Maryland a great deal because of that degree and that football fit. He said he was also open to all schools.
Alabama has not offered him yet. He grew up watching those big schools and the big SEC rivalries in general. The Crimson Tide were one of his favorite schools growing up but he said they were not his dream school.
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Posted on 5/31/17 at 12:32 pm to TideSaint
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RIVER RIDGE, La. — Glenn Beal admittedly has been close to committing to LSU before.
Louisiana’s No. 1 tight end prospect nearly did so on National Signing Day 2017, but opted to wait to see which direction his recruitment would go. Beal trusted his gut and it paid off, as the 3-star recruit has since added offers from Alabama, South Carolina, Georgia, Mississippi State and Auburn, among others.
Beal measures at 6-foot-5 and 256 pounds, a shade lighter than the weight he played at last season at John Curtis Christian School. That’s because he’ll be more involved in the team’s passing game his senior season. The John Curtis coaches want to take advantage of their multifaceted tight end that can dominate as a run-blocker and as a receiver. So do several college programs.
Coaches from LSU, Alabama, Ole Miss, UCLA and Mississippi State checked in on Beal this spring. As a result, he indicated that LSU, Alabama, Ole Miss and UCLA have separated themselves from the pack.
“They’re the schools that are more in touch with me,” Beal told SEC Country. “I have a good relationship with all the coaches and I really like those schools.”
LSU has long been deemed the front-runner for the New Orleans-area prospect, but Alabama’s push has made this a more interesting recruitment.
The Tide and area recruiter Burton Burns have told Beal that he’s the No. 1 tight end on their board in the 2018 class. They are in regular communication with the Louisiana native and are selling him on being the next O.J. Howard, who was just drafted No. 19 overall in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft.
LSU isn’t playing from behind but now has to contend with Howard’s success in Tuscaloosa, Ala. Beal has visited LSU for several games and recruiting functions over the past year, including the Tigers’ spring game last month. While he has not seen much out of Matt Canada‘s offense to date, he expects to see plenty of production from the H-back, just as Scott Orndoff did for Pitt in 2016.
“They really want me … bad,” Beal smiled. “They want to keep all the best talent in-state and win a national championship. I haven’t seen the offense really yet, but I’m looking forward to it. I’m going to get out there soon and I still have to see how they use the tight end with the new offense. At the spring game, I didn’t see too much, but I know that they couldn’t show too much because it was on TV.
“The tight end from Pitt [Orndoff] had 50-something catches last season, so that’s music to my ears. But I haven’t seen it yet. I want to see it.”
Beal’s research is nearly spot on.
Last season at Pitt under Canada, Orndoff — who measures at 6-foot-4 and 253 pounds — hauled in 35 passes for 579 yards and 5 touchdowns. For comparison’s sake, at Alabama, Howard had 45 receptions for 595 yards and 3 touchdowns his final season.
LSU tight ends coach Steve Ensminger and New Orleans area recruiter Mickey Joseph visited Beal for John Curtis’ spring scrimmage last Saturday and walked away impressed. While the Tigers still must prove a lot to Beal on the field, their recruiting efforts have not gone unnoticed.
“It means a lot,” Beal said of Ensminger’s and Joseph’s visit. “That’s the flagship school coming to see me. I really like Coach Steve. That’s my dude, and there’s nothing like home.
“Me and Coach Mickey talk all the time,” he added. “He and Coach Steve are in the same boat with me — they’re like family. They talk to me like anybody else, and I like that.”
The interesting twist in Ensminger’s pursuit of Beal is that LSU’s tight ends coach is relying on his past experience with Dillon Gordon, another big-bodied tight end that he recruited from John Curtis back in 2012.
Gordon was an early piece of LSU’s 2012 recruiting class and made an impact as early as his sophomore season. The LSU alum and current Philadelphia Eagles offensive lineman is in touch with Beal as he now goes through the recruiting process. The comparisons between Beal and Gordon have John Curtis’ current star tight end very humbled.
“He always calls me Dillon,” Beal laughed, discussing his relationship with Ensminger. “I remind him of Dillon for some reason. He tells me about Dillon and what he did for LSU and stuff like that. He’s like a big brother for me. He comes around the school and tells me stuff and I learn from it. He tells me to take the process slowly, pick where your heart says and to go with your heart and just pray on it.”
That’s the plan, too.
Beal plans on making a decision on National Signing Day 2018.
That will give the 3-star tight end a chance to make inaugural and return visits to LSU, Alabama, UCLA and Ole Miss, and also give him an opportunity to see Canada’s offense in-person this fall.
“I think I’m going to take it all the way to the end,” said Beal. “I’m just going to pray on it. That’s all, and go with my heart.”
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Posted on 5/31/17 at 12:48 pm to TideSaint
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After a busy spring evaluation period, including every regional Rivals 3 Stripe Camp presented by adidas, there were plenty of changes to the new Rivals100 that was released on Tuesday.
The same could be said for this Rivals250 release. Here is a look at all of the significant moves up in the rankings in this latest round of rankings.
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Posted on 5/31/17 at 12:48 pm to TideSaint
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107 - DE Tyreke Smith
Movement: +104
Analyst’s take: “Smith started his prep career focused on basketball and did not play his first varsity football until last fall. That season was cut short by injury, and yet Smith proved repeatedly this off-season that he is far more than just an athlete playing football. He lists a top 12, but does not plan to make a final decision on his college future until he has taken all five official visits.” - Josh Helmholdt, Rivals.com Midwest Recruiting Analyst
This post was edited on 5/31/17 at 12:51 pm
Posted on 5/31/17 at 12:49 pm to TideSaint
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147 - WR Jacob Copeland
Movement: +31
Analyst’s take: Copeland impressed at the New Orleans stop of the Rivals 3 Stripe camp series. He was in the running for MVP honors until the end. Copeland hold a number of offers from major conference schools. – Rob Cassidy, Rivals.com Florida Recruiting Analyst
This post was edited on 5/31/17 at 12:51 pm
Posted on 5/31/17 at 12:50 pm to TideSaint
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168 - CB Jaycee Horn
Movement: N/A
Analyst’s take: “Horn has been locking wide receivers down since he moved to Georgia over a year ago. He has the body of a safety, he is strong at cornerback and he does not shy away from competition. He has good instincts, he is physical and his ball skills are a strength. Alabama had the lead early in the spring, but as we head into the summer, South Carolina has taken over at the top.” - Simmons
Posted on 5/31/17 at 12:51 pm to TideSaint
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162 - OT Daniel Faalele
Movement: N/A
Analyst’s take: “Faalele, who is yet to play in an actual game, is ranked on potential. He looked to be on a solid trajectory toward reaching that potential during his spring game. Faalele holds major national offers despite being new to football.” - Cassidy
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