re: Class of 2019 Recruiting MEGATHREAD: That's a Wrap Edition

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In-state LB high on Alabama

Mohamoud Diabate (Muh-mood D-uh-baa-tay), a 4-star outside linebacker from Auburn (Ala.) High School, grew up a fan of the hometown Tigers. He admits that he’s a lifelong fan of Auburn, but that won’t sway him when he makes his college decision.

He wouldn’t be the first Auburn High School linebacker to end up at Alabama, either. Reuben Foster and Raashan Evans both attended the high school and excelled at Alabama.

The nation’s No. 14 outside linebacker in the 247Sports composite gets asked all of the time which of the in-state schools he’ll choose, but he’s not leaning one way or the other and can see himself going to college outside the state of Alabama.

“I don’t really know where I’m going yet,” Diabate told SEC Country. “I’m not leaning any direction. Auburn or Alabama don’t have an advantage right now just because they’re close to me. Even people who know me have said that they don’t see me going to those places. I can see myself going to those places or other places. Proximity doesn’t have much to do with this. A school that’s near me doesn’t have anything to do with my decision. I’m putting all of that to the side.”

Auburn surprisingly hasn’t offered Diabate. I’m not sure why, but an offer likely will come at some point. Alabama offered last weekend. He says an offer from his childhood favorite team would be a big accomplishment.

“It would mean a lot to me for them to have trust in my abilities because I have a lot of respect for their team and organization as a whole,” Diabate said. “It would mean a lot for them to have that trust in me.”

Alabama is recruiting Diabate at both inside and outside linebacker. Which position he ends up at if he chooses the Tide will depend on how much weight he adds to his 6-foot-4, 225-pound frame.

When Nick Saban offered Diabate last weekend, the coach told him how he thinks he’d fit in well into Alabama’s 3-4 scheme.

“We were just talking about my potential and how important it is for me to choose the right scheme,” Diabate said. “If I don’t choose the right scheme, my career may not turn out the way I want to.”

A decision from Diabate isn’t coming soon. He thinks he’ll make a final decision on Signing Day. He doesn’t know which schools will get official visits just yet, but he wants to visit Florida, Florida State, South Carolina and Virginia in the coming months.

While he doesn’t have favorites, it’s clear Alabama is one of the schools that’s on the forefront of his mind.

“Alabama has a lot of impressive selling points,” Diabate said. “I think very highly of them. It’s a lot different since the last time I went because they lost a lot of coaches. Coach [Tosh] Lupoi was telling me that Alabama is still Alabama, despite that. It’s still the same program and they have the same players. They’re still going to be good.”

Diabate’s father is a professor at Tuskeegee University, so education will play an important role in his decision. He’s not sure what he wants to major in, but he knows what he wants from the school he picks.

“I want to play in a competitive conference and play for a competitive team,” Diabate said. “I look forward to contributing to win championships at whichever college I go to. Of course, I want to be at a school where I’ll have the opportunity to play, not really early, but when my junior and senior year, maybe sophomore year, I want to make an impact. I’ll have my trust in the coaches. I also want to choose a school that has a track record of excellence and developing players.”

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Alabama put a pair of offers on the table to Golden State prospects Jude Wolfe and Trent McDuffie on Tuesday night, both reported on Twitter. Both are products of Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco.

Wolfe, a four-star prospect, is rated the No. 15 tight end and the No. 456 overall player in the country, per the industry-generated 247Sports Composite. The Crystal Ball favors USC early on based off of one prediction.

McDuffie, also a four-star prospect, is rated the No. 23 athlete and the No. 279 overall player in the country. Like Wolfe, the Crystal Ball favors the home-state Trojans early on.

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MESQUITE, Nev. – Faatui Tuitele is readying himself for a busy offseason.

The five-star defensive tackle from Honolulu (Hawaii) St. Louis made his way to the desert to compete at the Pylon Elites 7-on-7 national championship and told 247Sports it was just the first stop in what promises to be a dizzying few weeks.

"I know I'll be going to Oklahoma, Texas and LSU beginning on March 12," Tuitele said. "That's my spring break so I'll take of advantage of that whole week. Then in April, I'll visit Ohio State and Alabama back to back.

