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

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It's been a happy holiday season for St. Paul's standout Jalyn Armour-Davis.

The four-star defensive back made several key plays earlier this month in helping the Saints defeat Briarwood Christian 17-14 for their third Class 5A state title in four years.

On Wednesday, he officially signed his national letter of intent to play college football at Alabama. He committed to the Crimson Tide in June over Florida State and Auburn.

"It's a huge relief," Armour-Davis told AL.com. "This recruiting process started in the ninth grade. It's something all high school players look forward to I think, but at the same time once it is over there is a big load off your shoulders. I made a good decision and I'm excited to move forward and take advantage of my opportunities at Alabama."

Armour-Davis was one of a handful of Coastal Alabama players to take advantage of the new early signing period, approved by the NCAA last spring.

The 6-foot-1, 180-pound Armour-Davis will complete the school year at St. Paul's, which does not allow mid-year graduations. Still, signing early allows Armour-Davis to concentrate on academics and track season in the spring.

"This allows me to focus on everything in Mobile and know that things in Tuscaloosa are taken care of," he said.

Ironically, Armour-Davis finished his St. Paul's career in the same stadium he will play college football. On a cold night at Bryant-Denny, he set up both of the Saints' final touchdowns - one on a 36-yard kickoff return and the other on a 56-yard, fourth-down reception.

"It's one of the best feelings I've ever had," Armour-Davis said of the title game. "We won it when I was a freshman and a sophomore, but the way we won it my senior year was special. It was something I will never forget."

Armour-Davis played key roles in every phase for St. Paul's. On offense, he caught 24 passes for 364 yards and three TDs. He completed his only pass for 66 yards and a touchdown and ran four times for 28 yards. Defensively, he finished with 21 tackles and eight pass break-ups as opponents constantly went away from his side of the field.

Armour-Davis hopes to make a quick impact next year in Tuscaloosa.

"I know I've got to put in the work when I get there," he said. "I think the opportunity is there, but I've got to come in and perform like I know I can perform. If that happens I think I can get on the field a good bit next year."

Armour-Davis joins a stellar line of St. Paul's stars to attend Alabama, including quarterbacks AJ McCarron and Jacob Coker, offensive lineman Josh Casher and linebacker Mark Barron.

"I know Jalyn is happy it's over," St. Paul's head coach Steve Mask said. "I will say this - he's handled the whole recruiting process with a lot of class. One of the things I admire most about him is that he didn't let recruiting take the forefront ever. He never dwelled on it. He came to practice and his focus was on his team. That says a lot about him."

Mask said Armour-Davis has all the tools to be successful in the SEC.

"He can run really fast and he's got good size," he said. "He's got everything going for him. He's a great cover corner, and they are hard to find. I think he will do very well."

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Saivion Smith

School: Mississippi Gulf Coast C.C. (Perkinston, Miss.)

Position: Cornerback

Height/weight: 6-foot-1, 175 pounds

Also considered: Auburn, South Carolina

247Sports composite ranking: Smith is a four-star recruit, rated as the No. 1 junior college prospect nationally and the No. 1 junior college cornerback.

How he fits into Alabama's plans: Smith is a former top-50 high school recruit who started his college career at LSU before transferring in May. In eight games for Mississippi Gulf Coast this season, Smith posted 31 tackles and two interceptions, including a pick-six. He also returned a kickoff for a touchdown and even caught three passes for 26 yards on offense.

Projection for 2018: With Alabama set to lose its top three cornerbacks, Smith will be depended on to compete immediately for a starting job at cornerback. Landing him was a big deal for the Tide, and the expectation at Alabama is that he'll be an immediate factor in the secondary.

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Jerome Ford

School: Armwood (Seffner, Fl.)

Position: Running back

Height/weight: 5-foot-11, 195 pounds

Also considered: Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, Tennessee

247Sports composite ranking: Ford is a three-star recruit, rated as the No. 558 prospect nationally, the No. 14 all-purpose running back and No. 92 prospect from Florida.

How he fits into Alabama's plans: Alabama views Ford as someone who's better than his ranking suggests. He's a fast, versatile running back that reportedly ran a 4.41 40-yard dash at a Crimson Tide camp this summer.

Projection for 2018: Ford could be like Josh Jacobs, an under-the-radar recruit that could end up making a contribution as a freshman. It's possible that Alabama could lose both Damien Harris and Bo Scarbrough to the NFL. Both leaving would create an opportunity for Ford and fellow 2018 running back Slade Bolden, though it will be tough to pass players like Jacobs, Najee Harris and Brian Robinson on the depth chart.

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Skyler DeLong

School: Nation Ford (Fort Mill, S.C.)

Position: Punter

Height/weight: 6-foot-4, 180 pounds

Also considered: Tennessee

247Sports composite ranking: DeLong is a two-star recruit, rated as the No. 1,503 prospect nationally, the No. 2 punter and No. 28 prospect from South Carolina.

How he fits into Alabama's plans: This one is fairly straight forward. Four-year starter (and two-time Ray Guy Award finalist) JK Scott is graduating and Alabama needs a new punter. The recruiting rankings for punters and kickers are traditionally hard to judge since the No. 2 punter in the country just missed the top 1,500 players overall.

Projection for 2018: He'll be the only scholarship punter on the roster, so it's his job to lose. The last three punters started from Day 1 and played four years starting with P.J. Fitzgerald (2006-09), Cody Mandell (2010-13) and Scott (2014-present). Each had big careers so DeLong would be only the fourth punter of the Saban era. Joseph Bulovas, who'll be a redshirt freshman kicker, also has experience as a punter.

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Are we expecting anyone else to sign during the early period?

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Five-star defensive end Brenton Cox(Stockbridge, Ga./Stockbridge), the nation's No. 22 overall prospect, No. 2 strong-side defensive end, and No. 5 recruit in Georgia per the 247Sports Composite Rankings, will announce his commitment at 3:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.

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