Alabama Crimson Tide

!! like 3 3 *s and the rest havent been rated yet but one of those is Blair Irvin who committed to LSU out of high school but played pro baseball instead.. he plays CB and should be a good player hopefully similiar to David Irons

we usually finish strong though (Josh Bynes and Michael Mcniel last year) cuz once they go to a game on the plains they love it ... Us having a great year would help a lot... I know we have limited scholarships this year cuz we signed 31 last year

Alabama will own the state of Alabama w/ Saban but thats nothing new considering they got whoever they wanted from AL when Shula was there (besides the Mobile kids)

^^ fo sho

anybody heard anything on David Palmer's son Davin? i heard kid is a BEAST but i dont even know what grade hes in. i know his myspace has Alabama !! all over it and his pops was one of the greatest WR's to ever play at Bama so its pretty much a lock hed be goin to bama but i aint really heard nothing.

I just looked at Auburn's recruit list. and that !! looks thin. I mean i know you guys are going to get players, but I'm wondering WTF is Tubbs doing inthe summer. I mean i know football season hasnt even started yet, but you look at teams like Texas, Oklahoma, Florida State and Georgia. Kids are comitting earlier

July 29, 2007

Tim Watts
BamaOnLine.com Recruiting Editor

Talk about it in BOL Round Table
What a difference a year can make. At this time last year, Alabama was headed into the start of fall practice with close to 10 commitments including Rivals100 linebacker Rolando McClain and Rivals250 cornerback Chris Lett but largely the early commitments consisted of sleeper prospects who had done well at the Tide's camps, earned offers and committed. Four-star Alfred McCullough and Alex Watkins also joined the group of high profile players but half of those early pledges never made it to the Capstone, with guys like Kourtnei Brown eventually choosing to stay closer to home and LaMarcus Williams heading to Mississippi State after the coaching change.


Friday Love became Alabama's first five-star commitment since Andre Smith in 2006
Flash forward a year and some might say that the Tide has indeed begun to roll. Friday night Alabama picked up a commitment from five-star offensive lineman Tyler Love, which really came as no surprise. However, Saturday when BamaOnline.com broke the news that Rivals250 wide receiver and Tallahassee native Melvin Ray had spurned the three in-state powers and committed to the Alabama it sent shock waves through the recruiting world.

So far Alabama has 12 verbal commitments and that group is heavy at the top with Love the lone five-star along with six other prospects ranked as four-stars. The bulk of that talent is on the offensive and defensive lines, an area where every major college coach believes ball games are won and lost.

So the question now for Alabama fans is who is next? Rumors are running wild that several of the top Tide targets have made up their minds and have intentions of announcing for Alabama at some point before the start of their senior years.

Bear in mind that making predictions on what a 17-year-old recruit will do is as dangerous as trying to cross I-65 in rush hour traffic while blindfolded by guessing when you might have an opening. So don't look at this as a prediction story but rather a story about what could easily happen before the Tide's September 1 season opener. Right now, it appears Alabama will kickoff the college football season with a great start on the 2008 class.

Several top UA targets getting close


Star Jackson


Last Sunday, Florida native Star Jackson made his much anticipated trip to the Capstone. Jackson, 6-foot-3, 182-pounds, has had Alabama high on his list since receiving an early offer and the Tide became his favorite after a visit from Nick Saban, Major Applewhite and Lance Thompson. His visit this week went a long way towards sealing the deal with Alabama, especially his work with Coach Applewhite where it was obvious that the two hit it off.

It's become obvious that it's a matter of when not who with Jackson, who is rated the nation's No. 2 dual-threat quarterback. As of late Sunday an announcement time had not been set but Jackson and his coach plan to have it after school starts on August 22. But it could come before that.

BOL Prediction: Alabama


Devonta Bolton


Norcross High School is one of the top talent producers in the state of Georgia and this year Devonta Bolton is one of their prize recruits. Bolton, 6-foot-4, 220-pounds, has offers from most of the country and he has seen his stock rise especially after a recent performance at the Auburn camp and Hoover 7-on-7. Joining Alabama in offering the two-way star were Florida, Auburn, Michigan and Miami among others.

It's been a given in a lot of circles that the Georgia athlete will stay at home and play for the Bulldogs. But apparently a few things happened along the way, one of which was UGA finding itself in good shape with their top linebackers and wide receivers and neither position being a big need for the 'Dawgs. As things stand, Florida is the Tide's toughest competition and Bolton is expected to announce on August 11 at his high school, though that date is subject to change.

