Tag: 2024 Recruiting

Alabama Basketball reaches out to 2024 5-star guard Boogie Fland

After reopening his recruitment, 2024 five-star guard Boogie Fland has heard from a number of programs including the Alabama Crimson Tide. Fland was originally committed to Kentucky.

One prospect that the Alabama Crimson Tide men’s basketball coaching staff has shown interest in multiple times is 2024 five-star guard Boogie Fland. The New York native was recruited by the Crimson Tide prior to his committing and signing with the Kentucky Wildcats. Since then, Fland has reopened his recruitment and heard from Alabama yet again.

Fland took an official visit to Tuscaloosa back in September. He had Alabama as a finalist in his recruitment.

Fland hails from Harlem, New York. He spent his high school career at Archbishop Stepinac High School. As a senior, Fland averaged 19.3 points per game, 6.6 rebounds per game, and 3.6 assists per game. In addition, Fland shot 45.3% from the floor.

He is one of the most coveted prospects still available in the 2024 recruiting class. Alabama is one of multiple programs that have shown interest in the McDonald’s All-American. Nate Oats and the rest of the Alabama coaching staff would certainly love to add Fland to the ’24 recruiting class. It will be interesting to see if Fland schedules an official visit to Alabama in the near future. There is clear interest between Fland and the Crimson Tide.

Roll Tide Wire will continue to follow the latest regarding the Alabama men’s basketball program and its involvement in the transfer portal.

Is Dabo Swinney a “portal denier?” This college football analyst says yes

Clemson Tigers Football: One noteworthy college football analyst describes Clemson coach Dabo Swinney and his program as a “transfer portal denier.”

Those who have followed Dabo Swinney for any amount of time know that the veteran Clemson coach has been reluctant — at best — to go after players in the NCAA transfer portal.

Swinney has been firm in sticking to his proverbial guns on the issue. He believes that the old-fashioned ways of recruiting players out of high school and developing them into bonafide college athletes is the proven way. “The right way,” as former Tigers linebacker Ben Boulware told The Athletic’s Grace Raynor for a lengthy profiled piece on Swinney and Clemson back in January.

But with the transfer portal set to become even more expansive and unpredictable when the NCAA approves of unlimited transfers with no loss in playing time (in other words, college sports’ equivalent of free agency), Swinney may soon have no choice but to accept the changes around him and to step up his recruiting efforts through the portal.

Until then, Swinney’s reluctance has earned him the rather unique label of “portal denier” in the words of The Athletic’s Max Olson, who recently wrote about “the five types of college football programs you meet in the transfer portal.”

Writing that Clemson remains the “outlier in the portal recruiting world,” Olson notes that the Tigers have extended offers to only a handful of transfers via the portal since 2021. That was the year the portal exploded after the NCAA voted to allow student-athletes to transfer once and become immediately eligible at the next program of their choosing.

While Olson admires Swinney for the way he runs his program, he also envisions a world in which Swinney embraces the portal.

“Imagine how many players would want to transfer to Clemson with its staff, infrastructure, trophies and NFL Draft picks. The Tigers would likely be doing well in this pool if they ever cared to jump in. They’ve dealt with attrition like everyone else, with 33 scholarship players transferring out since the end of the 2021 season. Still, Swinney is doing what he believes is best for his program culture.”

Olson adds that Clemson is the only Power 5 (soon-to-be four) program that has yet to sign a single transfer this off-season.

“Iowa has typically been very selective with transfers in recent years and only took one this offseason: five-star tackle Kadyn Proctor, who has already bailed to go back to Alabama. The list of programs on the low end of transfer commitments so far includes Michigan (two), Stanford (two), Northwestern (three) and Virginia Tech (four). Some schools have stricter transfer standards than others, though it’s notable new Northwestern coach David Braun has mostly stayed out of the portal despite the program losing 14 scholarship transfers since July. We’ll see whether the spring window changes the calculus for a few of these teams.”

And whether Clemson and Swinney can remain “portal deniers” for much longer.

Alabama Basketball reaches out to former USC commit, 2024 4-star PG Trent Perry

The Alabama Crimson Tide men’s basketball program has reportedly reached out to 2024 point guard Trent Perry, who recently de-committed from USC.

