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

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More on Tagovailoa

Thompson quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa is the younger brother of University of Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. Since transferring, Taulia has spent lots of time in Tuscaloosa. But his high school coach, Mark Freeman, told AL.com Taulia's college destination is not pre-determined.

"He's very determined to be his own guy," Freeman said. "He loves Tua, but he wants to be his own guy."

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Justyn Ross, WR, Central-Phenix City

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Who could be next to commit?
(247)

Copy & paste is disabled so will summarize

4* WR Matthew Hill --> Very good friends with Justin Fields and will visit this week with him. Close to a decision with AU in the lead (on commit watch)

4* LB Michael Harris --> AU making him a priority is paying off with Ohio State making him wait. Decision likely to come in July

4* OLB/Buck Richard Jibunor --> AU trending up and decision likely to come this summer

4* DT Coynis Miller --> AU/BAMA/UF battle with commitment coming in August, AU might have slight lead, he's a top overall target

3* S Jamien Sherwood --> Monday's commitment means less spots in safety class, if Sherwood wants in he might have to jump on soon

3* CB Juanyeh Thomas --> AU the favorite to land his commitment in August

4* OT Dylan Wonnum --> Despite brother at SCAR, AU is a real player and it's a battle. Decision likely in July and he could visit again soon

4* LB Zakoby McClain --> If AU can get Harris on board soon then might be able to convince McClain to grab his spot too

4* RB Asa Martin --> AU/BAMA/UF battle with CLEM likely joining in soon. Commitment could come in August & it's a toss-up

5* QB Justin Fields --> Visiting AU Thursday & will stay the night. AU/UF/FSU/UGA battle with a decision likely this summer

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BEAVERTON, Ore. — Carterville (Ill.) high school four-star tight end Luke Ford turned in quite the performance during the 7v7 portion of The Opening Finals.

The 6-6, 248-pounder, who holds offers from Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Florida, Georgia, LSU, Michigan and many others, was outstanding and played a big role in his team's championship during the event.

247Sports brings you footage of the nation's No. 3 overall tight in the 2018 class and newly minted U.S. Army All-American.

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Alabama’s biggest recruiting event of the summer will take place next week as the Champions Cookout gets underway on Friday, July 21. The Champions Cookout is an invite-only event where the majority of the Crimson Tide’s most important targets will be on campus. This year’s event is no different.

The marquee name expected in town next week is 5-star quarterback Justin Fields. That’s big news for Alabama as it will be the second trip Fields has taken to Tuscaloosa in as many months. Auburn, Florida, Florida State and Georgia are viewed as the biggest contenders for Fields, but there has to be some legitimate interest in the Crimson Tide for him to return to campus again.

Also expected in town is 4-star quarterback Tanner McKee. We wrote about McKee this morning on SEC Country where he talked about his interest in the Crimson Tide, his Mormon mission and how he’s planning on preparing for college football while he’s serving others.

Here’s a look at who is expected in town next week. Note: This is only a tentative list of recruits expected in Tuscaloosa. Plans ALWAYS change, so don’t expect everyone on this list to show up.

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Alabama commits

4-star cornerback Jalyn Armour-Davis (Mobile, Ala.)

4-star outside linebacker Quay Walker (Cordele, Ga.)

4-star wide receiver Xavier Williams (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)

2019 4-star offensive tackle Pierce Quick (Trussville, Ala.)

2019 4-star offensive guard Deyavie “Fridge” Hammond (Lakeland, Fla.) — making his first ever visit to Tuscaloosa

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Official visit

4-star tight end Dominick Wood-Anderson (Yuma, Ariz.) — nation’s No. 1 junior college tight end will announce his commitment on August 1.

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2019 targets

5-star safety Jaylen McCollough (Powder Springs, Ga.)

5-star center Clay Webb (Oxford, Ala.)

4-star offensive tackle Darnell Wright (Huntington, W.V.)