BOL Prediction: Alabama


Barrett Jones


When it comes to highly recruited offensive linemen it doesn't get much better than Memphis native Barrett Jones who boasts offers from most of the top programs in the country. Jones, 6-foot-5, 271-pounds, spent a good portion of his summer traveling to take unofficial visits at the schools who had offered him. Among his many offers are Auburn, Florida and Tennessee which like Alabama also received visits.

Currently Jones has a top five list in mind but has yet to release it. He is the prospect on this list that could go in either direction as far as when he makes his decision. Jones on several occasions has said he wants to take all five official visits before committing. However, the recent buzz from sources close to him is that the big tackle is tiring of the recruiting process and might be ready to get it behind him. Florida could be the Tide's toughest competition and Auburn has made him a focal point.

BOL Prediction: Alabama


William Green


Spain Park athlete William Green has been relatively quiet throughout the recruiting process. The 6-foot-4, 215-pounder, is as soft spoken off the field as he is furious on the gridiron. Green has picked up over 25 offers with the majority of those coming from the likes of the Alabama, Auburn, Florida, FSU and USC's of the world. His list of top schools is currently at seven with LSU, Georgia Tech and Clemson also involved.

The plan for Green from the get-go has been to get his decision behind him early. He wanted to avoid the fanfare while still managing to check out each of his favorites equally. This upcoming week he is expected to trip to Clemson and Florida with people close to Green expecting this to be his final round of visits before some kind of announcement. Florida was on Green early and they have pulled out all the stops.

BOL Prediction: Alabama


Mark Barron and Deston Hood


St. Paul teammates Destin Hood and Mark Barron are two of the state's more highly recruited athletes. Barron, 6-foot-2, 205-pounds, has over 15 offers and could project at numerous positions including running back, wide receiver, safety or linebacker. Hood, 6-foot-3, 190-pounds, on the other hand is a straight up wide receiver and big time deep threat that has grown in the last few years. Barron is the higher recruited of the two but both boast offers from Alabama, Auburn, LSU and Florida among others.

At the start of the recruiting process the plan was for all the St. Paul kids (including UA commit Ivan Matchett) to make their college choices before the start of their senior years. As things stand now there has been no official word on when either player will commit but sources in Mobile believe the duo are close with Barron perhaps closer.

With Barron, Auburn and the Florida schools continue to recruit him hard.

BOL Prediction: Alabama

Hood, a lifelong Alabama fan, looked hard at Florida, Auburn and FSU.

BOL Prediction: Alabama


Look for UA to get a big jump on the 2009 class

AJ McCarron


One of the top juniors in the nation is St. Paul quarterback AJ McCarron who already boasts verbal offers from Alabama, Auburn, Florida State and LSU. McCarron, 6-foot-4, 180-pounds, is expected to be one of the nation's most sought-after quarterbacks in the 2009 class. However, his recruitment could be over before he throws his first pass as a junior.

This past week McCarron spent 4 days in Tuscaloosa while at the Alabama camp and his trip went a long way towards the Tide landing the Mobile standout. A lifelong Alabama fan, McCarron has taken a no nonsense approach to recruiting and prefers to focus on his prep career as a result. A decision could come as early as September. Auburn put the full court press on McCarron after he visited the Plains.

BOL Prediction: Alabama


Nico Johnson


Another 2009 standout that could be on the verge of a Tide pledge is another lifelong Alabama fan. Andalusia linebacker Nico Johnson picked up a UA offer while camping at Alabama last week. Johnson, 6-foot-2, 220-pounds, has been attending the Alabama camp since his freshman year.

Johnson has been a strong Alabama lean since birth and people close to him have maintained that a Tide offer would seal the deal. Whether or not he will choose to wait is another matter. Currently Johnson admitted that he had to hold himself back from giving his verbal pledge to the Tide. As things stand now he could decide at any time or wait until later in his career.

BOL Prediction: Alabama

July 30, 2007

Tim Watts
BamaOnLine.com Recruiting Editor

Talk about it in BOL Round Table
The old adage is that good things come in threes so it makes sense for Alabama to land their third huge commitment in the last four days. Five-star Tyler Love committed Friday and four-star wide receiver Melvin Ray followed the next. Today the Tide picked up a verbal pledge from one of the best athlete's in the nation bring the Tide ever closer to securing one of the best recruiting classes in the nation for 2008.


