Alabama Crimson Tide: Florida Gators
OT Damian Prince slims down, speeds up 
April, 23, 2013
Apr 23
11:00
AM ET
By
Mitch Sherman | ESPN.com
ASHBURN, Va. -- At an event that featured three of the top 11 defensive prospects in the ESPN 150, third-rated offensive tackle Damian Prince of Forestville (Md.) Bishop McNamara impressed every bit as much as any of them Sunday at the Nike Football Training Camp outside of Washington, D.C.
Prince showed off a slimmed down frame -- he’s lost more than 30 pounds, he said, to reach about 285 -- and dominated in blocking drills against a stout group of defensive linemen.
Prince, No. 33 in the ESPN 150, put himself in position to rise over the upcoming months.
Prince showed off a slimmed down frame -- he’s lost more than 30 pounds, he said, to reach about 285 -- and dominated in blocking drills against a stout group of defensive linemen.
Prince, No. 33 in the ESPN 150, put himself in position to rise over the upcoming months.
To continue reading this article you must be an Insider
The RN Top 10 will appear throughout the camp and combine season and rank prospects based strictly on their on-field performance at that particular event. It does not reflect their overall prospect ranking.
ASHBURN, Va. – The East Coast and mid-Atlantic states represented well on Sunday as eight players earned invites to The Opening at the Nike Football Training Camp outside of Washington, D.C. Defense ruled the day, led by two five-star prospects from Virginia.
10. Nick Scott
Fairfax (Va.) Fairfax |RB| 5-11, 180
Scott stood out among a field of backs who were overshadowed by the prospects at nearly every other position. He earned the attention of coaches for his strong play and versatility but missed the MVP award, which went to Vincent Lowe (Chesapeake, Va./Grassfield), who also posted the top SPARQ score.
Scott committed to Penn State in February over an offer from Boston College.
ESPN national recruiting analyst Craig Haubert’s take: “He’s got a great frame, and what I like about him as a Penn State verbal, he’s a versatile player. He may not run by you, but he does a good job in route-running.”
ASHBURN, Va. – The East Coast and mid-Atlantic states represented well on Sunday as eight players earned invites to The Opening at the Nike Football Training Camp outside of Washington, D.C. Defense ruled the day, led by two five-star prospects from Virginia.
10. Nick Scott
Fairfax (Va.) Fairfax |RB| 5-11, 180
Scott stood out among a field of backs who were overshadowed by the prospects at nearly every other position. He earned the attention of coaches for his strong play and versatility but missed the MVP award, which went to Vincent Lowe (Chesapeake, Va./Grassfield), who also posted the top SPARQ score.
Scott committed to Penn State in February over an offer from Boston College.
ESPN national recruiting analyst Craig Haubert’s take: “He’s got a great frame, and what I like about him as a Penn State verbal, he’s a versatile player. He may not run by you, but he does a good job in route-running.”
To continue reading this article you must be an Insider
Several of RecruitingNation's SEC sites took a look this week at the players headed to the NFL combine, which begins today in Indianapolis, and other predraft camps. Click here to read the entire predraft series. Today: Defensive backs and special teams.
Alabama Crimson Tide
It's hard to imagine that the Alabama secondary in 2011 yielded five NFL prospects. Mark Barron, Dre Kirkpatrick and De'Quan Menzie were all drafted a year ago. Dee Milliner and Robert Lester stuck around and won one more ring before hanging it up in 2013.
Numbers to know from signing day
February, 7, 2013
Feb 7
11:36
AM ET
By Mackenzie Kraemer | ESPN.com
1 – Alabama’s class rank. Every year that head coach Nick Saban has had a full season to recruit (since 2008), the Crimson Tide have had a top-three class. No other school has even had a top-10 class each of the past six years. Alabama received commitments from three of the top-10 running backs, plus Derrick Henry (No. 9 in ESPN 300, No. 1 Athlete), the leading rusher in high school football history.
3 – Number of Ole Miss’s recruits ranked in the top 20 of the ESPN 300. Since ESPN recruiting rankings were introduced in 2006, Ole Miss had never had a single top-20 recruit. Head coach Hugh Freeze received letters of intent from two of the top five recruits, including the top ranked player in the ESPN 300, DE Robert Nkemdiche.
