Alabama Football Recruiting 2020: Top Recruits Landed, Class Predictions

This probably won't come as surprise. Alabama is poised to clean up on the first day of the early signing period for members of the 2021 recruiting class.

Not every star recruit will formally sign on the dotted line between Wednesday and Friday, but this three-day stretch is when most of the top names will be coming off the board.

With 22 commitments so far, Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban has assembled the No. 1 class in 247Sports' composite team rankings. Six players from that group have achieved 5-star status, with 12 cracking the 4-star category.

Top Recruits

It wasn't enough for Saban to secure a commitment from the best offensive tackle; he had to go after the second-best one, too. JC Latham and Tommy Brockermeyer figure to be the bedrock of Alabama's offensive line.

Latham drew a comparison to three-time Pro Bowler D'Brickashaw Ferguson from 247Sports' Charles Power, who also compared Brockermeyer to 2018 Pro Bowler Jake Matthews.

In case you think the Tide offense might be in trouble with Devonta Smith graduating after the season, they're adding the No. 2 wideout, Jacorey Brooks. 247Sports' Andrew Ivins called Brooks a "natural pass catcher with good balance" who "as the ability to not only win balls in the air, but also turn short routes into long gains."

Seemingly every year, Alabama sends at least one defensive lineman on the NFL. Following their junior campaigns, one or both of Dallas Turner and Damon Payne could get the call. Turner is the top-ranked weak-side defensive end, and Payne is the No. 3 defensive tackle.

Class Predictions

Alabama doesn't appear to be in play too much for the highest-ranked recruits yet to commit.

The Crimson Tide aren't a finalist for strong-side defensive end Korey Foreman, the No. 1 overall player for 2021. Foreman isn't even planning to announce his decision until Jan. 2, so Alabama fans shouldn't get their hopes up about the Corona, California native.

The same might hold true for J.T. Tuimoloau, who's the second-best strong-side defensive end behind Foreman. He included Alabama among his seven final schools in October, but four lead experts on 247Sports project him to select Ohio State.

A commitment isn't always binding, leaving the possibility for a recruit to decide late he's going to switch allegiances and sign with a different school.

Sage Ryan, the No. 28 overall player and No. 2 safety, has committed to LSU. Six of the seven experts listed on 247Sports predicted him to select the Tide prior to him picking the Tigers.

Rivals.com's Chad Simmons wrote that "things appear to be solid with the commitment, but Alabama has never given up on this 5-star."

Ryan is from Louisiana (Lafayette), and one bad year doesn't totally erase the excitement Ed Orgeron built around LSU in the aftermath of the Tigers' national championship run. Still, the skilled defensive back might be having second thoughts after watching how poorly the 2020 season has unfolded for them.

The odds of Ryan jumping ship are probably low, but he's somebody for Crimson Tide fans to watch.

All individual recruit information and rankings via 247Sports