Texan-heavy class labeled best ever
Alabama’s 2021 recruiting class, featuring seven Texans including two Houston-area products, is officially the best of all time according to 247Sports.
Garland Lakeview running back Camar Wheaton’s signature with the Crimson Tide during national signing day on Wednesday gave Alabama its seventh five-star recruit during this cycle. According to 247Sports’ composite rankings, the class accumulated 325.95 points, which tops the 324.62 from Florida’s 2010 class.
Alabama signed more players from Texas in its 2021 class than any other state, including its own (five) and Florida (six).
Tompkins’ Jalen Milroe is the only quarterback signed in the class. Milroe is a former University of Texas commitment.
North Shore offensive guard Jaeden Roberts is also part of the class. Roberts is a former Auburn commitment.
“I think there’s a lot of balance in this class,” Alabama coach Nick Saban said. “But as I always talk about, we’re not really interested in rankings or ratings or anything like that because I think that how guys develop in your program is really what is the most important thing.”
Alabama’s class features 13 of the nation’s top 58 prospects, according to composite rankings of recruiting sites compiled by 247Sports.
That group includes offensive tackles JC Latham and Tommy Brockermeyer, who are rated the second- and fifth-best prospects, respectively. The others are cornerback Ga’Quincy McKinstry; defensive tackle Damon Payne; wide receivers , Agiye Hall and JoJo Earle; Wheaton; safety Terrion Arnold; linebacker Deontae Lawson; offensive guard Terrence Ferguson; and defensive ends Dallas Turner and Keanu Koht.
With the vast majority of prospects again finalizing their decisions in December, Alabama already had assured itself of landing the nation’s top class well before Christmas. The only suspense remaining heading into the February signing day was where the Tide’s class would rank historically.
When Wheaton and Arnold signed with the Tide on Wednesday, it put Alabama’s rating ahead of that Florida 2010 class for first place. Wheaton had committed to Alabama in December but hadn’t yet signed, while Arnold was previously uncommitted.
“(Saban’s) message to me was just, ‘Why not come to a winning program?’ ” Arnold said during the ESPN telecast that aired his announcement. “The competition level there is high-level competition, and if I feel like I’m one of the best players in the country. Why not go compete with the best?”
Alabama’s star-studded class reflected a year in which the rich got richer.
The coronavirus pandemic made this recruiting cycle different from any other. Virtual campus tours replaced official visits and coaches and prospects communicated via Zoom. But the results were familiar.
The top five teams in the 247Sports composite rankings are the same five that topped last year’s rankings.
“We turned what would have been official visits and camps and all those things into virtual reality, so to speak, in terms of how we managed, how we developed relationships, the time we spent with the players we recruited and the relationships we were able to develop,” Saban said.