7 – Number of players since November who have decommitted from USC, and all were in the ESPN 300. USC’s class was ranked No. 1 for more than three months between July and November, but now it's ranked 14th. Two of those decommits, Eldridge Massington (No. 172 in ESPN 300, No. 21 WR) and Kylie Fitts (No. 86 in ESPN 300, No. 8 DE) flipped their commitments to rival UCLA. The Bruins finished the day with the 12th-ranked class, the first time since 2006 they finished ahead of their crosstown rival.
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- Four-star defensive end DeMarcus Walker (Jacksonville, Fla./Sandalwood) will take an unofficial visit to Florida this upcoming weekend.
The 6-foot-4, 271-pound ESPN 150 member has been committed to Alabama since Aug. 24, but Walker said taking a trip to Florida has been on his mind for a while.
"It's just been on my mind for a long time," Walker said. "Even though I've already taken a 1,000 visits, I'll just take another one."
The 6-foot-4, 271-pound ESPN 150 member has been committed to Alabama since Aug. 24, but Walker said taking a trip to Florida has been on his mind for a while.
"It's just been on my mind for a long time," Walker said. "Even though I've already taken a 1,000 visits, I'll just take another one."
To continue reading this article you must be an Insider
2015 ATH Hayward receiving interest
December, 14, 2012
12/14/12
5:52
PM ET
By
Derek Tyson | ESPN.com
ORLANDO, Fla. -- Class of 2015 athlete Jaylin Hayward (Tallahassee, Fla./Godby) might be just a sophomore, but the talented prospect is already receiving heavy interest from the in-state programs.
The 5-foot-9, 165-pound athlete, who totaled three receptions for 35 yards in Godby's 21-20 state championship victory over Immokalee (Fla.) Immokalee on Friday, said he is receiving heavy interest from several top programs.
"I'm hearing a lot from Alabama, Florida State, Florida, Miami and hopefully Oregon soon, but I'm not sure," Hayward said. "I have offers from Kentucky, FSU, Miami and Florida already."
The 5-foot-9, 165-pound athlete, who totaled three receptions for 35 yards in Godby's 21-20 state championship victory over Immokalee (Fla.) Immokalee on Friday, said he is receiving heavy interest from several top programs.
"I'm hearing a lot from Alabama, Florida State, Florida, Miami and hopefully Oregon soon, but I'm not sure," Hayward said. "I have offers from Kentucky, FSU, Miami and Florida already."
To continue reading this article you must be an Insider
Dawgs, Tide out in front for Laremy Tunsil
October, 19, 2012
10/19/12
10:48
AM ET
By
Derek Tyson | ESPN.com
MIDDLEBURG, Fla. -- Five-star offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil (Lake City, Fla./Columbia) will take an unofficial visit to Florida for its game against South Carolina on Saturday. For the 6-foot-6, 295-pound No. 1-ranked offensive lineman in the country, this will be his second visit to Gainesville in the last three weeks.
Tunsil, who visited Florida for its game against LSU, said he enjoyed his trip to the Swamp.
To continue reading this article you must be an Insider
2014 LB Kain Daub opening things up?
October, 10, 2012
10/10/12
4:45
PM ET
By
Derek Tyson | ESPN.com
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- ESPN Watch List inside linebacker Kain Daub (Jacksonville, Fla./Sandalwood) will likely be one of the top linebackers in the country next year. After the 6-foot-3, 227-pound athlete committed to LSU on July 14, he shut down his recruitment. But now he is thinking about opening things back up.
"My LSU commit is still pretty solid, but I think I'm going to open up the doors up again," Daub said. "Anything could happen, there could be a coaching change and I just want something to fall back on and not just close all doors just because I committed to LSU."
Daub recently transferred from Ponte Vedra (Fla.) Nease to Sandalwood High School and is now playing alongside Alabama defensive end commit DeMarcus Walker. Daub, who has more than 15 offers, said Walker continually tries to get him to switch to Alabama.
"My LSU commit is still pretty solid, but I think I'm going to open up the doors up again," Daub said. "Anything could happen, there could be a coaching change and I just want something to fall back on and not just close all doors just because I committed to LSU."
