Story by
The Tuscaloosa News
Breaking down Alabama football 2025 recruiting class: Where does Crimson Tide stand?
- Story byThe Tuscaloosa News
- Breaking down Alabama football 2025 recruiting class: Where does Crimson Tide stand?
The Kalen DeBoer era of Alabama football recruiting has seemingly gone without much of a hitch.
The Crimson Tide has the No. 2 composite class in the country according to 247Sports behind Ohio State , with five-star commitments from quarterback Keelon Russell , offensive tackle Ty Haywood , wide receiver Caleb Cunningham , cornerback Dijon Lee and running back Akylin Dear.
Advertisement
Alabama 's most recent No. 1 recruiting class came in 2023, but the Crimson Tide has not finished outside of the top two recruiting classes nationally since 2018.
What does DeBoer have in his first recruiting class in Tuscaloosa? Here are a few takeaways:
Does Alabama football have its post- Jalen Milroe quarterback?
Russell is another example of the recent success Alabama has had recruiting quarterbacks as the third five-star quarterback to commit since 2022. He follows Julian Sayin , who would go on to transfer to Ohio State in January after Nick Saban's retirement , and Ty Simpson . Russell flipped his commitment from SMU to Alabama in June.
Advertisement
On paper, Russell has the same attributes of a player like Jalen Milroe: the size, standing at 6-foot-3 and 175 pounds; the accuracy, with a completion percentage higher than 70% as a junior at Duncanville High School in Texas ; and the athleticism, averaging more than 5 yards per carry as a runner paired with more than 3,000 passing yards and 39 total touchdowns.
Jalen Milroe: Alabama MVP? Is Alabama football an SEC championship contender? Crimson Tide writers give predictions
Russell will likely not immediately be next in line as long as Simpson is on the roster. But expect Russell to contend for snaps along with Washington transfer Austin Mack and former four-star Dylan Lonergan upon arrival.
Which Alabama football 2025 recruiting room is deepest?
While Alabama has five-star talent at quarterback in Russell, running back in Dear and wide receiver in Cunningham, the centerpiece of the 2025 class is the Crimson Tide's offensive line haul.
Advertisement
After Russell flipped his commitment in June, Alabama landed its five offensive line commits in a span of 35 days, starting with high four-star guard Michael Carroll June on 10 and finishing it off with Haywood on July 14. Alabama's class also includes top-150 player and highly-athletic California tackle Jackson Lloyd, top-150 Alabama four-star Micah DeBose and three-star Alabama native Mal Waldrep. It's the team's highest-ranked group of offensive linemen since 2022.
Alabama offensive line: Alabama football manhandled Wisconsin with Kadyn Proctor back. But is it ready for Georgia?
On defense, Kane Wommack and Christian Robinson have combined to power a deep linebacker room headlined by top-40 four-star Darrell Johnson and four-stars Justin Hill and Dawson Merritt, who will each likely get reps at the wolf linebacker spot.
Does Alabama need a safety, another defensive lineman in the 2025 recruiting class?
Safety is the biggest position of need for Alabama late in the 2025 recruiting cycle. According to 247Sports, all but two of the high school safeties the Crimson Tide has offered have committed elsewhere, including four-star Derick Smith, who flipped his commitment from Alabama to Auburn on July 29.
Advertisement
It seems Alabama already has athletes in the class who can fill the hole at safety in players like Johnson or five-star corner Dijon Lee, who stands at 6-4, 190 pounds. But with an older position group headlined by Keon Sabb , Malachi Moore and DeVonta Smith , the Crimson Tide could use another player to build on along with freshman Red Morgan .
After de-commitments from Antonio Coleman (Auburn), Javion Hilson and Zion Grady (Ohio State), Alabama is also only down to one true defensive lineman in London Simmons, a three-star, who is expected to play bandit. Expect the Crimson Tide to be in the market for another defensive lineman in the class.
Alabama football 2025 commitments
Here's who is currently committed to Alabama's 2025 recruiting class.
Advertisement
Note: All rankings are from 247Sports' composite rankings
-
Keelon Russell: five-star, No. 13 nationally, No. 3 QB
-
Akylin Dear: five-star, No. 31 nationally, No. 2 RB
-
Anthony Rogers: four-star, No. 116 nationally, No. 6 RB
-
Caleb Cunningham : five-star, No. 14 nationally, No. 2 WR
-
Lotzeir Brooks: four-star, No. 281 nationally, No. 40 WR
-
Kaleb Edwards: four-star, No. 158 nationally, No. 8 TE
-
Ty Haywood: five-star, No. 11 nationally, No. 2 OT
-
Michael Carroll: four-star, No. 85 nationally, No. 4 IOL
-
Jackson Lloyd: four-star, No. 127 nationally, No. 13 OT
-
Micah DeBose: four-star, No. 138 nationally, No. 14 OT
-
Mal Waldrep: three-star, No. 440 nationally, No. 37 OT
-
London Simmons: three-star, No. 480 nationally, No. 52 DL
-
Darrell Johnson: five-star, No. 33 nationally, No. 4 LB
-
Justin Hill: four-star, No. 56 nationally, No. 4 EDGE
-
Dawson Merritt: four-star, No. 113 nationally, No. 14 LB
-
Abduall Sanders Jr.: four-star, No. 264 nationally, No. 28 LB
-
Luke Metz: four-star, No. 291 nationally, No. 32 LB
-
Dijon Lee: five-star, No. 23 nationally, No. 4 CB
-
Chuck McDonald: four-star, No. 66 nationally, No. 7 CB
-
Alex Asparuhov: two-star punter No. 1,843 nationally, No. 5 P
Colin Gay covers Alabama football for The Tuscaloosa News, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at cgay@gannett.com or follow him @_ColinGay on X, formerly known as Twitter.
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Breaking down Alabama football 2025 recruiting class
