Does "Athlete" Designation in Recruiting Set Prospects Back, Even at Alabama?

Bonus 5x5: Five different ways to rate the top players at each position for the Crimson Tide during the greatest dynasty in college football history.

Make no mistake, he wasn't necessarily recruited as a quarterback. He played the position at Gainesville High School in Georgia, but being an elite sprinter in track as well was what made Blake Sims a premier prospect who attracted all the top schools. 

So no one knew what position he would play at the next level, including Alabama. the coaches tried him a little at safety and wide receiver, and also as a running back, but Sims kept coming back to quarterback. In 2014, the Crimson Tide brought in Jake Coker as a transfer from Florida State, and many automatically assumed that the competition wouldn't be close. It wasn't. Having been in the offensive system since 2010, Sims won the job. 

Despite the doubters, and there were plenty of them, he was arguably the best story in college football during the 2014 season. Sims may also be the perfect example of how the "Athlete" designation can be tough to overcome at the collegiate level. When a player's position isn't obvious, or has yet to be determined, that's how he's labeled by recruiting services. Position: Athlete

Sometimes it's a polite way of saying the coaches want to see if he can catch the ball consistently before designating him a safety instead of a wide receiver. It can also indicate the player may be physically geared for another position (both Derrick Henry and Bo Scarbrough were listed as "athletes" by some recruiting services even though they were obviously running backs. They would look at their size and immediately project that they could end up as linebackers). 

Or it could simply mean what the title indicates, the player was a standout athlete with his position to be determined. Current Crimson Tide safety Kristian Story is a terrific example. Coming out of the small city of Lanett on the Georgia border, his Alabama bio includes "a consensus four-star prospect who played quarterback in high school but projects all over the football field ... set the record for career touchdowns in the history of the Alabama High School Athletics Association with 175 total scores."

Alabama has a handful of players on the roster who were listed as "athletes" for their position including wide receivers Emmanuel Henderson and Kendrick Law, safety Antonio Kite, and yes, cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry. When he was named the state's Mr. Football, he was a two-way star at Pinson Valley High in suburban Birmingham. As a wide receiver, McKinstry caught 45 passes for 706 yards and 11 touchdowns, including the go-ahead score in the Class 6A state title game, a 23-13 victory over Spanish Fort.

On defense, McKinstry finished with 21 tackles, 13 pass breakups and two interceptions, returning both for touchdowns. When Alabama announced his signing class, McKinstry was listed as a defensive back, but there's little doubt he could have been a wide receiver or safety for the Crimson Tide. 

Alabama's best success story with that kind of position decision during the Nick Saban era has obviously been Trevon Diggs, who went from being a wide receiver his first year at Alabama, 2016, to being an All-Pro cornerback with the Dallas Cowboys in 2021 (see below). 

On the other end, though, the initial lack of a set position may make it tougher for some to acclimate and succeed at the college level, especially since it can take a couple of years to be in a position to make a significant contribution. With the transfer portal an easy exit, coupled with the potential of more playing time elsewhere (among other factors) Alabama's seen the likes of athletes Kadarius Calloway (now at Old Dominion), Shawn Burgess-Becker (UCF), Chadarius Townsend (Texas Tech), Brandon Turnage (Tennessee) and Xavier Williams (Utah State, but went back into the portal) depart. 

Sims could have obviously taken that option, but didn't, and there was never a guarantee that it would pay off in the end. During what was really Alabama's first quarterback competition under Saban, he didn't have a full grip on the starting role until a couple of games into his senior season.

It paid off at LSU, where he almost mimicked what AJ McCarron had pulled off two years earlier, leading a clutch rally at Death Valley for the dramatic 20-13 victory. With no time outs he completed 4 of 6 passes while leading a 47-second drive down to the 10-yard line, with kicker Adam Griffith making the field goal to send the game into overtime. Sims subsequently threw the game-winning touchdown pass to DeAndrew White.

“It was big,” Sims said at the time. “It let the team know that we're capable of doing anything that we need to do. It showed that we've got the poise to, when times were going rough for us the whole game, when it's time for the clutch time we can pull it through.”