Daub recently transferred from Ponte Vedra (Fla.) Nease to Sandalwood High School and is now playing alongside Alabama defensive end commit DeMarcus Walker. Daub, who has more than 15 offers, said Walker continually tries to get him to switch to Alabama.
To continue reading this article you must be an Insider
New Bama commit Henry has big night
September, 29, 2012
9/29/12
8:00
AM ET
By
Derek Tyson | ESPN.com
YULEE, Fla. -- After committing to the Alabama Crimson Tide earlier in the day, four-star running back Derrick Henry capped off his exciting day by helping his Yulee (Fla.) team defeat Kelvin Taylor and his Belle Glade (Fla.) Glades Day team 42-6 on Friday night. The 6-foot-3, 243-pound Henry rushed for 362 yards and six touchdowns on 35 carries.
Henry has amassed 864 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns over the last two weeks and now has 1,753 yards and 24 rushing touchdowns in only five games this season. He has totaled 9,617 rushing yards in his career and is on pace to break Ken Hall's (Sugarland, Texas) national career rushing record of 11,232 yards. If he continues his current pace, Henry will finish the regular season wih 3,506 rushing yards and 48 touchdowns.
In addition to the career rushing record, Henry has his sights set on yet another rushing record. Former NFL player Travis Henry (Frostproof, Fla./Frostproof) holds the single-season rushing record in Florida with 4,087 yards in 14 games. If Yulee (4-1) makes a playoff run, Derrick Henry has a good chance at breaking Travis Henry's record.
Henry has amassed 864 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns over the last two weeks and now has 1,753 yards and 24 rushing touchdowns in only five games this season. He has totaled 9,617 rushing yards in his career and is on pace to break Ken Hall's (Sugarland, Texas) national career rushing record of 11,232 yards. If he continues his current pace, Henry will finish the regular season wih 3,506 rushing yards and 48 touchdowns.
In addition to the career rushing record, Henry has his sights set on yet another rushing record. Former NFL player Travis Henry (Frostproof, Fla./Frostproof) holds the single-season rushing record in Florida with 4,087 yards in 14 games. If Yulee (4-1) makes a playoff run, Derrick Henry has a good chance at breaking Travis Henry's record.
To continue reading this article you must be an Insider
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Four-star DeMarcus Walker (Jacksonville, Fla./Sandalwood) announced his commitment to Alabama Friday afternoon on ESPNU, but the nation's No. 3-ranked defensive end said later in the day that his recruitment is far from over.
Walker said in an interview with TideNation's Greg Ostendorf despite his commitment to the Tide, he plans to take all five official visits to LSU, Auburn, Alabama, Tennessee and USC. Noticeably absent was Florida, a school that had been considered one of his leaders for the last several months.
Walker said on Friday after Sandalwood's preseason 29-27 victory over Orlando Evans that he still plans to unnofficially visit Florida this fall.
Walker said in an interview with TideNation's Greg Ostendorf despite his commitment to the Tide, he plans to take all five official visits to LSU, Auburn, Alabama, Tennessee and USC. Noticeably absent was Florida, a school that had been considered one of his leaders for the last several months.
Walker said on Friday after Sandalwood's preseason 29-27 victory over Orlando Evans that he still plans to unnofficially visit Florida this fall.
To continue reading this article you must be an Insider
GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Four-star defensive end DeMarcus Walker (Jacksonville, Fla./Sandalwood) has officially set his college decision date for Aug. 24 at 5 p.m. ET on ESPNU's first RecruitingNation show of the season.
The 6-foot-4, 271-pound athlete is the No. 24-ranked player in the country and will chose between Alabama, Florida, Auburn, Tennessee and Clemson.
Walker talked about each of his favorite schools.
The 6-foot-4, 271-pound athlete is the No. 24-ranked player in the country and will chose between Alabama, Florida, Auburn, Tennessee and Clemson.
Walker talked about each of his favorite schools.
To continue reading this article you must be an Insider
Valentine decommits, names three leaders
July, 17, 2012
7/17/12
6:35
PM ET
By
Derek Tyson | ESPN.com
GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Top 2014 defensive lineman Travonte Valentine (Palm Bay, Fla./Bayside), decommitted from Louisville on Sunday and has named Auburn, Florida and Alabama his three leaders. The 6-foot-4, 295-pound tackle prospect said it has always been his dream to play in the Southeastern Conference.
