5-Star RB Akylin Dear Commits to Alabama over Ole Miss, Mississippi State

Five-star running back Akylin Dear committed to Alabama on Tuesday, according to On3's Hayes Fawcett.

Dear, who was choosing between the Crimson Tide, Ole Miss and Mississippi State, is the No. 2 running back and No. 31 overall player in 247Sports' composite rankings.

"The Quitman High School standout displays good patience and vision at the line of scrimmage while demonstrating the short area burst and explosiveness to change gears from the first to second level to create separation between the tackles," 247Sports' Cooper Petagna wrote in his scouting report.

"An efficient mover that can make defenders miss with his one cut elusiveness or contact balance, Dear excels finding hidden yardage and accounting for yards after contact utilizing his powerful lower half."

Dear originally committed to Ole Miss before reopening his recruitment in June. That followed three other decommitments for the Rebels.

Nick Saban's retirement raised major questions about the future of Alabama football. In Kalen DeBoer, the school found a coach who delivered quick results at each of his first two stops but hadn't yet encountered the kind of challenges he'd face in Tuscaloosa.

Recruiting was one such facet. Washington was 26th in 247Sports' composite team rankings in 2023, which proved to be DeBoer's only full recruiting cycle in Seattle. That kind of return won't cut it at Alabama.

So far, the first-year head coach is showing he can maintain the incredibly high standards Saban set. The Tide are second in 247Sports' composite rankings, and Dear is their sixth 5-star commitment. He's also the second running back in the group, joining 4-star recruit Anthony Rogers.