Alabama Football Recruiting: Grading the Class of 2011 Recruits
Nick Saban has done it once again. What he is as a coach, he is as a recruiter as well and he has proven it once again with the top overall class for the fourth out of five years.
But it's not just top rankings that makes Saban's recruiting so genius, but how me fills the holes of the future as well as re-enforcing the needs of today.
It's not uncommon for Saban to play freshmen and if fact, to even start them.
So with this class in the book, let's look them over and see how we did and grade them by position and if you get bored, don't miss the last slide which contain the wisest words you'll read about recruiting this week.
See where all the Top 100 recruits are headed.
Quarterback
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Phillip Ely - 6'1'' - 185 pounds - Tampa, Florida - A Rivals three star recruit - A solid quarterback that fits into Saban's system of good ball skills and great brains. He won't turn the ball over with mistakes, but he's not the most aloof quarterback in this class with his footwork.
With A.J. McCarron and Phillip Sims in front of him, look for Ely to red shirt his first year as is the case for a Nick Saban quarterback.
This is a solid B recruit for Alabama that over time, could turn into in A player much as the unheralded McElroy did. In fact, he sort of looks like a younger McElroy.
Running Back
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Demetrius "Dee" Hart - 5'8'' - 190 pounds, from Orlando, Florida. A Rival's five star recruit. This is a definite A+ player on any team.
Alabama may have only landed one running back but they got one of the best. Hart is a runner who can run with power inside and with his 4.4 40 speed, he's a threat outside as well.
Dee really showed he was the best of show at the Army All Star Game, making the other running backs look like they were running in quicksand.
This is a freshman who can and will see playing time his first year. This is one of the big picks that helped Alabama land the number one spot.
Recievers
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Losing Julio Jones this year, and Hanks and Maze next year meant that landing some great ball snaggers were high on Nick Saban's list for this class and as usual, he got what he wanted.
Listing them alphabetically:
Name Rival's Stars POS Hometown Height Weight 40 time Rivals Rating
 | Marvin Shinn 4 stars | WR | Prichard, AL | 6'3" | 177 | 4.5 | 5.9 | |||||||||
 | Bradley Sylve 4 stars | WR | Port Sulphur, LA | 5'11" | 175 | 4.4 | 5.8 | |||||||||
 | Danny Woodson 4 stars | WR | Mobile, AL | 6'2" | 200 | 4.5 | 5.8 |
Of these four, Shinn, Slyve and Woodson are solid A players.
My hunch is that Slyve could see the field early as a kick or punt returner. He has phenomenal speed and moves.
This group is a solid bunch and as good a group of receivers as any college got this year.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Tight End
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Malcom Faciane - A 6'6'' - 265 pounder from Picayune, Miss. A Rivals four star recruit.
Faciane is a big target who can run block like a bull dozier and still catch the ball with soft hands. He's a corner back's nightmare to face with the ball in his hands and a head full of steam.
There weren't many five star tight ends available so Faciane was a solid grade A pickup for the Tide. While he may not see playing time this year, he's sure to in a year or so.
This four star recruit is just the kind of red meat that made Alabama's class this year one of the top.
Offensive Line
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It all starts in the trenches and of course Nick Saban knows this. This is exactly why Saban rakes in some of the best offensive linemen each year, and this class is no exception.
Not since the flurry of excitement of landing D.J. Fluker two years ago has so much focus been placed on who's coming in for these positions. Yes Alabama is rich in talent here, but the battle for Cyrus Kouandijo and losing him to Auburn hurt.
With only one opening on the line from last years starters, look for Aaron Douglas to battle it out with Arie Kouandijo and Alfred Woodard for that left tackle spot.
Name Rival's Star POS Hometown Height Weight Rivals Rating
| Aaron Douglas 4 stars | OL | Yuma, AZ | 6'6" | 280 | 5.8 |
| Ryan Kelly 3 stars | OL | West Chester, OH | 6'5" | 270 | 5.0 | 5.7 | |||||||||
 | Isaac Luatua 3 stars | OL | La Mirada, CA | 6'2" | 299 | 5.0 | 3 stars | 5.7 |
Next year the Tide loses a lot of talent on the offensive line and some of the recruits from this class could be involved in the fight to replace them.
Grading the players:
Douglas - A all the way, one of the nation's top JUCO players
Ryan Kelly - A solid B player with only three stars
Issac Luatua - Rated by Rivals as a three star, but a four star in my book, B+
Reaction to Cyrus Kouandijio flipping: Alabama did want Kouandijo and wanted him badly. It's not that Alabama needed him this year or next year, but for the following two years. With the talent they have on board, they won't miss him, but this was a blow to Alabama's dominance in always getting the ones they want over Auburn. It won't hurt Alabama's win column, but it will hurt their pride. They're too used to running over Auburn for the ones they really want.
Defensive Backs
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Saban always goes after the best defensive backs. It's a position close to his heart and he was disappointed this year when he landed perhaps the best of the bunch in Hasean "Ha Ha" Clinton-Dix.
Though he would have liked to have gotten one more, there were more pressing needs for the future, so he's settled on just two.
Name Rivals Star Rating POS Hometown Height Weight Rivals Rating
| Hasean Clinton-Dix 5 stars | DB | Orlando, FL | 6'2" | 190 | 6.1 | ||||||||||
 | Chris Jones 4 stars | DB | Adamsville, AL | 6'0" | 185 | 5.8 |
Grading the picks is easy, Clinton-Dix is a slam dunk A+ as he may be the best defensive back recruit in the country. He could see some playing time this year and could be a starter in a year.
