Alabama Crimson Tide

TideNation recruiting writer Greg Ostendorf brings you another edition of The O-zone, a confidential look inside Alabama recruiting. Get the latest updates from the gridiron and the hardwood as it pertains to the Crimson Tide.

Staying home?

ESPN 150 wide receiver Robert Foster is set to make his decision on Friday between Alabama and Pittsburgh. Many people believe the Pennsylvania native is leaning toward staying close to home and playing for the Panthers, but don’t count out the Crimson Tide just yet. His father wants him to play at Alabama so he can one day play for a national championship. He also enjoyed his official visit to Tuscaloosa during the season, so much so that he nearly committed the week after. More than anything, he felt comfortable when he was in Alabama. The news of wide receiver Eldridge Massington’s commitment to UCLA late Tuesday night could also be an indicator that the UA staff feels a little more confident about Foster than they’re leading on. Foster indicated to ESPN’s Jared Shanker this week that he’s already made up his mind. He’s just waiting to go public with the decision.

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TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- The University of Alabama came up short on the field against Johnny Manziel and Texas A&M on Saturday, but off the field, the Crimson Tide enjoyed a successful weekend with a number of top recruits in town for the game. It was the Tide’s biggest recruiting weekend of the season to date.

The most notable visitor in Tuscaloosa was five-star offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil (Lake City, Fla./Columbia), who was accompanied by his mother on the trip. From all accounts, the visit went great and bolstered the Tide’s chances with the ESPN 150 star. Tunsil recently named Alabama and Georgia as his top two schools.

During the weekend, UA hosted just two official visitors: a pair of ESPN 150 tight ends, Hunter Henry (Little Rock, Ark./Pulaski) and Josh McNeil (Durham, N.C./Milford Academy). McNeil is already committed to the Tide, but for Henry, an Arkansas commitment, the trip gave him something to think about.

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TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- Despite having two tight ends already committed for 2013, Alabama continues to recruit the position, and over the weekend, the Crimson Tide hosted ESPN 150 tight end and Arkansas commitment Hunter Henry (Little Rock, Ark./Pulaski Academy) on his official visit.

“It went great,” Henry said. “It was a great visit, and I had a really good time. The result of the game wasn’t what everyone wanted, but in the end, it was a really good visit.”

It was the first time Henry had been to a game at Bryant-Denny Stadium, and although the Tide came up short against Texas A&M, the game itself was the highlight of his trip.

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Just a few days earlier Alabama lost out on a top tight end when Hunter Henry (Little Rock, Ark./Pulaski) chose to stay in-state and committed to Arkansas, but the Crimson Tide rebounded very nicely and landed a verbal from another ESPN 150 tight end Friday night when Josh McNeil (Durham, N.C./Hillside) committed. Henry is a more experienced and more polished prospect at this point, but by landing McNeil, Alabama got a prospect with nice upside and arguably a higher ceiling for development who with some work should be a nice fit for them.

McNeil displays a lot of natural ability, but will very likely be a prospect who needs some developmental time when he hits Tuscaloosa as his senior year will only be his second of high school football. While still a bit raw and unpolished in areas this is a prospect who demonstrates the tools to grow into a very good and well-rounded college tight end. He is a basketball kid who has nice overall size and room for further physical development which should come with some time in the Tide’s weight program. He can be a productive part of the passing attack as he possesses good hands and with a nice reach and good body control he offers a nice catch radius. He needs development as a route runner and to learn to become a more efficient runner, but he can get into his routes quickly, has some speed, and flashes the ability to be able to pick-up some extra yards after the catch. He also has experience as an in-line blocker which is key and he demonstrates the ability to develop into a productive player in the phase which he will need to be in that offense.

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According to multiple sources, ESPN 150 tight end Hunter Henry (Little Rock, Ark./Pulaski) will announce his college decision at 4 p.m. ET Thursday. His finalists include Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Oklahoma, Stanford and Vanderbilt.

The Crimson Tide already have a verbal from another top tight end and Under Armour All-American, O.J. Howard (Prattville, Ala./Autauga).

Three-star Deondre Skinner (Patterson, La.) is on board with the Razorbacks, the Cardinal picked up a commitment from three-star Eric Cotton Jr. (Nampa, Idaho/Columbia) in late June, and the Commodores secured three-star Nathan Marcus (Glen Ellyn, Ill./Glenbard West) back in April. Georgia and Oklahoma do not have tight end commitments at this time.

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In Alabama’s 21-0 win over LSU in the BCS title game, the Crimson Tide took full advantage of their tight ends. Brad Smelley led the team with seven receptions, and Michael Williams and Chris Underwood recorded two catches apiece.

That’s one reason why Alabama is still looking for another tight end in the 2013 class even though it has a commitment from ESPN 150 star O.J. Howard, the nation’s No. 2 player at the position.

It’s also a reason why Little Rock, Ark., tight end Hunter Henry has the Crimson Tide among his six finalists.

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TideNation recruiting writer Greg Ostendorf brings you another edition of The O-zone, a confidential look inside Alabama recruiting. Get the latest updates from the gridiron and the hardwood as it pertains to the Crimson Tide.

In this week’s update:

• Foster, Matthews plan visits
• McNeil delays decision

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Top TE Henry visits four schools in four days

Little Rock, Ark. (Pulaski Academy) tight end Hunter Henry took a tour of the SEC over the weekend, visiting four schools in four days.

After making stops at Vanderbilt and Tennessee on Thursday and Friday, Henry attended Georgia’s spring game on Saturday before wrapping up his caravan on Sunday in Tuscaloosa where he visited the University of Alabama.

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