Alabama Recruiting RoundTable: Best win on the trail, coaches making noise, biggest takeaway

There’s been a lot of changes around the Alabama football program this year, and for the most part everything has gone really well for Coach Kalen DeBoer and his staff after the dust settled. The recruiting wins have piled up much like it did when Nick Saban was the head coach. Alabama currently has the No. 2 class in the country according to On3 after a spectacular summer.

Things have slowed down as fall practice is under way for colleges and high schools across the country. The Crimson Tide has also filled the majority of its spots in the ’25 class. BOL will look ahead to what’s next in the coming days on the offensive and defensive side of the ball.

What’s it’s been like for the ones who have covered the ins and outs of recruiting since Coach DeBoer took control of the program?

BOL publisher Tim Watts, senior editor Andrew Bone and recruiting reporter Joseph Hastings provide their take on three of the biggest questions that have been asked on the BOL Round Table!

Outside of Ryan Williams-  who is the best (HS) recruiting win thus far for Coach Kalen DeBoer? who’s the biggest loss?

Andrew Bone : The best recruiting win, IMO, is Keelon Russell . You have to trust your evaluations. Alabama locked in on Russell prior to the spring but didn’t have a chance for an in-person eval until April. He receives the offer- other schools were heavy in pursuit including SMU (local) where he was previously committed.  He then wins the MVP of the Elite 11 and has been a big recruiting boost for the Crimson Tide.

Biggest loss- Derick Smith . Many want to argue about in-state recruiting. It’s really more about your top targets at each position- and are you having success with those players. Alabama doesn’t have a safest on its commitment list after Smith recently flipped to Auburn. He was right at the top of Alabama’s wish list at the position- and just so happens to be an in-state player.

Tim Watts : There are so many to choose from and I like Russell but I’m not sure you can overlook Justin Hil l. This is not only an Ohio kid coveted by Ohio State but the Buckeyes were telling him they were creating an entire position in their defense just for him. Add in the fact Bama went through a coaching change and major props to the Tide staff especially Christian Robinson for getting back in the mix and landing him. It doesn’t seem like OSU loses many of those.

Biggest Loss-It depends on where Derick Smith ends up in college. He’s a talented guy on either side but if he projects at wide receiver it’s a different blow because without him at safety UA currently has none committed. He’s a big loss regardless but Josiah Shama would be my answer. He’s a guy who committed to Washington when the staff was there. He was a frequent visitor to the Capstone when they were hired at UA, Bama led for a long time and then it changed there at the end. Early on he was penciled in this class.

Joseph Hastings : I’m going with Ty Haywood for this response. Yes, he’s from Mississippi, but Haywood plays prep ball in the talent-rich state of Texas. It’s always big to land players out of the Lone Star State. He had a long list of suitors, with Oklahoma being the perceived favorite before official visits began. Alabama gaining momentum with him after his May 31 – June 2 official visit — his first trip to The Capstone — really helped to prove at the time that Bama’s o-line recruiting might be just fine; remember, they had no OL commitments at the time. The Tide held off Florida State and the Sooners for their highest-ranked commit in this class. An impressive victory for Bama to land Haywood, who remains their most recent 2025 commitment.

The biggest loss thus far, in my opinion, was Ivan Taylor . That’s mostly due to the quality of recruit he is and Alabama’s lack of a safety commit in this cycle. Bama got Taylor quietly in the spring and hosted him for an OV in June. There was some confidence, but Taylor ultimately ended up flipping from Notre Dame to Michigan. Taylor in this class with two other Top 100 DBs committed would certainly have changed the current perception of recruiting in the secondary.

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Which coach or coaches have impressed you the most of the recruiting trail?

Andrew Bone : The two coaches I’ll go with for this answer is Kalen DeBoer and Christian Robinson . Coach DeBoer wasn’t known as an ultimate closer on the recruiting trail but he was also at Washington. He then has the script A on his chest along with all the resources to be successful. The more parents and recruits you speak with the more you realize how personable he is and how much relationships truly matter.

Christian Robinson gets the other nod bc he essentially went 2 for 2 with his top targets at the Wolf position- Justin Hill and Dawson Merritt . Both of those players talk about how their relationship with Robinson was unlike anyone else. Two significant out of state wins for the Tide.

Tim Watts : I have to show Coach ‘Kap’ (Alabama OL coach Chris Kapilovic ) and (football GM) Courtney Morgan a lot of love here. They have tag teamed the offensive line this year and with great success. Look at not only the fact they added five players but it’s an elite group who was highly sought after nationally. A group of five with a player at each position. Can’t beat that.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Christian Robinson too. Dawson Meritt and Justin Hill were two tough battles that he was able to go in an battle for and they are at his position. So, a win-win. But overall this group has plenty of high fives to go around. They will be the first to tell you its a team effort and that started with the unofficial visit.

Joseph Hastings: For on-the-field coaches, it’s hard to ignore the job that JaMarcus Shephard has done. He made an immediate strong impression on Ryan Williams in January. Germie Bernard transferred from Washington to Alabama to continue being coached by him and Kalen DeBoer. Also, Caleb Cunningham said it was a visit from Shephard to his school in January that led to Alabama remaining in contention. His energy and passion for recruiting has stood out thus far.

Off the field, Eron Hodges has certainly made his mark. Numerous recruits have talked about the job he’s done. He’s also generated plenty of excitement for Alabama through his clever social media use. Definitely a name we hear mentioned in the interviews we conduct.

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What’s been the biggest takeaway since the new staff went to work in this cycle?

Andrew Bone : The sudden success after Coach Saban’s retirement. Everyone outside of Alabama was looking for a reason to celebrate the end of the Tide’s run. Some wanted to claim it was only bc of Nick Saban. Domani Jackson said it best on Tuesday, “The A doesn’t change. It’s still a powerhouse. Runs college football.”  It started with being able to get Ryan Williams back in the fold after his brief decommitment.

We then saw all the visitors during the spring. It turned into ‘so what? None are committing’. Officials visits start and a bunch of star players commit. Alabama moves all the way to No. 1.  ‘So what?  Still four months to go until signing day.’  Well what happens if the team goes on an incredible run this year? ‘So what’.  There’s always gonna be an excuse for some, but from January 10 until this moment there have been so many trying to doubt what this group can accomplish- so far, it’s been remarkable- and they’ll carry that LANK mentality throughout the season.

Tim Watts: The biggest surprise for me was the speed and the efficiency with how they put this class together piece by piece. They closed out ’24 with guys like Ryan Williams and Noah Carter while also landing future starters in the portal. But things really ramped up even for the 25 class early on with Jackson Lloyd visiting Tuscaloosa two weeks or so after DeBoer was named the head coach.

“Then we saw the triple digit visitors come through in the spring which was unprecedented. Followed by coaches on the road in the spring evaluation period. That Keelon Russell to Ty Haywood run that started in early June through mid-July might have seemed easy but so much work and preparation went into this class. Its currently no. 2 in the country but you aren’t finding many flaws with it. All of that while trying to get to know their current roster. Very strong work by everyone involved including the off the field/ office personnel.

Joseph Hastings : The biggest takeaway from this new staff is how recruits and players alike are willing to go from coast to coast to play for them, literally. That was evident with the numerous transfers from Washington to Bama — Austin Mack , Germie Bernard, Josh Cuevas , and Parker Brailsford . You also have players like Dijon Lee and Jackson Lloyd who were strongly considering the Huskies (Lloyd even had them as his No. 1 school before DeBoer left), and immediately showed high interest in Alabama because of DeBoer and Company. It’s evident that there’s a lot of trust between DeBoer/his staff and both recruits and their families.

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