Tomorrow’s All-American: Special Edition – Quarterback Alec Morris

Anyone who follows recruiting knows what a rollercoaster it can be. Just when you think you have a handle on the way things will turn out, it all gets turned upside down. That has certainly been the story with the quarterback recruiting for Alabama’s 2012 class.

The nation’s top two quarterbacks in 2012 are Gunner Kiel and Jamies Winston, according to most scouting services. Alabama extended offers to both Kiel and Winston and were named as one of the top two choices by both of these elite prospects. It stands to reason that Alabama would have landed at least one of these players, especially since Winston is an Alabama kid.

Well, that just wasn’t the case. In July, Kiel announced his commitment to Indiana and surprised everyone. Following Kiel’s announcement to Indiana, many people believed Winston was a shoo-in for Alabama. That was turned upside down as well when he committed to Florida State. With no other big name quarterback prospects out there, many believed Alabama had lost hope for an elite quarterback for the 2012 class. However, that proved to be a premature assumption as well.

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In early August – right after Winston chose FSU over Alabama – came the announcement that Alec Morris from Allen, Texas had committed to play quarterback. The message boards lit up with hundreds of posts asking anything and everything about Morris, a relatively unknown prospect who in fact committed to Wake Forrest before flipping to the Tide.

Alec was a three-star prospect not many Tide fans had heard of, but the Tide staff was clearly high on him; he immediately came on board when the top two prospects were gone. Most of the Tide fans considered Morris a consolation prize – and many still do – but those fans might be a bit blinded by their obsession for high star ratings and can’t see the big picture.

Alec Morris is 6-foot-4-inch, 235 pound quarterback and may be the most underrated prospect in the nation. Morris played for Allen (Texas) High School; a premier football school residing in one of the best divisions in the entire nation. The level of competition Morris and his teammates faced week in and week out was far better than who the top two quarterbacks faced, and Morris was sensational.

Alec Morris was only the starting quarterback for one year prior to his senior campaign, and because of that scouting services were reluctant to bump him up, despite his having outperformed every other player in the country as a senior. Morris exploded onto the scene in his final year, taking his team to an undefeated regular season and the second round of the playoffs before losing in the final seconds of the game.

There is debate on what separates players from one another, but there just is no arguing what they do on the field, and Morris is easily the best in that category. Alec Threw for a whopping 3,242 yards and 32 touchdowns, and ran for nine more for 41 touchdowns on the year, with an average completion rate of 61.1 percent. That’s better than the two top-rated five-star prospects Alabama previously recruited, and better than just about any other quarterback in the United States. The people I have spoken to inside the Alabama program are as excited about Morris and his potential as any other recruit, and it seems they have gotten themselves a future superstar.

Alec Morris has the necessary size to be an elite SEC quarterback for the Tide. He also possesses a toughness that will serve him well, but his most impressive attribute is his arm. Alec has displayed the ability time and time again to make any throw on the field, and displays no apparent weaknesses in his passing game. According to staff, he has the strongest arm of all the quarterbacks Alabama offered, including the two five-star players.

Alabama has never been a team that wants the quarterback to take off and run, but if the opportunity is there it’s good to know he can do so. Morris ran 94 times for 329 yards and nine touchdowns, so he has the ability to get downfield when need be. He is the biggest quarterback in stature that Alabama has recruited in a long time, and once Coach Cochran gets him working out he will become even more formidable.

Morris has primarily played out of the shotgun formation, so there will be a bit of a change lining up under center. Many people expect some growing pains due to his lack of experience under center, but when you look at the Tide’s offense, there are a lot of play action fakes that are much different than a straight dropback.

One of the factors that bears repeating is the way this young man feels about playing for Alabama. He is excited and grateful to have the opportunity, and when he received the offer he jumped on it. Players often look at early playing time as one of the main factors in their decision, instead of weighing the opportunity to learn and develop. Alec has a great attitude towards his decision and genuinely wants to be a part of this team. I’ll take a kid that definitely wants to play for Alabama over one that is worried about playing as a freshman any day. In this case, the kid that knows he wants to play for Alabama is one of the best quarterbacks in America, regardless of star rating.

Alec will not be moved up beyond a low four-star rating by any of the scouting services, despite outperforming just about everyone on the field. By giving Morris the five-star rating that he has clearly earned on the field, the scouting experts would be admitting they misevaluated him last year. The benefit to Alabama is, getting a five-star talent with a three-star rating is the equivalent of ordering a hot dog and the waitress bringing you a filet mignon.

The Tide was actually fortunate to land Alec, and thanks to the scouting services letting him slip by it wasn’t a recruiting battle to get him. By sheer fate and a little bit of luck the Crimson Tide stumbled upon a star in the making, and now they can’t wait to get him on campus so he can begin his process. We here at BamaHammer can say Roll Tide Mr. Morris, we are extremely glad to have you.