Alabama Football Recruiting: Dee Hart Is Rolling With The Tide

As I pointed out in my pregame article for the Capital One Bowl, Nick Saban has put time into building relationships with the staff at Dr. Phillips High School in Orlando, Florida.

And he has broadened the extent of his reach during the past few months.

At the U.S. Army All-American game, explosive running back and dynamic punt returner Dee Hart shared with Mike Farrell of Rivals.com his plans to decommit from the University of Michigan and commit to the University of Alabama, along with 5-star teammate, DB Hasean "HaHa" Clinton-Dix.

The only order of business was to discuss the matter with his uncle, but his mind was made and he had intentions to tell this to his uncle within the next 12 hours, at the time of the interview.

The Low-Down on Hart

Hart is thick in the chest and has powerful legs. He is 5'8" and 200-210 pounds. Added weight has slowed his quickness just a bit, but will improve with proper training.

Hart has remarkable up-field vision and ability to change direction. He waits on his blocks and is a very good receiver at the high school level.

His favorite role is as a punt returner, and he is exceptional.

Initially, Alabama made an offer and told Hart that they saw his role as a slot receiver. They are now giving him full consideration as a running back because of his weight gain over the past year.

His ability to shed tacklers has improved over the past year and making tacklers miss when in space is his specialty.

He is a decisive, downhill runner, much like Mark Ingram and Trent Richardson.

From the Orlando Sentinel:

"Dr. Phillips senior Demetrius Hart is the Florida Dairy Farmers Class 6A Player of the Year, which makes him one of six finalists for the Mr. Football honor. Hart has a state record total of 50 touchdowns for the Panthers (14-0), along with 2,185 yards rushing, a team-high 563 yards on receptions and 502 yards on punt and kickoff returns."

In the Florida 6A State Championship game, Hart was held to a season-low 39 yards on 20 carries. Miami Central's Devonta Freeman (Florida State commit) was the MVP with 308 yards on 36 carries. Central overcame a 17-point deficit to defeat Dr. Phillips for the state title.

Freeman led the way with three touchdowns. On the year, Freeman had 2,208 yards and 26 touchdowns.

Dee Hart is the No. 17 running back in the country, according to Rivals.com.