We are now a mere six days from National Signing Day, and there have been a lot of developments since the most recent recruiting update. So, let's get up to date on the latest occurrences.
First and foremost, Terrance Cody has reconfirmed his commitment to Alabama. Cody grew up a Miami fan, and I was convinced that if he had a solid offer from the Hurricanes that he was gone. Earlier in the week, he was told that he had a solid offer and he had a visit planned for this upcoming weekend, but both fell through. At the end of the day, Miami simply did not have room for him in this class. I have no clue why they waited so late into the game to start looking at him, but they did and they lost out. Cody said today that he will "definitely" sign with Alabama on National Signing Day.
A few other prospects out there have committed to other schools. William Green committed to Florida last night, which came as no real surprise. Alabama never really put on the pressure for him, and perhaps rightfully so. He would have at least needed to add another 20-25 pounds, while maintaining his current athleticism, to be a legitimate 3-4 linebacker, and the staff just never felt like he was the solution. Moreover, Omoregie Uzzi is apparently down to Georgia Tech and Virginia, and has eliminated Alabama. No major shock there, he'll play for Tech.
Moving on, the biggest prospect left on the board is of course Julio Jones. He took a visit this past weekend to Oklahoma with his teammate Robert Lester, and apparently had a good time, which is to be expected. He was planning on visiting Texas Tech this weekend, but he has decided against that and will instead stay at home with his friends and family while trying to reach a decision. There is really no change in his status -- though the hire of McElwain probably helps our chances -- as every semi-competent recruiting "expert" still expects him to go to Alabama. Julio will announce his decision on National Signing Day at a live press conference that will be broadcast on one of the ESPN channels.
Jerrell Harris has created a bit of a split with the recruiting experts, and others as well. Harris has long been considered an Auburn lean, but a lot of people have cooled on that. In fact, a fairly large bloc of Auburn people don't think he's headed to the Plains anymore, and the majority of the "experts" at Rivals think he is coming to Alabama. Scout.com, on the other hand, thinks that he is headed to Auburn, and at this point no one really knows. At the very least, Harris is very much in play for the Tide, but we'll just have to wait for the press conference before we know this one.
Alonzo Lawrence looks much, much better for the Crimson Tide. He had in-home visits with Houston Nutt (Ole Miss) and Randy Shannon (Miami) on Monday and Tuesday, respectively, and Coach Saban came to visit him today in Lucedale. He was going to scheduled to announce his decision on National Signing Day, but tonight he sent a text message to Andrew Bone saying that he will announce this upcoming Friday (2/1). At this point, nearly everyone, including Bone, thinks he will commit to Alabama, and Rivals has said that he has eliminated Ole Miss altogether. Make sure you stay tuned to RBR on Friday, we'll keep you up to date with the latest on his recruitment.
Marcel Dareus has changed dramatically, and not for the good either. He took a visit to North Carolina and had a great time, and the same thing later happened with Auburn. We were his leader, but now it appears we are simply caught in the middle of a three-way battle with the Tigers and the Tarheels. A lot of people think he will head to either Auburn or North Carolina, and I am afraid they may be right. He will announce his decision at 10:00 a.m. on National Signing Day at Huffman High School.
T.J. Bryant is the ultimate wildcard, no one knows anything. He'll probably end up at either Alabama, Florida State, or LSU, but who knows? My money is on FSU because that is where most Lincoln High players go, but -- as is the case with most Lincoln High players -- Bryant has been extremely tight-lipped on his recruitment. Even the experts are in the dark on this one. We'll have to wait until his announcement to find out anything definite.
Robert Quinn is likely headed to North Carolina. He had a great visit there, and it just seems like he is heading in that direction. We are still in this thing, but it is seemingly a long-shot at this point. I was afraid he was going to make a quick decision and commit to UNC, but it looks like he is going to wait until National Signing Day. I wouldn't get my hopes up, though.
Glenn Harbin is suddenly very much back in the picture for the Tide with the recent news on Robert Quinn. After taking a visit to South Carolina, the Gamecocks became Harbin's leader and I expected him to sign with them, as did everyone else. But now the Alabama coaching staff has turned up the pressure on him, and now we are his leader. In reality, it has seemingly never been a question of whether or not he wanted us as much as it was whether or not we wanted him. Now that question has been answered, Harbin is seemingly in the bag. We are his leader, and the scuttlebutt around Mobile is that he may have already called the Alabama coaching staff and committed privately. Even if untrue, the commitment of Harbin seems almost imminent at this point. Personally, I wonder if Harbin has agreed to greyshirt.
Mark Ingram might be leaning to Alabama as well. The Alabama coaching staff is going hard after this young man, as Saban himself went up to Flint last week for an in-home visit. Now, Burton Burns and Curt Cignetti will also be going for an in-home visit, and Bobby Williams has been in contact with Ingram as well. At the very least, it is blatantly obvious that the staff wants this young man very badly. And we may very well get him. It will be tough to get him out of Michigan, but a lot of people think we can do it. Andrew Bone said he thinks Ingram will commit to Alabama, and he is far from the only one voicing that opinion. Either way, he's still scheduled to announce on National Signing Day.
At this point, things are still looking good for us, and it seems like we may just have Lawrence and Harbin in the big. Stay tuned the next two days for news on Lawrence, and we'll also have a lot more recruiting coverage coming in the next six days so stay tuned for that as well.