The Alabama Crimson Tide basketball team is currently in the thick of March Madness, preparing for the Final Four, however, it has not stopped the coaching staff from expressing interest in prospects on the recruiting trail.

Recently, several schools reached out to 2024 four-star point guard Trent Perry following his decision to de-commit from the USC Trojans. One of the programs that reportedly made contact was head coach Nate Oats the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Perry had been committed to the Trojans since October of 2023. The product of Harvard Westlake High School in Studio City, California de-committed from USC on April 2. Since then, he has re-opened his recruitment and is exploring his options.

He is listed at 6-foot-4 and 175 pounds. Typically, Alabama head coach Nate Oats will utilize players with that stature at multiple positions. With the Crimson Tide likely losing multiple guards in the upcoming offseason, it would make sense to bring in a player of Perry’s caliber.

His recruitment will be one that Roll Tide Wire will continue to monitor for the foreseeable future.

Roll Tide Wire will continue to follow the latest regarding the Alabama men’s basketball program and its involvement on the recruiting trail.

Michigan State football offers Jacksonville LB Devin Smith

MSU has sent an offer to a 2024 linebacker from Jacksonville

Michigan State has continued their stretch of offers to the linebacker position by offering Devin Smith, a native of Jacksonville, Florida. Lewis plays his high school football at Riverside High School.

Smith ranks as a 3-star prospect by 247Sports, and holds additional power five offers from Georgia Tech, Florida, Florida State, Kansas State, Maryland, Miami, Michigan, Nebraska, Ole Miss and Texas A&M.

Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan state news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Cory Linsner on Twitter @Cory_Linsner.

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ESPN’s scouting report for Florida’s 2024 linebacker recruiting class

Aaron Chiles and Myles Graham, who rank Nos. 45 and 58 on ESPN’s top 300 rankings, respectively, were among those mentioned.

Billy Napier and Co. have been toiling away on the recruiting trail since the day the former Louisiana Ragin’ Cajun stepped onto campus. Now entering his third year at the helm in Gainesville, the Gators’ skipper is beginning to reap the fruits of his labors.

ESPN’s Craig Haubert recently put together his scouting reports for the top linebackers in the 2024 recruiting cycle, which included a pair of highly-prized members of the Orange and Blue. Aaron Chiles and Myles Graham, who rank Nos. 45 and 58 on the publication’s top 300 rankings, respectively, were among those who made the cut.

“Coming off a 5-7 season, Billy Napier has some work ahead of him,” Haubert begins. “He started to correct that with a top-10 recruiting class which features several key defensive contributors. Florida lagged in statistical categories like total rushing defense and team sacks, areas where Chiles and Graham can help.

“The Gators lose Scooby Williams, one of their leading tackles, and this unit needs a boost, despite returning some experience and adding South Carolina transfer Grayson Howard,” he continues.

“Chiles is an ideal inside linebacker. He’s thickly built with good body control and uses angles well. He is not an early enrollee, which could slow his initial impact, but he’s an instinctive prospect who played a lot of snaps for a good high school program.

“Graham, ranked just a few spots behind Chiles, has a bit of a head start after enrolling early. He is a physical and powerful player who closes well. Graham will go through spring ball and it wouldn’t be surprising to see him come out of that period ready to contribute in the fall.”

Florida will play its annual Orange and Blue game on Saturday, April 13, with a kickoff time slated for 1 p.m. ET inside Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

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Alabama’s top newcomer expected to have immediate impact

ESPN tabs which player will be Alabama football’s top newcomer in 2024.

Alabama football enters the 2024 season with a great many unknowns. A new head coach, a handful of new players having to replace key contributors and a new-look SEC schedule. Another new aspect of the team is incoming transfers and recruits, but that happens every season.

ESPN’s Blake Baumgartner and Tom VanHaaren shared their picks for the top newcomers from every projected Top 25 team (subscription required).

For the Crimson Tide in 2024, their pick is incoming freshman wide receiver Ryan Williams. His recruitment was a roller coaster. The five-star prospect committed to Alabama, decommitted after Nick Saban retired and recommitted shortly after Kalen DeBoer was hired as head coach.