"I decided to decommit because I felt like I was a big SEC guy," Valentine said. "I love the programs in the SEC conference and I love how the SEC wins championships. It's just a great conference."
Valentine, who will attend Florida's Friday Night Lights camp on July 27, said his familiarity with the Florida program is a reason the Gators are at the top of his list. Valentine's head coach at Bayside, Derek Smith, coached former Florida players Reggie Nelson and Joe Cohen at Palm Bay High School.
"I decided to decommit because I felt like I was a big SEC guy," Valentine said. "I love the programs in the SEC conference and I love how the SEC wins championships. It's just a great conference."
Valentine, who will attend Florida's Friday Night Lights camp on July 27, said his familiarity with the Florida program is a reason the Gators are at the top of his list. Valentine's head coach at Bayside, Derek Smith, coached former Florida players Reggie Nelson and Joe Cohen at Palm Bay High School.
To continue reading this article you must be an Insider
BRADENTON, Fla. -- Five-star cornerback prospect Vernon Hargreaves III (Tampa, Fla./Wharton) won defensive MVP of the IMG Madden 7-on-7 National Championship tournament on Sunday after Team Tampa beat Max Ex Blue 28-17 to win the tournament.
The 5-foot-11, 185-pound athlete had several interceptions over the course of the two-day tournament, including one against Michigan quarterback commit Shane Morris in the championship game.
As for recruiting, the talented corner who has more than 50 scholarship offers said three schools are starting to stand out to him.
The 5-foot-11, 185-pound athlete had several interceptions over the course of the two-day tournament, including one against Michigan quarterback commit Shane Morris in the championship game.
As for recruiting, the talented corner who has more than 50 scholarship offers said three schools are starting to stand out to him.
To continue reading this article you must be an Insider
Monday was a busy day for commitments in the West region, but defensive tackle Eddie Vanderdoes (Auburn, Calif./Placer) isn't exactly ready to jump into the commitment scene. More than half of the top 30 players in the West have already made verbal commitments, but Vanderdoes is taking things slowly. On Monday, the 6-foot-3, 285-pound lineman took to twitter to release a list of his top 15 schools.
Alabama, Baylor, California, Florida, Georgia Tech, LSU, Miami, Michigan, Michigan State, Nebraska, Oregon, Penn State, UCLA, USC and Washington all made the cut. Vanderdoes included in his tweet that he will be cutting that down to a top 10 group soon.
Alabama, Baylor, California, Florida, Georgia Tech, LSU, Miami, Michigan, Michigan State, Nebraska, Oregon, Penn State, UCLA, USC and Washington all made the cut. Vanderdoes included in his tweet that he will be cutting that down to a top 10 group soon.
To continue reading this article you must be an Insider
GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Five-star offensive lineman Laremy Tunsil (Lake City, Fla./Columbia) visited Alabama, Georgia and Florida over the last week. The 6-foot-6, 295-pound tackle named a top three after his visit to Florida on Sunday.
"I would say they are my top three," Tunsil said of the three schools he visited. "It's a tie right now with all of them."
Tunsil, who camped at Alabama last weekend, visited Georgia on Friday and Saturday before heading to Gainesville on Sunday. The No. 3-ranked player in the country said he was impressed by what Georgia had to offer.
"I would say they are my top three," Tunsil said of the three schools he visited. "It's a tie right now with all of them."
Tunsil, who camped at Alabama last weekend, visited Georgia on Friday and Saturday before heading to Gainesville on Sunday. The No. 3-ranked player in the country said he was impressed by what Georgia had to offer.
To continue reading this article you must be an Insider
ABOUT TIDE NATION
Greg Ostendorf
Greg Ostendorf joined ESPN.com in 2012 after covering University of Alabama football and basketball recruiting at the Tuscaloosa News and Rivals.com. Ostendorf graduated from the University of Alabama and currently resides in Tuscaloosa, Ala. Email him at gsostendorf.espn@gmail.com.
Alex Scarborough
Alex Scarborough joined ESPN.com in 2012 after covering University of Alabama athletics and high school football for The Tuscaloosa News. He currently resides in Tuscaloosa, Ala. Email him at alexscarborough.espn@gmail.com.