Arik Armstead: 5 Reasons Alabama May Have Blown Chances of Landing Top Recruit

We all know that Alabama played LSU last Saturday. What you may not know is that they also played host to Arik Armstead, one of the best prospects in the country. At 6'6", 280-pounds, and formerly committed to USC, Armstead can play DE, DT and OT.

However, the Crimson Tide fell short in their efforts to win to the game. Did they also fall short in their efforts of landing Armstead?

Here's five reasons why the latter may prove to be a yes.

5. Showed They May Need Him on the OL

Tyler Love and D.J. Fluker are going to the pros sooner rather than later. Love looks solid while Fluker looks like he could be a Pro Bowler in two years. 

Alabama prides itself on recruitng big time OL to create depth, and while Armstead would fit well on the Tide's DL, they may need him more on the OL.

And we all know how adamant Armstead is against playing on the OL.

4. Got Beat by Jordan Jefferson

I'm not the biggest Jordan Jefferson fan. I think Jarrett Lee is the better QB of the two Tiger signal callers.

With that said, getting beat by a team that deployed Jefferson for most of the night doesn't sit well. No, Jefferson didn't "beat" 'Bama, but they didn't force him into making enough mistakes.

Armstead could have some second thoughts about the Tide's defensive schemes.

3. Not Sound in the Kicking Game

They say that in football you must have good special teams play and be sound in the kicking game. Marquis Maze's failure to field a crucial fourth-quarter punt was a special teams gaffe.

Then, let's face it, the Bama kicking game was atrocious.

Armstead could have seen the fantastic and flat out amazing effort the Crimson Tide defense, the unit he would ideally like to be apart of should he head to Alabama, fall by the wayside thanks to a horrendous kicking display, as a sign of things to come.

2. Didn't Commit While in Tuscaloosa

Official visits in recruiting are just like free agent visits in the NFL: You typically don't want to let the player out of the building without sealing the deal. In recruiting, that's especially true for a player who's not a local recruit.

With Armstead being from California, that may have been the only time he can ever visit Tuscaloosa to survey the 'Bama program up close before signing day.

Sure, he could take another unofficial trip, but plane tickets are costly folks. With him not committing on the trip and being so far away, that could be seen as a negative for the Tide's chances.

1. They Lost the Game

While losing the game doesn't have an overly binding effect on a recruit's visit, it could play a role here. If the Tide would have won the game, which was regarded as the biggest game in the SEC in recent memory, it would have been a huge boost.

But they didn't.

The loss created some down fortune around the program, and probably forced Armstead to only keep the Tide under consideration and continue with the process. Continuing with the process means looking at more schools.

Looking at more schools could mean signing with a school other than Alabama. All because of a loss.