“Williams is the No. 1 receiver in this recruiting cycle and had been committed to Alabama before decommitting once Nick Saban retired. He considered offers from Texas A&M, Texas and LSU, but was willing to give the new Alabama staff a chance. It was a huge recruiting win for new Tide coach Kalen DeBoer, considering how important the passing game is to his offense and the outgoing production Alabama had at the position. Alabama lost Bond, Shazz Preston, Malik Benson and Ja’Corey Brooks to the transfer portal and is losing leading receiver Jermaine Burton to the NFL. Williams has an opportunity to start right away for Alabama and could have a big role in the success of the passing game in DeBoer’s first season.”

With Jalen Milroe returning as the team’s presumed starting quarterback, surrounding him with highly talented skill position players is key, and Williams is one of the most talented in the entire country. Many expect his presence to be felt immediately.

Roll Tide Wire will continue to follow Alabama football as the 2024 offseason progresses.

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Oklahoma among teams with the most players in 247Sports Top247

Oklahoma put together a great recruiting class in 2024, finishing among the teams with the most Top247 signees in the country.

The Oklahoma Sooners put together arguably their best class of the [autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag] era in 2024. It wasn’t ranked higher than the 2023 class, but because of the defensive talent it is bringing in, it makes a strong argument for the top spot.

A great way to show the strength of a class is to look at how many blue-chip prospects a team signed. Blue-chip prospects are defined as four- and five-star prospects. To show how important that is, according to the blue-chip ratio, programs need to sign more four- and five-star recruits than two- and three-star players over the previous four recruiting classes (better than a 1:1 ratio) to have a shot at a title.

To go further, three of the four College Football Playoff teams this past season met the blue-chip ratio criteria heading into the season, including the eventual national champion. Every national champion has met the blue-chip ratio criteria dating to the tool’s inception in 2013. So, how did Oklahoma fare compared to other teams in the 2024 class? Turns out, quite well.

The Sooners were among the top 10 teams that signed the most prospects from the 247Sports Top247 player rankings.

Elite 2024 WR Ryan Williams officially signs with Alabama

After a bit of excitement regarding his recruitment, Ryan Williams has officially signed with Alabama on National Signing Day.

Shortly after Nick Saban retired, elite 2024 wide receiver, Ryan Williams rescinded his verbal commitment to the Crimson Tide. The Alabama native is one of the top high school prospects in the country and opened up his recruit. Many believed this to be a sign that Alabama was out of the running.

There were expectations of interest from Auburn, Texas A&M, Texas and LSU. However, after Williams took some visits, he announced that he would be recommitting to the Tide and play for new head coach Kalen DeBoer.

Now, pen has been put to paper and Williams has signed his NLI. He will be coming to Tuscaloosa in the not-too-distant future.

Roll Tide Wire will continue to follow Alabama football recruiting as the 2024 offseason progresses.

Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow AJ Spurr on X @SpurrFM. 

Michigan State football lands PWO commitment from in state RB

MSU lands a PWO commitment from Plymouth High School’s Jaxon McCaig:

Michigan State has landed another member to their 2024 recruiting class, this time in the form of a preferred walk-on.

Jaxon McCaig, a Canton (MI) native attending Plymouth High School, has made the decision to commit to Michigan State. He is a 6-foot-2, 225 pound running back.

READ: MICHIGAN STATE FOOTBALL 2024 TRANSFER TRACKER

McCaig held offers from Butler, Valparaiso and an FBS offer from Marshall, as well as PWO opportunities from Bowling Green, Eastern Michigan and Michigan.

Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan State news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Cory Linsner on Twitter @Cory_Linsner.

Michigan State football 2024 commitment tracker

UPDATED: Tracking all of Michigan State’s 2024 commits

Mel Tucker is out. Jonathan Smith is in. This all happened during a critical time of the 2024 recruiting cycle and now Michigan State football needs to solidify that class.

Some players will fall out, new names will join, and it will continue to be a mad dash and scramble as MSU tries to fight to bring a strong recruiting class into the first year of the Jonathan Smith era.

Buckle up as we track every recruit confirmed in the 2024 class below.