Could Alabama's Defensive Line Haul of the 2023 Recruiting Cycle Be the Best in the Nick Saban Era?
Alabama football is already off to a hot start in the 2023 recruiting cycle with the additions of defensive backs Jahlil Hurley and Elliot Washington II but as the Crimson Tide begins to make its push toward another No. 1 class, the defensive line will need to be addressed, and this year could be the one of best years to beef up in the trenches in recent memory.
Mix in the amount of absurd in-state talent from Alabama and this could potentially be one of the best hauls under Nick Saban for the Crimson Tide at the position.
Let’s take a look at who Alabama is targeting, some of which will be in Tuscaloosa over the weekend for Junior Day.
Who Alabama leads for at the moment
Five-star Jayden Wayne (Lincoln - Tacoma, Wash.) No. 30 overall nationally
The 6-foot-5, 245-pound edge rusher and West Coast standout is scheduled to re-visit Tuscaloosa on April 2 after recently telling BamaCentral that Alabama is his top choice currently: “Alabama is on top for me. They set the standard, and they are the best. And then you’ve got Nick Saban. Nick Saban’s the GOAT. It’s been a while that Alabama’s been up there for me.”
Five-star Peter Woods (Thompson - Alabaster, Ala.) No. 28 overall nationally
Woods and Alabama have been linked together since the end of his freshman season at Thompson when he was originally offered and the Crimson Tide has been in the driver's seat of his recruitment since then. The 6-foot-3, 260-pound interior lineman will be making a return visit to the Capstone for Junior Day on Saturday. 2022 Alabama signee, linebacker Jeremiah Alexander has been and will continue to recruit his former teammate heavily.
Five-star James Smith (Carver - Montgomery, Ala.) No. 13 overall nationally
The battle for Smith, who is the consensus top-ranked player in the Yellowhammer State, appears to be coming down to Georgia and Alabama with the likes of Ohio State, Auburn and Texas A&M trailing behind. The 6-foot-4, 310-pounder has had a more quiet recruitment to this point but all signs of now are pointing that he ends up in Alabama's class. The Crimson Tide has struck gold in the Montgomery, Ala. area in recent memory and appear in a terrific position to do the same with Smith.
Four-star Kelby Collins (Gardendale - Gardendale, Ala.) No. 77 overall nationally
Collins, who grew up an Alabama fan, could be one of the next commitments on the board for the Crimson Tide. "I think I have a great relationship with all the coaches. Every time I go up there, everybody always stops and talks to me," Collins told BamaCentral last month. “I have a good relationship with coach Roach. We talk a lot, he talks to my dad a lot. It’s probably one of the top relationships I have out of all the schools.” The Gardendale, Ala. product will be at Ole Miss this weekend and Tennessee the next, but it would take a whole lot to pull the 6-foot-5, 280-pound linemen away from Saban and co.
Four-star Tomarrion Parker (Central - Phenix City, Ala.) No. 84 overall nationally
Alabama might have the slight edge for Parker now, but this race will be tight with the likes of Georgia, Ohio State, Tennessee, Texas A&M and Penn State all in the running. The Phenix City, Ala. area is not a historically great recruiting hotspot for the Crimson Tide but that might not be the case with Parker. The 6-foot-4, 255-pound defender will visit Tuscaloosa, Athens and Knoxville this month.
Four-star Hunter Osborne (Hewitt Trussville - Trussville, Ala.) No. 113 overall nationally
Osborne landed an offer from the Crimson Tide back in January and the relationship between the two has only grown since then. Alabama has landed plenty of talent out of Hewitt Trussville in recent memory like defensive back Malachi Moore and quarterback Paul Tyson and offensive lineman Pierce Quick before they transferred this offseason. Osborne is expected to return to campus later this month.
5-star Jayden Wayne
Photo | Jayden Wayne's Twitter account, @JaydenWayne8
Peter Woods
Peter Woods' Instagram, peterwoods.11
4-star Kelby Collins
Photo | Kelby Collins' Twitter account, @kelby_collins
5-star James Smith
Photo | Jake Crandall/ Advertiser / USA TODAY NETWORK
4-star Tomarrion Parker
Others in the mix
As for in-state prospects, former Alabama linebacker Courtney Upshaw's cousin, Eufaula's Yhonzae Pierre, is a prime candidate for this class as well. One of the Smith's teammates at Carver-Montgomery, edge rusher four-star Jaquavious Russaw would be another welcomed addition. Highland Home, Ala.'s four-star Keldric Faulk is one to keep an eye on, too, who Alabama has built a solid relationship with.
An intriguing out-of-state option for the Crimson Tide is five-star edge rusher Matayo Uiagalelei, the brother of Clemson quarterback D.J Uiagalelei. Dave Uiagalelei is not silent on social media of his love for Saban, which doesn't hurt the Crimson Tide's chances of landing arguably the No. 1 edge rusher in the country.
There will also always been flip candidates for a school like Alabama and the one player who many schools in the nation have their eye on currently is Notre Dame five-star commit, edge rusher Keon Keeley from Tampa, Fla., who visited Tuscaloosa back in January. Fending off the likes of the Crimson Tide, Ohio State, and Michigan will be extremely difficult for the Fighting Irish.
What this class could mean historically for Alabama
In the last three cycles, the Crimson Tide has landed at least two five-stars on the defensive line — 2020 (Will Anderson Jr. and Chris Braswell), 2021 (Dallas Turner and Damon Payne) and 2022 (Jeremiah Alexander and Jihaad Campbell). So the fact that Alabama is in an outstanding position to land three with Woods, Smith and Wayne, maybe four with Uiagalelei, is utterly remarkable from that standpoint, and shows that Saban and company have no signs of slowing down.
If it secures the signatures of Collins, Parker and Osborne, all six of the defensive lineman they would take would rank inside the consensus top 113, which would top what it just did in the 2022 cycle with four of its five signees at the position ranking inside the top 74.
One of the more crazy aspects of this very possible defensive line class for Alabama, is the fact that five of out of six, with the chance for more, would come from inside the state. That is typically unheard of for any school to dominate that much in its own borders for one cycle regardless of what school.
However, most of the time rankings can't predict the future so don't be tricked into thinking that's the end all be all. In 2019, seven of the Crimson Tide's eight defensive-line signees ranked inside the top 164 — No. 5 Antonio Alfano, No. 47 Ishmael Sopsher, No. 62 Justin Eboigbe, No. 77 Byron Young, No. 123 Kevin Harris, No. 158 King Mwikuta and No. 164 Braylen Ingraham. DJ Dale ranked 254th in the nation coming out of that class.
Four of those players are no longer with Alabama, one has seen action in just four games across three seasons, with the other three becoming key contributors on the Alabama defense the last two seasons. One could argue the lowest ranked prospect out of the group, Dale at 254, has been the most productive.
On paper, it very well could be the greatest haul at the position that Saban has had in 16 seasons at the helm but, of course, that won't matter to him until these guys prove their worth at the collegiate level. Maybe, there's another Dale, a sleeper, in this class who could prove the rankings and pundits wrong.
