Alabama has signed plenty of talented wide receivers over the years, and in the Nick Saban era the Alabama WR-to-NFL pipeline flourished.
Julio Jones, Amari Cooper, Calvin Ridley, Jerry Jeudy, Henry Ruggs, DeVonta Smith, and Jaylen Waddle were recruited out of high school by the Crimson Tide and became first-round NFL Draft picks.
The talent at WR has dipped in recent seasons, and Alabama's only first-round pick since the "Ryde-Outs" era was Ohio State transfer Jameson Williams, who parlayed one brilliant season in Tuscaloosa into being the 12th overall pick by the Detroit Lions.
With Kalen DeBoer now in charge, and with one of the best WR coaches in the country in JaMarcus Shephard, the talent is getting back to where Tide fans are used to it. Freshman Ryan Williams burst onto the scene last year and is considered one of the two best receivers in the country heading into his sophomore season.
Alabama didn't sign a 5-star WR in the 2025 class, but Derek Meadows and Lotzeir Brooks are both capable of making impacts.
In the 2026 class, Alabama has three receivers committed already. The headliner of that group is 5-star Cederian Morgan from Alexander City, AL. He's not only one of the top recruits in the nation, but one of the highest-rated recruits the Crimson Tide has ever signed at his position.
Cederian Morgan is ranked as the 4th best WR recruit in Alabama history
It remains to be seen how Cederian Morgan's career shakes out in Tuscaloosa, but he will arrive as one of the top WR recruits in program history. You can view the full list on 247 here.
It's important to remember that these rankings don't take into account how their college careers went. That's why Agiye Hall is ranked ahead of Amari Cooper and DeVonta Smith, and Robert Foster is one spot ahead of Jerry Jeudy.
There are warning signs for Morgan littered throughout. Just because you come to campus with hype doesn't guarantee success.
No. 1 on the list is obvious. You probably could have guessed it before looking at the list or reading this article. Julio Jones is one of the best recruits in the history of the sport. He's inarguably one of the best high school players in the history of the state. He went on to a great run with Alabama, and then what should be a Hall-of-Fame worthy career in the NFL.
No. 2 is Williams, who flashed his immense potential last year. No. 3 is Ridley. What do those three guys have in common? They were all No. 1 options as true freshmen. That's a burden that Morgan won't have to carry, but he has placed high expectations on himself to contribute in his first season.