Ha Ha is one of the very few crown jewels in Bama's class that helped earn the top rating.
Chris Jones is no slouch is a richly deserved four star pick and a solid B+ pick for the Tide.
Defensive Ends
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Even though he didn't have the year that many had hoped he would have, filling Marcell Dareus' spot at defensive end will take some big feet to fill those shoes. Right now Quinton Dial looks to have the best shot to earn that spot from all the incoming players, but the battle will be fierce in a year or two for those spots as Alabama will have tons of talent ready to go at that position.
Name Rivals Stars POS Hometown Height Weight Rivals Rating
| Quinton Dial 4 stars | DE | Scooba, MS | 6'6" | 315 | 5.8 | ||||||||||
 | Xzavier Dickson 4 stars | DE | Griffin, GA | 6'3" | 238 | 5.9 |
 | Jeoffrey Pagan 4 stars | DE | Asheville, NC | 6'4" | 272 | 6.0 | ||||||||||
 | D.J. Pettway 4 stars | DE | Pensacola, FL | 6'3" | 255 | 5.8 |
Dial could come in and compete right away since he is JUCO transfer, the others may either be red shirted or see some special team playing time.
Grading the class of Defensive Ends:
As a whole the class would rate a A, individually is as follows:
Quinton Dial - Solid A player with immediate impact ability
Xzavier Dickson - A recruit that needs to add some weight before hitting his peak
Jeoffrey Pagan - Could easily have been a five star, but a very solid A player
D.J. Pettway - Already has size and strength and could be used early, solid A player
Linebackers
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Alabama may boast the biggest and most group of linebackers in the entire nation right now, yet they somehow still manage to talk some of the nation's best to joining that group and risk sitting on the bench for a year or two.
Maybe it's because Alabama loses so many juniors to the NFL, but these players are bound to see action over the next few years and maybe next year on special teams.
There is no way anyone from this group will start next year barring injuries from the group of starters already entrenched. But they are stars that will shine in the future.
Name Rivals Stars POS Hometown Height Weight Rival Rank
 | Brent Calloway 4 stars | LB | Russellville, AL | 6'1" | 210 | 6.0 | ||||||||||
 | Trey DePriest 4 stars | LB | Springfield, OHSpringfield | 6'2" | 231 | 5.8 | ||||||||||
 | Vinnie Sunseri 3 stars | LB | Tuscaloosa, AL | 5'11" | 193 | 5.6 |
This is a A group as a whole. Rivals ranks Calloway as the fifth best linebacker recruit in the country and DePriest as the seventh best.
Individually they grade out as follows:
Calloway - A+
DePriest - A+
Sunseri - B with a nice potential up side
Defensive Line
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Alabama already had one of the nation's best defensive lines, now it only gets deeper, stronger and better. There just anybody in Crimson on this team on the defensive line group who couldn't play and contribute.
This is a group that will only get better as the season goes on and by bowl time, they could be dominating an opponent in a BCS game.
Name POS Hometown Height Weight Rivals Rank
 | LaMichael Fanning 4 stars | DT | Hamilton, GA | 6'6" | 285 | 5.8 | ||||||||||
 | Jesse Williams 4 stars | DT | Yuma, AZ | 6'4" | 330 | 4 | 6.0 |
Though it's a small group, it's a great one. Jesse Williams could be the dominant player not just on Alabama's defensive line, but in the SEC. Rate him as an A+
LaMicheal Fanning is big, fast, muscled and ready to play now, what's not to love? Give him an A
Athlete
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Jabriel is one of those players Nick Saban loves to have on the team. He can do a little bit of everything. If this were a baseball team, he would be the utility infielder. Athletes like Washington gives Saban someone he can plug a hole with in an emergency such as quarterback, running back or slot receiver, while still developing him at say corner back.
He is a solid four start athlete with good experience in lots of positions. He's quite a guy to have on the team and though he may be red shirted his first year, you'll see him pop up somewhere soon.
Name Rivals Stars POS Hometown Height Weight Rival Rank
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 | Jabriel Washington 3 stars | ATH | Jackson, TN | 5'11" | 165 | 5.7 |
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Grade for this four star athlete? A solid A
Post Signing Day Commentary
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It's easy to get caught up in the hype of recruiting, but the undeniable fact is that great recruiting classes don't automatically translate into great teams.
In 2007 some of the top ten teams in the recruiting wars were:
# 1 Florida - Who really wasn't very good last year and had their worst finish in many years.
# 2 USC - Who stunk it up in the PAC 10 last year and had one of their worst years
# 3 Tennessee - Are you kidding me? They had a losing season last year
# 5 Texas - who flat sucked last year and didn't make a bowl game. Where was all that Sr. talent?
# 8 Notre Dame - Still floundering like a fish out of water
# 9 Georgia - Who played all year like they had on two left shoes
That's over half of the top ten who had crappy seasons or some of the worst they've had in years.
Yes, you need good players to win, but that alone won't cut the mustard. Some of the top players by rating ended up being a bust and a one star winds up being the MVP and team captain. These are 18 year old kids for God's sake.
Bottom line, if you have a staff that can coach, you can win with anything around a simply decent recruiting year.
The BCS winner this year, Auburn, did have the number seven class, so they did have some talent. Oregon was number eleven and TCU, who went undefeated, was not in the top 50.
So while it's good to point to a high number and pound your chest over the spoils of recruiting day, in the end, it's what always what or who you get, but what you do with them.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