2020 targets

Offensive tackle Tate Ratledge (Rome, Ga.)

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How will Mormon mission impact Tanner McKee’s recruitment?

Tanner McKee may spend his next two years nearly 8,500 miles away from the continental United States, but that hasn’t stopped college football powerhouses coast-to-coast from going all in on his recruitment.

McKee, a 4-star quarterback from Centennial High School (Corona, Calif.), will do a two-year Mormon mission after graduating from high school, which effectively makes him a 2020 college football prospect.

He doesn’t know where he’ll spend the next two years of his life — he will find out a few months prior to the start of his mission — but he has an idea of where he’d like to go.

“My dad (Jeremie) did his in New Zealand, so I think that would be a really cool place,” McKee told SEC Country.

McKee’s focus on his trip won’t be on playbooks, depth charts or winning football games, it’ll be on serving others and showing people how Jesus Christ can help them in their lives.

But the question is how will 247Sports’ No. 3 pro-style quarterback in the Class of 2018 still prepare for his future in college football? First of all, he believes he’s going to fall a little out of shape.

“I’ll be pretty busy almost the entire time,” McKee said. “I won’t be working out much. I’ll have one day a week for a preparation day where I could lift, run or throw routes. So, I’ll have only one day a week where I can do that stuff.”

That day likely won’t be on Sundays. McKee chooses to not compete on that day because Latter-Day Saints members believe Sunday is the Sabbath and that day should be kept holy. When McKee attended the Elite 11 competition in California last month, he sat out on Sunday, risking his invitation to the final event in Oregon this month. He ended up getting invited to The Opening Finals but sat out events that Sunday, as well.

He won’t be changing his mind on competing on Sundays as long as he has complete control over that.

“I feel like whenever you make a commitment, you have to stick to it no matter what,” McKee said. “My commitment was that I wasn’t going to compete on Sundays as long as I could control that, and in high school football, I do. So, I’m not going to compete on Sundays.”

The Polynesian Bowl commit knows that won’t be possible if he makes it to the NFL, but he says he’ll do whatever it takes to get to some church in the city he’s playing in that day.

When he gets to college, he knows he’ll be busy with football and school, but he’s already looked up LDS institutes in the cities of the schools he’s considering — Tuscaloosa included. Institutes are where LDS members can take classes to continue learning about their faith.

“They have an institute program in Tuscaloosa,” McKee said. “I have already talked to Coach (Nick) Saban and Coach (Brian) Daboll about it. They’re totally on board with the mission thing. They really have been great about it.”

All of the schools recruiting McKee have been understanding of his religious beliefs and understand his unique situation, he said. McKee mentioned Alabama, BYU, Texas and Washington as some of the schools he’s currently interested in. He did say that he hasn’t put much thought into a top 5, although he’s planning on narrowing down his recruitment before the season starts and the plan is to commit somewhere after his senior season.

He will not sign a letter of intent before he leaves for his mission, so, technically, any school will be free to recruit him until he enrolls in college in 2020. McKee has discussed all of this with Alabama.

“Saban said he doesn’t care if I go or don’t,” McKee said with a laugh. “As long as I come back and I’m ready to go, then it’s all good.”

McKee visited Tuscaloosa in March and at the time, he said he could “absolutely” see himself playing for Alabama.

Not much has changed since then. The Crimson Tide staff has been in constant communication with him, as Daboll usually talks to him every other day. His experience in Tuscaloosa during that visit is still fresh in his mind, and he’s planning on taking an official visit this fall for the LSU game.

“We watched a practice there and everything was super precise,” McKee said. “Every foot and every step had to be perfect. Everything there reminded me of Centennial, so it felt good.”

The 6-foot-6, 220-pound prospect makes sense for Alabama’s quarterback commitment in this class because the Crimson Tide’s current young depth at quarterback won’t matter to him by the time he enrolls in school. He’s my pick to be the team’s QB commitment.

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