Alabama's biggest strength: running back-espnbama

Tide in the NFL: UA alum will win ring for 5th straight year-bol

"If I had a dollar for every time Nick Saban and Miss Terry [Saban's wife] asked me if we were getting Julio, I'd be retired," Thompson said. "That was my guy. Julio was the capstone kid. Good players attract other good players."
But Jones was not the original catalyst. It wasn't Barron, either. Or Upshaw. Or Terrence Cody. Or Marcell Dareus. Or Barrett Jones. Or the meaty list of commits who have logged minutes in the NFL.
No, the initial spark that ignited the dynasty was B.J. Scott, a highly touted defensive back out of Vigor High in Prichard, Alabama.
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There you go, folks. You can thank B.J. Scott for the dynasty. He was Saban’s first five-star commit in Tuscaloosa and played a pivotal role in getting all of those other blue chips to buy in.
Of course, Saban has continued to raise the recruiting bar since, and looks to close with another top class:

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5-star defensive end LaBryan Ray (Madison, Ala.)
Several people close to the Alabama program said Ray’s visit seemed to be a hit. The confidence level of getting Ray to commit on National Signing Day remains very high. That could be backed up with another in-state defensive end canceling his official visit to Alabama this upcoming weekend.
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As expected Jahavonte Dean, CB from Texas, de-committed. Alabama was no longer actively pursuing Dean and this change frees up a much-needed slot. Alabama’s priorities at DB are Todd Harris, who is visiting this weekend and C.J. Henderson, who is visiting Florida...
Henry Ruggs, WR from Montgomery is being encouraged to move up his announcement. Alabama wants Ruggs and prefers he not wait until Signing Day. Only rumor at this point, but Ruggs may be willing to announce for the Tide in the next few days.
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Dean hasn’t been expected to be a part of the class for months now. Ruggs, Ray, and at least one of Henderson or Harris would round out the class nicely.

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One of the three remaining members expected to arrive before spring practice, 4-star safety Daniel Wright from Boyd Anderson High School (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.), was supposed to be in Tuscaloosa on Jan. 6 but now won’t enroll until Feb. 13, according to his mother.
Feb. 13 is also the date that 4-star safety Xavier McKinney is expected to arrive in Tuscaloosa, too. Like Wright, McKinney needs to finish one more class before he gets to Alabama.
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To be frank, I’m not sure how this works. February 13 is far too late to enroll for spring semester. I assume that they will be enrolling for the summer and will thus be eligible for spring despite not being enrolled in classes.

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Oregon firing newly hired co-OC after DUI arrest-sbnation

UCLA’s Jim Mora hires two more coaches, including former Bruins RB DeShaun Foster-cft

With just two major weekends left in the 2017 recruiting cycle, here's a look at where South Carolina stands in the race to National Signing Day.

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Watson still an option for Browns despite skipping Senior Bowl-sn

Video: Julio Jones has monster day as Atlanta Falcons reach the Super Bowl-sds

Alabama football: A Crimson Tide Super Bowl, again-seccountry