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

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Kuligowski is a career college DL coach. Let’s enjoy his time in Tuscaloosa before hurrying the mythical Bo Davis back.

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Hawaiian DL serious about Alabama interest

Faatui Tuitele (Fa-uh-two-e Two-e-tell-ay) sat at home watching the national championship game, more than 4,000 miles away from Mercedes-Benz Stadium. And when Tua Tagovailoa entered the game in the second half against Georgia, one thought crossed his mind: “This is game over.”

“I know how he thinks, his leadership skills and how he can play,” Tuitele told SEC Country. “He always presents himself as poised, no matter what happens. Even if he gets sacked, he’s poised. He throws an interception and he never holds his head down. He doesn’t let anything get to his head. I knew it was game over when he went in that game. Tua does what Tua does.”

It turns out the 5-star defensive tackle from St. Louis School (Honolulu) was right. As we all know by now, Tagovailoa led Alabama to a comeback victory and is now cemented in Crimson Tide lore for the rest of time.

Now, Alabama is going to try and sign another 5-star player from Hawaii in Tuitele. The Tide haven’t offered Tuitele just yet, but fans should expect them to when he visits on April 5. Tuitele spoke with defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi on Monday night and told him that they just want to be sure he’s serious about his interest in Alabama, and that will happen once he visits Tuscaloosa in early April.

It’s going to be an important visit for Tuitele because the first time Tagovailoa, who is a distant cousin of Tuitele, traveled to Tuscaloosa, he fell in love with the place. He only visited once to know that Alabama was the school for him.

Watching Tagovailoa have the success he had in his first year has shown Tuitele that he, too, could choose a school on the other side of the country and prosper.

“Seeing Tua on the biggest stage and win a national championship — it really motivated me and gives me the confidence that I can set a path for myself and go to the East Coast and make a name for myself like he did,” Tuitele said. “Seeing what he did in the national championship game was mind-blowing. Just the year before, I was playing with him in the state championship game. The next year, he’s in the national championship game. He let everyone know that Hawaii players can hang with the big dogs.”

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Alabama far from alone in this race

The 6-foot-4, 299-pound prospect doesn’t have a leader in his recruitment at this point and named Alabama, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, LSU, Tennessee, Ohio State and almost every Pac-12 school as the primary schools who are in touch with him.

Tua isn’t the only Tagovailoa that may wind up at Alabama. Tua’s little brother, Taulia, is a 4-star quarterback in the 2019 class. He’s one of the Tide’s top priorities as the team is hoping to sign two quarterbacks this cycle.

“I talk to Taulia here and there,” Tuitele said. “Taulia is the same class as me, so we would be running into each other a lot and probably having similar classes. If he goes there and chooses Alabama, it would help me a lot.”

This recruitment has similar vibes to Tagovailoa, in my opinion. If he follows through with that visit to Tuscaloosa in April, watch out.

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He's also, Kuligowski that is, arguably the best collegiate DL coach. Yes he's kind of a shitty recruiter but dude turned out elite talent after elite talent at Missouri despite that. Then see what he did with Miami this past year 

It's kinda scary to imagine him getting to coach guys like Raekwon Davis and LaBryan Ray... You guys should be pumped. That would be a hell of a hire.

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Yes he's kind of a shitty recruiter

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That's a popular false narrative of salty Miami and Mizzou fans. Facts such as those in the above post by UAgrad93 do not support that narrative. And, to be fair, Mizzou is not highly attractive to top tier recruits. Kugliowski will do well in recruiting blue chip DL talent to Bama.

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The third numerical Rivals100 is out for the class of 2019 and with that comes the addition of a few new five-stars with the conclusion of their junior football season and the start of camp season. Here is a look at the changes near the top as well as the four new 5-star prospects.

There is a new No. 1 in the 2019 Rivals100, and that’s because California quarterback J.T. Daniels re-classified to 2018 (where he landed at No. 4) and left a hole at the top. The debate for No. 1 was a heated one. With a few names in discussion, North Carolina athlete Quavaris Crouch emerged as the No. 1 for this rankings release. Crouch reminds me of a bigger Ernie Sims for those who have been following recruiting for a long time or perhaps a Dylan Moses for those newer to recruiting. He can play running back at the next level and dominate, but he’s also very intriguing as a linebacker or even defensive end if he ended up on that side of the ball.

West Virginia offensive tackle Darnell Wright pushed up three spots to No. 2 while Texas wide receiver Theo Wease moved up four spots to No. 3. Rounding out the top five are California defensive end Kayvon Thibodeaux at No. 4, a move up of four spots, and Georgia wide receiver Jadon Haselwood who fell one spot to No. 5.

The highest debut of a new five star was California athlete Bru McCoy, who debuted at No. 8 overall. Here’s a breakdown from our regional analysts of our new No. 1 and the four new five stars.

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Bru McCoy had an awesome junior season on both sides of the ball and has clearly emerged as one of the best players in the region. He is phenomenal as an outside receiver because of his size, strength and ability to dominate cornerbacks with his physical play and he was one of JT Daniels' top targets on offense. Then McCoy would switch to linebacker and be incredibly productive making plays in the backfield and tracking down players sideline to sideline.

As for his recruitment, McCoy remains wide open and is undecided whether he wants to stay close to home or play in the SEC or Big Ten. Lots of top Mater Dei prospects do end up at USC though.

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I had a chance to see Zacch Pickens play late in the year and I was surprised at his size and speed as well as his motor. He lives a little bit off the beaten path, so it doesn't surprise me that not all schools know about him, but after watching him play in person combined with his overall film, it was time for us to make the move.

Clemson, South Carolina and Georgia are already involved and it will be a heated battle between several schools to land his commitment.

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Alabama hasn't been shy about putting feelers out to quarterbacks whether they are committed elsewhere or not. On Monday night, the Crimson Tide extended an offer to Wisconsin pledge Graham Mertz.

Since committing to the Badgers back in October, the Mission (Kan.) Blue Valley North product has reported offers from Michigan, Ohio State, Georgia, LSU, and Miami (among others).

The 6-foot-4, 205-pounder is rated the No. 9 pro-style quarterback and the No. 323 overall player in the country, per the industry-generated 247Sports Composite. Mertz passed for 3,684 yards and 45 touchdowns to just six interceptions last season.

Alabama didn't sign a quarterback out of the high school ranks in its 2018 class. The position will be a priority this cycle with two in-state names in Taulia Tagovailoa and Paul Tyson garnering much of the attention. Both prospects, however, remain uncommitted therefore expect the Tide to continue to recruit the position with spring evaluations and summer camp on the horizon.

In the last couple weeks, UA has offered quarterbacks Jayden Daniels, Sam Howell, Ty Evans (Colorado commit), and Lance LeGendre. Alabama currently sits with the No. 8 class in the country, per the 247Sports Team Rankings, with four commitments.

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