"Those are some big-time programs and I'm really looking forward to all of the visits. I have been talking to coach (Tosh) Lupoi a lot at Alabama and the new D-line coach, (Craig) Kuligowski, who went over from Miami. I've talked a lot to coach Urban Meyer and coach Larry Johnson at Ohio State. They have all stressed to me that they want me to check out the schools and see what they have to offer so I can see everything for myself."

USC and Washington have been considered two heavy players for the 6-foot-4, 300-pound prospect given that he had been to those two campuses last year. Both staffs have been prioritizing him since the start.

"In the summer I'll probably try to get out Notre Dame and Wisconsin, as well as all the West Coast schools," Tuitele said. "I want to get out and see as many of my options as possible. I don't know when I'll cut things down, but I know I want to get a decision done by the end of the year or by the end of the season. I could sign early or I could wait until the All-American Bowl to announce."

Tuitele is the No. 2-rated defensive tackle and No. 23 overall prospect in the 2019 class, per the 247Sports Composite.

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We've seen Alabama make several new offers to quarterbacks in the 2019 class since the addition of new quarterbacks coach Dan Enos.

On Tuesday night, the Crimson Tide put an offer out to Notre Dame signal caller pledge Cade McNamara.

McNamara, a product of Reno (Nev.) Damonte Ranch, committed to the Fighting Irish last July and has not yet taken a visit elsewhere on record despite continuing to receive interest. Michigan and USC are two of the four-star quarterback's latest offers.

At 6-foot-1, 187 pounds, McNamara is rated the No. 8 pro-style quarterback and the No. 271 overall player in the country, per the industry-generated 247Sports Composite.

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McGill-Toolen noseguard Darrius Cox can summarize his first few years in high school in one word - sloppy.

"I was very immature," he told AL.com this week. "I was honestly quite sloppy - in my appearance and my play."

Flash forward two years and the 6-foot-5, 312-pound Cox is one of the state's top recruits for the Class of 2019. His 13 college offers already include Georgia, Nebraska, Ole Miss, Purdue, Tennessee and Texas A&M just to name a few.

"You look at Darrius from his sophomore year or freshman year until now ... he's a different kid," Yellow Jackets' head coach Earnest Hill said. "He was big and sloppy. Now he's slimming up. He's done a great job in the weight room making fat into muscle. I'm very proud of where he is right now, but I want him to continue to grow and get better."

Cox finished his junior year with 26 tackles and six sacks in helping the Yellow Jackets to an unbeaten regular season and the team's third straight appearance in the Class 7A state championship game. He is currently ranked as the 16th senior prospect in the state, according to the 247 composite rankings. McGill assistant coach Carl Jackson said he was told at a recent Rivals camp that Cox has the wing span of a player 6-foot-10 instead of 6-foot-5.

"The sky is the limit for this guy," said Hill, who served as McGill's defensive coordinator before being elevated to head coach prior to the 2017 season. "Two years ago, I thought Darrius was going to be an offensive lineman, but he has been working his tail off and getting quicker, and he's changed my mind. He's so long, and he's getting faster."

Cox visited Georgia last weekend and is scheduled to visit Tennessee this Saturday and LSU on March 11. He also hopes to schedule visits to Ole Miss and Texas A&M in the near future.

"I'm just taking it slow right now," he said. "I want to take as many visits as I can to see where I fit in."

Cox described his visit to Athens over the weekend as "awesome."

"I met the coaches and started to build a relationship with them," he said. "I toured the campus. I really loved everything about it."

Cox grew up an Alabama fan, but the Crimson Tide has yet to offer the three-star prospect. Hill said Alabama coach Nick Saban is aware of Cox, but "hasn't pulled the trigger yet." Hill said Auburn has not showed an interest at this point.

"Darrius wants it," Hill said. "Coach (Alex) Page has done a great job with him, teaching him technique and the little things about the game. I think the harder Darrius gets recruited, the hungrier he gets. In the Rivals camp Sunday, he was at his best. He was kicking everyone's tail. It was nasty."

Cox said he would like to make a decision this summer before the season starts so he could focus on helping McGill win its second state title in four years.

"I'm just trying to get better every day," he said. "I know I need to be a leader on this team both vocally and with my actions and that is what I plan to be. I want to finish this thing off right."

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Darrius Cox 

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