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Alabama Football: 2018 Defensive Back Signees, Commits and Prospects

By Ronald Evans

TUSCALOOSA, AL - SEPTEMBER 17: Fans cheer as coach Nick Saban leads the Alabama Crimson Tide out of the locker room for a game against North Texas on September 17, 2011 at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. (Photo by Butch Dill/Getty Images)
TUSCALOOSA, AL - SEPTEMBER 17: Fans cheer as coach Nick Saban leads the Alabama Crimson Tide out of the locker room for a game against North Texas on September 17, 2011 at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. (Photo by Butch Dill/Getty Images) /
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The latest news on Alabama football 2018 defensive back signees, commits and remaining top prospects, two weeks from National Signing Day.

Alabama football has a numbers crunch in the 2018 Signing Class. The class is limited by three carryovers from 2017. Only Nick Saban knows how the final numbers will work. Various recruiting experts predict the Tide will sign between eight and ten additional players for 2018.

With zero defensive backfield starters returning in 2018, the secondary is a major priority for Nick Saban. Let’s review the new secondary signees and the remaining top prospects. The recruiting plan is to add two more defensive backs or three if the numbers allow.

2018 Defensive Back Signees

  • Saivion Smith –  247Sports has Saivion rated as a 4-Star recruit, the No. 1 JUCO cornerback and the No. 2 JUCO player in the nation. Smith began practicing with the Tide in December. In addition to his JUCO season, he played in 10 games for LSU as a freshman. His playing experience makes him a probable starter at cornerback in 2018.
  • Jalyn Armour-Davis – Based on the 247Sports Composite, Jalyn is a 4-Star, No. 15 rated CB and the No. 122 Overall player in the nation. Jalyn has all the attributes to become a top cornerback, size, speed and flexibility. Unlike most top recruits, he is reported open to a redshirt season in 2018.
  • Josh Jobe – Based on the 247Sports Composite, Josh Jobe is a 4-Star, No. 13 rated CB and the Overall No. 95 player in the nation. He could play any of several positions at Alabama, including cornerback and safety.

2018 Defensive Back Commits

Alabama football has no current additional commits.

2018 Defensive Back Top Prospects

For Alabama football fans asking if other position groups are an equal priority for Nick Saban, consider this. Based on the 247Sports Composite, Alabama football has current offers to the top four cornerback prospects in the nation. Two of them visited last weekend. The other two are visiting January 26th.

  • Patrick Surtain Jr. – Surtain Jr. is a 5-Star, No. 1 ranked CB and the No. 6 Overall player in the nation based on 247Sports. Some recruiting experts believe Alabama football has replaced LSU as Patrick’s top choice. He visited Tuscaloosa January 19-21.
  •  Tyson Campbell – Campbell is a 5-Star, No. 2 ranked CB and the No. 11 Overall player in the nation. He visited on January 19th and was reported to have loved the weekend. Most recruiting experts see Georgia as his final choice.
  • Olaijah Griffin – Griffin is a 5-Star, No. 3 rated CB and the No. 25 Overall player in the nation. Griffin de-committed from UCLA in late December. USC and Tennessee are projected as his current leaders but he is visiting Tuscaloosa January 26th.
  • Isaac Taylor-Stuart – Taylor-Stuart is a 5-Star, No. 4 rated CB and the No. 35 Overall player in the nation. His recruitment was once considered a USC and Texas A&M battle. When assistant coach Jeff Banks left TAMU to join the Tide, Alabama jumped into what some recruiting experts believe is the top position. He will visit Tuscaloosa on January 26th.
  • Eddie Smith – Smith is rated as a 3-Star CB. The Tide coaches rate him much higher. It is possible Alabama football might choose Smith over one of the 5-Stars listed above. Tennessee is believed to be Eddie’s leader. He will visit on January 26th.
  • Kelvin Joseph – Joseph is a 4-Star, No. 5 rated Safety and the No. 41 Overall player in the nation. Joseph is a LSU commit but he is continuing to take visits. He will be in Tuscaloosa on January 26th.
  • Julius Irvin – Irvin is a 4-Star, No. 12 rated Safety. USC is projected as his leader. He visited Tuscaloosa on January 19th.
  • Kevontae’ Ruggs – Ruggs is a 3-Star and rated as the No. 30 OLB. At 6-feet-4 and 190 pounds, Ruggs is projected as an Alabama safety. Making room for the younger brother of Henry Ruggs III is important for the Tide. The most probable option is a grayshirt.

Next: 30 Great Tide Players who were 3-Star Recruits

Check back for updates of this post with new information leading up to National Signing Day (NSD). NSD has become NSD2 this year with the NCAA addition of the Early Signing Period. NSD2 is February 7th.

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