Alabama Crimson Tide

Holding more than 40 offers, running back Joe Mixon (Oakley, Calif./Freedom) is arguably the most sought-after recruit in the West region. The 6-foot-2, 205-pound, four-star back is the top running back in the West and the No. 135 player in the country. His offer sheet has seemingly grown by the minute this spring, but he isn't in any hurry to narrow it down.

Despite tweeting out a list of 16 programs several weeks ago, Mixon said Sunday that he only did that to highlight the schools recruiting him the hardest, not anything to be taken as a group of finalists.

"I'm still talking to a lot of people," Mixon said. "The recruiting thing has been crazy the past couple of weeks. I've pretty much been taking it well. I talk to them before school, during lunch and after school. I'm not to the stressful part yet, but the hard part has been staying in contact with everybody."

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HOUSTON, Texas -- After a busy track and field season, ESPN Watch List linebacker Zach Whitley Jr. is turning his attention back to football.

The 2014 prospect's time on the track for this season is complete and on Tuesday at Houston North Shore, the soon-to-be-senior was out at Galena Park ISD Stadium, barking out calls to his defensive teammates during 7-on-7 sessions as he and the Mustangs prepare for the 2013 season.

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TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- Tampa Jesuit linebacker Vincent Jackson has plenty of scholarship offers from all over the country, but two schools he didn’t know as much about were Alabama and Auburn. He visited the two in-state rivals over the weekend.

Jackson arrived in Tuscaloosa on Friday with his friend and ESPN Watch List offensive lineman Isaiah Wynn. The two toured the school, the facilities, and watched the scrimmage before sitting down the with coaching staff.

When Jackson sat down with UA head coach Nick Saban, he received good news.

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BUFORD, Ga. -- ESPN Watch List defensive end Lorenzo Carter (Norcross, Ga./Norcross) credits his blindingly pink socks and highlighter yellow shoelaces with helping him win the defensive lineman MVP award at the Atlanta NFTC on Saturday.

The award came with a brilliant gold dog tag that complemented his outfit. But what really caught Carter’s eye, and fashion sense, was the big gold box that he was handed that contained his invitation to The Opening.

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BUFORD, Ga. -- ESPN Watch List defensive tackle Elisha Shaw (Tucker, Ga./Tucker) attended the Atlanta NFTC on Saturday but could not compete due to leg injury. Instead, he watched the defensive lineman compete against the offensive linemen and yelled out instructions and criticisms to the delight -- and sometimes embarrassment -- of the other attendees.

Shaw might have been sidelined for the camp, but his recruitment is progressing full-speed. The 6-foot-6, 300-pound junior has double-digit offers, with Alabama and Georgia tied atop his list. Recently a new name has made a strong push.

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BUFORD, Ga. -- In 2011, Landon Collins earned an invitation to The Opening. He followed that up by taking home the SPARQ ratings national championship during his time in Oregon. Now it’s his little brother’s turn.

ESPN Watch List defensive tackle Gerald Willis III (New Orleans/Edna Karr) made the trip from Louisiana to Atlanta to compete in Saturday’s NFTC. It paid off as Willis earned his invitation to The Opening and will head to Oregon this summer.

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A top 10 has emerged for touted running back Jonathan Hilliman (Jersey City, N.J./St. Peter’s Prep), and now some separation is starting to take place among those schools.

“The top five has definitely broken apart but not severely far,” Hilliman said. “I’m not counting out the other schools, depending on what they bring to the table -- if it's academics or great environment or great coaching staff.”

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TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- The recruiting process is just getting started for 2014 safety Mattrell McGraw (River Ridge, La./John Curtis). He already has over 25 scholarship offers, but he took his first visit on Saturday to the University of Alabama.

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Texas has already offered scholarships to seven Louisiana prospects for its 2014 class, and an eighth is likely coming soon for Mattrell McGraw.

The 6-foot, 180-pound safety from powerhouse River Ridge (La.) John Curtis holds more than 20 offers and got an invite from UT secondary coach Duane Akina to attend the Orange-White spring game on March 30.

Here's the latest on McGraw's recruitment and his plans for narrowing down a long list of college options.

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ESPN Watch List running back Racean Thomas (Oxford, Ala./Oxford) already has over a dozen scholarship offers, a list that includes the majority of the SEC, but there was one school he recently said he was still hoping to hear from.

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ATHENS, Ga. -- ESPN Watch List wide receiver Demarre Kitt (Tyrone, Ga./Sandy Creek) recently cut his mammoth offer list down to a top-15 group of schools that he will consider.

“It got crazy at one point with almost everybody that offered me trying to talk to me,” Kitt said. “So I had to cut my list down to 15 schools. After spring practice I will cut it down to eight or 10. At the end of summer I will do five and then go from there.”

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ATLANTA -- After rushing for 1,768 yards and 24 touchdowns as a junior, ESPN Watch List running back Racean Thomas (Oxford, Ala./Oxford) had little need to come out for Saturday's Nike SPARQ Combine. His recruitment has already taken off, with offers from programs such as Alabama, Auburn, Clemson, Georgia, LSU and USC. With less than favorable conditions, Thomas still came out to compete with over 1,700 other recruits.

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ESPN Watch List linebacker Kain Daub (Jacksonville, Fla./Sandalwood) is zeroing in on two programs.

A former commitment to LSU, the 6-foot-2, 243-pound linebacker is still looking at the SEC West, but also an ACC program.

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