Kemon Spell was one of the first players in the 2027 class to commit, but with his junior season just getting underway, his recruitment is far from over. Spell committed to Penn State on August 2, 2024, heading into his sophomore year, but he has gameday official visits planned all across the country, and is keeping Alabama in the mix.
On Tuesday, Hayes Fawcett of Rivals reported that the No. 1 running back in the country has a list of six schools that have the best chance of flipping his commitment before he heads to Happy Valley.
Five-Star Penn State RB commit Kemon Spell says these 6 schools have the best shot at flipping him, he tells me for @rivals
— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) August 26, 2025
The No. 1 RB in the 2027 class will take gameday visits to each, starting this weekend at Ohio State
Read: https://t.co/41XivaYriX pic.twitter.com/igOoBhlXYq
Kemon Spell still considering Crimson Tide with official visit coming in October
While Spell is keeping seven programs in the mix, his official visit schedule for the fall reveals a clear top four, and again, the Tide make the cut. Spell is scheduled for an official visit to Tuscaloosa on October 18, when Alabama hosts Tennessee. It is the fourth of his four gameday visits on the docket with trips to South Bend, Happy Valley, and Tallahassee preceding it.
Spell currently ranks as the No. 9 player in the 2027 class according to 247Sports Composite Rankings, and could be on the rise this season after the dominant start to his junior year. On Friday, Spell scored a touchdown on his first three touches for the game for McKeeseport High School in Pittsburgh, PA, and ended the game with five touchdowns and well over 200 yards rushing.
Spell has a rare combination of quickness and power, and would be an incredible addition to Alabama’s stable of running backs. Kalen DeBoer is doing his best to develop the running back depth behind Jam Miller this season, but long-term, the outlook is stronger with 2025 four-star AK Dear on campus and 2026 four-star commit Ezavier Crowell on the way.
Still, Spell is a level above those two players as recruits and could return the Tide to the days of Mark Ingram, Trent Richardson, and Derrick Henry, when no program was better at running the ball. DeBoer is known for his quarterback development ability, but his best team at Washington in 2023 was one of the more efficient running teams in the country, ranking 25th in EPA/carry and 16th in rushing success rate.
Alabama is returning to a more traditional running game this season with the departure of Jalen Milroe, who necessitated DeBoer and Nick Sheridan to run an option-based attack out of the shotgun. If that style of run game is effective for the Tide this season, it could be a selling point to Spell, who appears to be wavering from his Penn State commitment.