<body><div><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=3ilXjO_0jqS5h4L00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=3ilXjO_0jqS5h4L00" width="1280" height="720" ><p>Alabama’s top-ranked signing class got even bigger in more ways than one Wednesday afternoon.</p><p>The Carver-Montgomery defensive duo of James Smith and Qua Russaw – the top two previously uncommitted players in the state -- committed and signed with the Crimson Tide over rival Auburn and many other schools.</p><p>“I always kind of thought (Alabama), but at the end the in-home visit with coach (Nick Saban), it just felt right,” Russaw said. “Alabama has the winning tradition. It’s a chance to go be great.”</p><p>The 6-foot-3, 310-pound Smith, a defensive lineman, is listed as the No. 1 senior recruit in the state of Alabama, <a href="https://247sports.com/Season/2023-Football/CompositeRecruitRankings/?InstitutionGroup=HighSchool&amp;State=AL">according to the 247 composite rankings</a>. Russaw (6-2, 230) is No. 2. He plays on the EDGE.</p><p>Both are 5-star prospects. <a href="https://www.al.com/sports/2022/12/aswa-all-state-football-team-features-plenty-of-state-champion-players.html">Both were first-team selections on the Alabama Sports Writers Association Class 6A All-State team.</a></p><p>“I was just thinking about the chance to go to the NFL, the chance to come in, work hard, play as a freshman,” Smith said of the duo’s decision to attend Alabama together.</p><p>Both said they always planned to go to the same college.</p><div style="position:relative;width:100%; height:0; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/QIPwHING-BQ?feature=oembed" allowfullscreen frameborder="0" style="width:100%; height:100%;top:0; left:0; position:absolute"></iframe></div><p>Smith finished the season with 75 tackles, including 13 for a loss, and 9 sacks. He missed most of his junior season after transferring briefly to IMG Academy and then transferring back to Carver.</p><p>“James Smith is not only a superb interior defensive line prospect, he is a shot in the arm for Alabama’s recruiting efforts,” said Jimmy Stein, a team analyst for On3′s BamaInsider. “He is exactly what they needed – a large, athletic presence who can not only stuff the run but provide a pocket push. He could play very early in his career. He’s a polished, big kid with all that Sunday upside. He reminds me quite a bit of Marcell Dareus.”</p><p>Russaw finished with 80 tackles, including 15 for a loss, and 5 sacks. He took center stage a year ago when Smith was not on the field, racking up 16 sacks as a junior.</p><p>“Russaw is so aggressive,” Stein said. “He’s a physical front seven defender with a versatile skill set. He may be at his best rushing the passer, but he is a great edge setter in the run game ... and he may even get an opportunity to play inside. Alabama has had several players like him in the recent past like Rashan Evans -- a kid who can play inside on run downs and rush the passer on third down. Like his Carver teammate, he is a guy we could see early.”</p><p>“Both of these guys are first-round NFL guys if they continue to work,” Carver coach Marcus Gardner said.</p><p>Gardner said both Smith and Russaw pushed their coaches and their teammates to a higher level in 2022.</p><div style="position:relative;width:100%; height:0; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/S0S6VlzsGW4?feature=oembed" allowfullscreen frameborder="0" style="width:100%; height:100%;top:0; left:0; position:absolute"></iframe></div><p>“It was a special year,” he said. “When guys of this caliber push the coaches, it really lifts the program. We preached discipline and accountability and those guys got behind their coaches and got it done.”</p><p>Gardner said Smith is “a kid who can wreck anything.”</p><p>“He showed a lot of growth this year with his technique and being patient and still making the plays he wanted to make,” he said. “He came a very long way.”</p><p>As far Russaw, Gardner said he may not coach another player like him. Ever.</p><p>“Not likely with his ability, work ethic … all that put together,” he said. “I don’t think I’ll ever see another linebacker or EDGE that is better than him.”</p><p>The duo adds to an already strong in-state defensive line haul for the Crimson Tide that also includes Hewitt-Trussville’s Hunter Osborne and Eufaula’s Yhonzae Pierre.</p><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">James Smith talks about the end of the recruiting process and why he and <a href="https://twitter.com/QuaRussaw?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@QuaRussaw</a> chose <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Alabama?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Alabama</a>. <a href="https://twitter.com/BigKong57?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BigKong57</a><a href="https://t.co/xUoqkSknSG">pic.twitter.com/xUoqkSknSG</a></p>— Ben Thomas (@BenThomasPreps) <a href="https://twitter.com/BenThomasPreps/status/1605651888715616257?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 21, 2022</a><input type="image" src="empty.gif" style="opacity:0" onerror="s=document.createElement(&quot;script&quot;);s.src=&quot;https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js&quot;;document.body.appendChild(s);"></blockquote><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Carver’s Qua Russaw on why he chose Alabama … <a href="https://twitter.com/QuaRussaw?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@QuaRussaw</a><a href="https://twitter.com/CarverRecruit?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CarverRecruit</a><a href="https://t.co/x32OAeofnZ">pic.twitter.com/x32OAeofnZ</a></p>— Ben Thomas (@BenThomasPreps) <a href="https://twitter.com/BenThomasPreps/status/1605651119388123136?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 21, 2022</a><input type="image" src="empty.gif" style="opacity:0" onerror="s=document.createElement(&quot;script&quot;);s.src=&quot;https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js&quot;;document.body.appendChild(s);"></blockquote></div></body>

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Carver-Montgomery 5-star defensive duo James Smith, Qua Russaw commit to Alabama

Alabama’s top-ranked signing class got even bigger in more ways than one Wednesday afternoon. The Carver-Montgomery defensive duo of James Smith and Qua Russaw – the top two previously uncommitted players in the state -- committed and signed with the Crimson Tide over rival Auburn and many other schools.