Recruiting: A Look Ahead To The Class Of 2014; In-State Players

Of the 26 players that Alabama signed for the class of 2013, only 8 were from the state of Alabama. Only 7 if you consider that Reuben Foster moved to Alabama during his senior year in high school. And only 6 if Bradley Bozeman does indeed grayshirt. Alabama has had so much success the past few years that great players from everywhere are interested in playing for Nick Saban. And this past year, there were really only a few huge recruits within the state. Bama got the top 5 players in the state, but then branched out.

This year if very different. This class of prospects in the state of Alabama might be as good as the class that signed in 2008 that included Julio Jones, Mark Barron, and Courtney Upshaw. There are at least a dozen guys who will be at least 4 star recruits and locking down the state this year appears to be the priority.

The top of the list is very heavy with a handful of guys that will compete for the top spot, so the order here is completely random, but I'll start with a guy who is committed to play for The Tide.

Bo Scarborough

Bo Scarborough is one of the best athletes in the country. He is 6'2" 220 lbs of nothing but muscle. He is listed at RB right now, but could play linebacker just as well. As long as he has his head on straight, he is an almost surefire superstar. He has been a longtime commit for Bama, but he will no doubt enjoy taking all his visits, as pretty much everyone wants him badly.

Marlon Humphrey

Marlon Humphrey is the best CB in the country. Maybe the best of the past several years. He goes to Hoover High School. He is in the top 10 overall. And it certainly doesn't hurt us that his dad is none other than Bobby Humphrey. Auburn is sniffing around pretty terribly, but his favorites are Alabama, Florida, South Carolina, and USC.

Ronnie Clark

Ronnie Clark is a personal favorite because he goes to Calera High School, which is a couple miles from my house. He is 6'3" 205, about the same size Mark Barron was coming out of high school. He'll end up ranked in the top 10 at his position, which will probably be safety.

Roc Thomas

Racean Thomas, also known as "Roc" is a 4 star RB from Oxford who loves Alabama. He's not as big, but he plays like Trent Richardson, fighting for every yard. He will be one of the top 5 RB's in the country and I don't know if we will take more than 1 RB next year, after taking 4 of the top 12. So this will be interesting, as Auburn and Tennessee are also heavy after him.

Tre Williams

Tre Williams goes to the same high school that AJ McCarron and Mark Barron went to, St. Paul's in Mobile. It's gonna be a battle with Auburn for this guy. He is a 4 star linebacker that's pretty much alot like Reuben Foster in size and the way he plays. Hard hitter.

Rashaan Evans

Rashaan Evans is one of the top 20 LB's in the country. He is at Auburn High School, so you know they'll be all over him but maybe his former teammate Reuben can be in his ear. Alabama and Auburn will probably battle for him down to the end.

Shaun Dion Hamilton

Shaun Dion Hamilton, from Montgomery, is also one of the top 10 or 20 LB's in the country. He seems to be an Auburn-Clemson battle right now and doesn't even have an Alabama offer yet, so we will see. This is a great year for LB's in this state, and Saban loads up at this position every year, so we will no doubt get a couple of these guys.

Justin Thornton

Justin Thornton is a 6'5" 230 lb DE and Linebacker who is about to blow up. He has just recently gotten offers from Auburn, FSU, Florida, and LSU. Not much info on where he's leaning or anything like that yet, but he'll be yet another potential 5 star guy.










Stephen Roberts is a CB at Opelika High School that Saban would love to have and has already offered him a scholarship. I don't think Auburn has yet, but they will soon, as will every other school in the south.

Denzel Ware is a guy who will probably be somewhere towards the back of the top 10 in state. He is an outstanding DE who just recently transferred to Opp High school from out of state. He had been committed to Florida State but changed that to Kentucky for Mark Stoops. So whatever.

Sorry, I don't get too excited about a guy that I already know probably isn't going to Alabama.







Kendrick Moss, Jakell Mitchell, TJ Posey, and Jordan Sims are a few guys bubbling right outside that top 10. I'm sure at least one of these guys will blow up during the process, probably Sims.

Gonna be another awesome recruiting class coming to Tuscaloosa next year, cause there's absolutely no chance that Nick Saban doesn't get at least half of that top 10 and it wouldn't shock me at all if he got 8 or 9 of those guys. Not at all.