Hi guys! hope everyone is having a great summer thus far.
I read all the angst and moaning from certain Bama posters on this board as well as other message boards where the complaints are the loudest and sometimes the most asinine during my vacation.
I am not going to rehash any bulletin points that several posters posted on the strategy from this staff. Those posters did an excellent job of explaining the plan for 2027class. But I will state some points to hopefully ease some anxiety and nerves.
If you follow recruiting closely you know the rankings are constantly changing throughout the year. Most will get a bump after more film and scouts follow up after their commitment. The disappointment on all these " 3 stars" is somewhat warranted because they are not as coveted or ready to contribute as some Bama fans are accustomed to esp. after the B2B top classes. Of course, with Bama's unprecedented history of top classes under the GOAT, it can be somewhat alarming. I get it completely and it is very unnerving to see where the Tide is currently ranked in June. Yes, it's June! As the season approaches, let's see how many of the ones Bama lost to NIL or money will flip back to us or had a change of heart to the school they committed once the said school's season goes awry. It's a long year and these teenagers are a funny bunch. Regarding HS player's profile, I would suggest you look closely to the programs that have offered the same HS players that have pledge to Bama. Some are truly " under the radar" or " diamonds in the rough" as we say in this industry. We are not the only top program that has offered these 3-star players and there are multiple reasons why some of them are not ranked high at the moment. The lack of evaluations or poor ones for that matter are usually the main culprits. Some kids don't attend camps due to their school schedule or money. The list goes on and on. I think we can all agree so far that DeBoer and staff have evaluated 3-star players very well and some have contributed to the program after their first or second season (Brooks, Simmons, Sanders, Faga, Kirkpatrick).
I am reminded that history is our greatest teacher and if you go back and looked at the 3 stars Bama took in and developed over the years (too many to count), you would be very surprised to see who actually became a starter and got drafted compared to the 4- or 5-star players. Some of those blue-chip players that were so highly heralded either never developed or pan out for whatever reason and worse yet, eventually transferred from Bama and most were never heard from again. I'm not dismissing talented HS players that would be foolish, but sometimes and myself included we as fans get " star struck" and we become impatient with lowly ranked players for their development to take place. Lastly, some fans act as if this current class will play immediately for the upcoming season!! Lol!!
Our current team has talent everywhere and it may not be elite like year's past, but it isn't chop liver either! I believe we will compete at the highest level in 2026 and that alone will attract great players regardless of rankings. Enjoy your summer and let the people who get paid handsomely take care of the recruiting process.
