Alabama Football: Can 4-Star LB Commit Adonis Thomas Make an Impact as Freshman?

Alabama’s 2015 class received a huge boost on Monday evening when 4-star linebacker Adonis Thomas announced his commitment to the Tide via his Twitter account.

"

Its official! Mom gave her blessing!! So im committed to The University of Alabama!!! #RollTide pic.twitter.com/68k6cPNOrW

— Adonis Thomas (@_SimplyThatGuy5) December 8, 2014"

The 6’4”, 229-pounder has been a huge priority for Nick Saban and his staff in the 2015 cycle.

The question for Thomas now becomes how he fits into the Tide’s defense and how quickly he can make an impact upon arriving in Tuscaloosa.

According to Charles Power of BamaOnline (subscription required), his head coach at Central Gwinnett High School in Lawrenceville, GA, Todd Wofford, said that the Tide’s defensive staff has pitched Thomas on the idea of playing at inside linebacker in their scheme.

"I think he could do a lot of things in their defense,” Wofford told Power. “They're looking for him to be inside. Their pitch to him was that they face some of these spread teams and they have to get faster and more athletic at that position and he can do that for them."

According to Barton Simmons of 247Sports (via BamaOnline’s Trevor Hewett, subscription required), Thomas has a skill set that separates him from a number of linebackers currently on the Tide’s roster:

"

In their defense, I think that a couple of things stand out. He is a really athletic kid obviously, but he is also smart and I think that Alabama has put a premium on that intelligence playing in their defense. I also really think that they don’t have a lot of inside linebackers like him. Sometimes, I think that a lot of times you see Alabama get these bigger bodied linebackers and I think that Adonis Thomas has a little bit more versatility and ability to run and I think that is a nice compliment to some of the guys that they have on board.

"

According to Ourlads, the Tide’s two starting inside linebackers are senior Trey DePriest and junior Reggie Ragland.

With Ragland slated to play his final season in 2015 and the void that DePriest will leave, Saban and defensive coordinator Kirby Smart will look to groom new faces to man the middle of their defense in the future.

Even though there’s a need for bodies in the middle, the likely best-case scenario for Thomas is to find the field on special teams and perhaps some spot duty in certain situations as a freshman.

"

Really about to love wearing that Crimson and White!!! #BuiltByBama pic.twitter.com/NmgZ4ZAjUz

— Adonis Thomas (@_SimplyThatGuy5) December 9, 2014"

For example, last year the Tide brought in four highly touted linebackers and a number of other top-flight defenders in its top-rated 2014 class. Yet Rashaan Evans is the only freshman who has notched more than 10 tackles this season, per CFBstats.com.

Thomas has the athleticism to be an asset in coverage in the middle, similar to former Tide All-American and current Ravens standout C.J. Mosley.

Mosley and Dont’a Hightower were the only two freshmen to finish in the top five in tackles on the team as freshmen since 2008.

While Thomas brings an added dimension to an already loaded group of linebackers, his first year in Tuscaloosa is probably going to be spent contributing on special teams and learning the defense in preparation to make a run at a bigger role as a sophomore.

Sanjay Kirpalani is a National Recruiting Analyst for Bleacher Report. Unless otherwise noted, all recruiting information courtesy of 247Sports.

Follow @SanjayKirpalani