Will Alabama football beat out Ohio State football for the best 2021 class?
Alabama football has made up some serious ground on Ohio State football in recruiting.
The Alabama Crimson Tide added four blue-chip prospects in the last 10 days. On July 17, Alabama landed a pair of Texas Longhorns legacies in the Brockermeyer twins (James and Tommy). James is a four-star center, while Tommy is a five-star offensive tackle and top-10 overall prospect, according to the 247Sports Composite.
On July 19, two days after James and Tommy Brockermeyer committed to the Crimson Tide, they were joined by four-star guard prospect Terrence Ferguson as the newest members of the Crimson Tide recruiting class. Along with five-star offensive tackle JC Latham, who committed to Alabama on June 12, Alabama might be assembling the greatest offensive line class of all time.
Though the Crimson Tide went from No. 6 to No. 2 in the 2021 class rankings, they still trailed the Ohio State Buckeyes a bit for the top spot. However, after adding another five-star commit on Sunday in defensive tackle Damon Payne, what are the chances Alabama usurps Ohio State to end up with the best recruiting class in this cycle?
Will Alabama football have the best recruiting class of this cycle?
As of Monday, July 27, Alabama trails Ohio State 305.47 to 280.75 in terms of recruiting points. With Payne’s commitment on Sunday afternoon, Alabama has tied Ohio with four five-star commitments apiece. While both Power 5 schools rank No. 1 in their conferences, Ohio State has three more commits than Alabama and three more four-star commits over the Crimson Tide.
That is the difference right now between Alabama and Ohio State; three four-star commits. Where Alabama could make up ground is the Crimson Tide have four more five-star players looking at them, while Ohio State only has three. However, two of those guys Ohio State is in on might commit to play for Ryan Day in defensive end J.T. Tuimoloau and wide receiver Emeka Egbuka.
Though Tuimoloau and Egbuka hail from Washington state, they are favored to play their college ball in The Horseshoe in Columbus. Alabama’s best shot at another five-star is cornerback Ga’Quincy McKinstry. He might be the best player in Alabama, but the Crimson Tide will have to scratch and claw with the arch-rival Auburn Tigers for his high-profile commitment.
Alabama will need to add more four-star recruits to fill out its recruiting class. What this comes down to is if Tuimoloau or Egbuka leave the West Coast to go to school in the Midwest. If one or both commit to Ohio State, it might be too tall of a hill to climb for Alabama to get to No. 1. If only one comes, they’ve got a chance, as long as the Crimson Tide secure McKinstry’s commitment.
Alabama has a shot at the No. 1 class in the nation, but Ohio State is still in the driver’s seat for it.
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