Of the 19 players designated an "athlete" by recruiting services during the Saban era (Henry and Scarbrough not included), Sims had the second-lowest rating even though he was a consensus 4-star talent. He went on to lead Alabama to the 2014 SEC title and into the inaugural College Football Playoff as the top-seeded team. Moreover, and probably more telling, was that he was named a team captain. 

The Best Alabama "Athletes" of the Nick Saban Era

Five different ways to rate the top players at each position for the Crimson Tide during the greatest dynasty in college football history.

Recruiting

The top 5 "athlete" prospects when signing with the Crimson Tide:

1. Kool-Aid McKinstry, 2021
2. Eddie Williams, 2012
3. Emmanuel Henderson, 2022
4. B.J. Scott, 2008
5. ArDarius Stewart, 2013

The next five:

Shyheim Carter, 2016
Cyrus Jones, 2012
Kendrick Law, 2022
Antonio Kite, 2022
Kadarius Calloway, 2021

Key Statistics: Blake Sims

• Broke AJ McCarron’s single-season passing record with 3,487 yards, to go with 28 touchdowns and 10 interceptions
• Receiver Amari Cooper set single-season school records for receiving yards and receptions, 1,727 and 124, respectively
• Threw for 445 yards against Florida. At the time was the second most in a game in Crimson Tide history
• Was credited with 83 carries for 350 yards and seven rushing touchdowns
• Sacked just 13 times 
• Had 3,837 yards of total offense
• Passer efficiency rate of 157.9
• At the time, his career passer rating of 155.2 was the third best in Crimson Tide history, behind AJ McCarron (162.5), Greg McElroy (155.4) 

Awards/Major Honors: Trevon Diggs

In 2019, Trevon Diggs was named first-team All-SEC by media, but second-team by the coaches, which is the one the league goes by. He was not selected as an All-American by any of the services the NCAA uses for determining consensus or unanimous status.

But he played the 2016 season primarily as a wide receiver. His progression was just beginning as a cornerback (and it's why you hear analysts say that he goes after passes like a receiver when he makes his interceptions).  

2017: Started season opener against Florida State, but Levi Wallace took over. 

2018: Won starting job, played six games before suffering a broken foot. Had 20 tackles and an interception. 

2019: Totaled 37 tackles, three interceptions (tied for second on the team), eight passes defensed (tied for the team lead) and two fumble recoveries, and had a record-setting 100-yard touchdown return against Tennessee. 

Trevon Diggs with a 100-yard scoop’n score against Tennessee in 2019 #RollTide #TennesseeHateWeek pic.twitter.com/SQ5IDkanyp

— MattHasTweets (@MattHasTweets_) October 12, 2022

2020: Selected in second round of NFL draft by Dallas Cowboys. Started 11 of 12 games and started 11 out of 12 games, had 56 tackles, three 3 interceptions, 14 passes defensed, one sack and one forced fumble.

2021: Led NFL in interceptions with 11, the most by any player since Everson Walls in 1981. Also had 56 tackles and 21 passes defended. Named All-Pro and to Pro Bowl. 

2022: Diggs registered a career-high 59 tackles, with three interceptions and one fumble recovery. He again was named to the Pro Bowl. 

2023: Diggs signed a 5-year, $97 million contract extension with the Cowboys worth up to $104 million in potential bonuses

NFL Draft

Three players who came in as "athletes" without a set position went on to be selected: 

1. Trevon Diggs, CB, 2020, Dallas Cowboys, second round 
2. Cyrus Jones, CB, 2016, New England Patriots, second round
3. ArDarius Stewart, WR, 2017, New York Jets, third round

Overall

This is probably the toughest rating to do since everyone played at different positions: 

1. Trevon Diggs
2. Blake Sims
3. Kool-Aid McKinstry
4. Cyrus Jones
5. ArDarius Stewart

This is the 15th, and final, story in the 5x5 series. Check out:

Offense

Quarterbacks
Running backs
Wide receivers
Tight ends
Centers
Tackles
Guards

Defense

Defensive ends
Defensive tackles
Interior linebackers
OLB/Edge rushers
Safeties
Cornerbacks

Special Teams