Scott is one of the nation's top athlete prospects and could project at multiple positions on offense.
Vigor athlete Burton Scott is ranked among the nation's top athletes with offers from over 20 schools and Monday the four-star added his name to the growing list of four-star players in the 2008 class committed to the Alabama Crimson Tide.

"Burton called Coach Saban today and told him he was committing to Alabama. You could say Coach Saban was pretty happy," Vigor head coach Kerry Stephenson told BamaOnLine.com. "Burton knew after his visit this week that Alabama was the best place for him and he decided to go ahead and commit. He wanted to concentrate on his senior season and now he can do that."

Stephenson said Scott, 5-foot-11, 194-pounds, was impressed during the time he spent with the Tide coaching staff at last week's camp and is looking forward to being a key part of Saban and Applewhite's dynamic offense.

"He just loved Coach Saban and the whole staff. He liked what they said about using him on offense. I can tell you this, they are getting a great player with the sky as the limit for how good he can be. I'm happy for him."

Scott told BamaOnline.com that he spoke to Saban and Applewhite during the camp about where he would fit into the Tide's offense and what type of role he could potentially play.

"I talked to several of the Alabama coaches including Coach Saban," Scott said. "We are similar type people and we get along well. He has told me what he is trying to do as far as building his program and it sounds good," Scott said. "As far as where I fit in he said that I would be used at wide receiver so they can use my versatility. He wants to get me the ball and he and Coach Applewhite said I could have a David Palmer-like impact on offense."

Based on his work with the coaching staff at last week's camp, Scott's destiny at UA appears to be at wide receiver, a position where he racked up over 350 yards receiving during his junior season at Vigor.

"I worked exclusively at wide receiver and Coach (Major) Applewhite and Coach (Curt) Cignetti taught me a lot. They were very hands on and got after us hard. It was a tough camp but I'm the kind of guy who likes to workout hard," Scott said. "I liked the pace of everything and they were teaching me tricks on route running including keep my pad level down and focusing on the ball. My ankle was a little sort but I fought my way through it and I feel liked I played well."

As a junior, Scott amassed over 2,400 yards and 19 touchdowns while seeing time at quarterback, wide receiver and running back. He also saw spot duty in the secondary and is a return specialist.

Now if we can just hit the Mobile area real hard with Julio,Mark Barron,Burton Scott,Destin Hood. Along with Star Jackson down in Florida.

So you can scratch Scott's name off my wish list. Now I think Star will sign next, unless the St Paul kids Destin Hood/Mark Barron signed before August 23rd. I know i said Top 5 Hell, If we keep going at this rate I see Top 3 class...[pic]

The Tide is on the rise.....

^^ we bleed crimson & white in this thread, folk.

^^ everyone but u. we all know u a closet auburn fan, quit frontin. [pic]

lol i knew id find you here, still !!ing with the tide huh

August 2, 2007

Shane Youngblood
BamaOnLine.com Recruiting Analyst

Talk about it in BOL Round Table
Gigantic two-way lineman D.J. Fluker already has a leg-up on being one of the largest prospects for the 2009 recruiting class in the country. Fortunately for whoever lands this huge star, they will also be getting one of the best.


Fluker is a huge lineman that could project on offense or defense at the next level.
Not so fortunate for McGill-Toolen High School, where Fluker played in 2006, is that the 6-foot-7, 325-pounder will be suiting up somewhere else this fall.

"I will be transferring to Biloxi, Mississippi this year," said Fluker, who at McGill-Toolen was part of one of the most ferocious defensive lines in the state along with 2008 prospect Glenn Harbin. "It is due to family issues. I hate leaving behind my teammates at McGill, but this is something that had to be done right now.

"I am still going to be in close contact with my teammates and coaches. I am always going to remember what a great time I had in Mobile."

While Fluker starred primarily on the defensive line last fall for McGill-Toolen, he has the frame and footwork that could also enable him to be a future offensive tackle.

"He has the footwork to be a great left tackle," said McGill-Toolen coach Keith Powell in an earlier interview with BamaOnline. "This is a kid that just turned 16 years old, so there is no telling how big he is going to get. What sets him apart is his feet. He has amazing quickness for a kid that big."

Despite his enormous potential, Fluker thus far has only heard primarily from one college in the early going.

"Alabama offered me a couple of months ago," said Fluker, who wears a size 22 shoe. "Other than Alabama, I haven't heard much from other programs. Right now, I would have to say that Alabama is my favorite. They have been on me from the beginning."

Fluker will again pull double-duty this fall at Biloxi.

"I will play both offense and defense this year," said Fluker. "It really doesn't matter much to me where I play."