SEC Football Recruiting: Ranking the SEC in the Class of 2012 (4-1)
#4 Texas A&M- 19 Commits (1 Rivals 5* and 5 Rivals 4*’s)
Key Commits-
- 5* RB Trey Williams
- 4* DB Devante Harris
- 3* DB Otis Jacobs
Breakdown-
Texas A&M put together a nice inaugural class in the SEC, complete with the dynamic play-making running back that they so desperately needed. The Aggies are losing Cyrus Gray and Christine Michael is recovering from an ACL-injury on top of the fact that he was named like girl (not-so-subtle.) The SEC’s new gateway drug to Texas also needed to add help in the defensive backfield, and they added a speedy corner in Devante Harris and a physical game-ready JUCO cornerback in Otis Jacobs. It looked like A&M was set to finish third in my SEC rankings on Tuesday night, but Auburn’s flurry on National Signing Day simply vaulted them ahead of TAMU. But, the Aggies still put together a great class.
#3 Auburn- 19 Commits (11 Rivals 4*’s)
Key Commits-
- 4* WR JaQuay Williams
- 4* OT Avery Young
- 4* DB Joshua Holsey
Breakdown-
On Tuesday night, Auburn went to bed ranked eighth in the SEC by Rivals.com, but the Tigers were always poised for a strong close to their class. The Tigers were able to roll up four commitments today, two of which were four-stars, and they come in at No. 3 in the SEC tonight. Wide receiver’s JaQuay Williams and Ricardo Louis both address one of Auburn’s most critical needs, and the NSD acquisition of Rivals 100 OT Avery Young cannot be understated either. Closing strong is always critical in the SEC, and Gene Chizik and Auburn put the finishing touches on another stellar class with a solid day on Wednesday.
#2 Florida- 23 Commits (3 Rivals 5*’s and 11 Rivals 4*’s)
Key Commits-
- 5* DE Jonathan Bullard
- 5* OL D.J. Humphries
- 4* RB Matt Jones
Breakdown-
Any time you add a pair of talents to your defensive line like five-stars Jonathan Bullard and Dante Fowler Jr., you’ve put together an incredible class. The SEC has made a living off of dominant defensive lines in the past decade, and it appears the Gators are putting together an unreal front-four. On the flip side, the Gators had their struggles on the offensive line, but they were able to add one of the nation’s best OL in D.J. Humphries. However, perhaps their biggest need was to add a traditional running back now that Rainey and Demps are gone and the Gators are hoping to find more traditional offense, and they hit their mark with 6’3” 225 lb. Matt Jones. The Gators actually missed on a few more five-star caliber prospects, otherwise they would have made a serious push for No. 1.
#1 Alabama- 26 Commits (3 Rivals 5*’s and 14 Rivals 4*’s)
Key Commits-
- 5* RB T.J. Yeldon
- 5* DB Landon Collins
- 4* LB Reggie Ragland
Breakdown-
For the fourth time in the last five years, Nick Saban has the Alabama Crimson Tide perched atop Rivals.com’s team recruiting rankings, not just in the SEC, but nationally. Saban, who is coming off his third overall BCS championship, had his defense decimated by early entry into the draft, and proceeded to laugh his way to the bank on National Signing Day. Nick Saban doesn’t rebuild, you stupid dummies, he reloads. They lose proven starters like Dre Kirkpatrick and Mark Barron in their secondary and they go out and grab highly-coveted stars like Travell Dixon and Landon Collins (overcoming a Jerry Springer-like family drama to nab the latter.) They needed a tailback to replace Trent Richardson too, and they got arguably the best back on the market with T.J. Yeldon. The Tide’s depth chart is loaded with Top 100 talents, and Alabama has just added more fuel to the championship fire with the Class of 2012.
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