Alabama has landed another commitment on the recruiting trails for the 2012 recruiting class, this time in the form of Miami wide receiver prospect Amari Cooper. Per Don Kausler, Jr.:
Amari Cooper, a wide receiver from Miami whose performance in camps this summer raised his stock significantly, committed today to Alabama.
The 6-foot-2, 180-pound prospect from Northwestern High School in Miami, is the 19th player to commit to Alabama for its signing class of 2012.
Those who follow recruiting will remember that Cooper was slated to commit to Alabama several weeks ago after his high school season opener. When his school lost that opener, however, he decided to postpone his decision, and in the meantime gave more consideration to Florida State and West Virginia, but he never really swayed from Alabama.
Cooper actually came into this past summer as a relatively unknown prospect. His junior season was short-circuited by a hip injury that limited him to only five games, of which he played only sparingly, and early in the process he was played slowly by most major programs. After impressive seven-on-seven performances at various college camps, however, his recruitment really began to take off late this past spring with offers from Miami and Florida State. He came to Tuscaloosa in July for the UA camp, and after a very strong performance at the Capstone he immediately earned an offer from the 'Bama coaching staff and became a priority.
Ordinarily Miami would have been the team to beat, of course, but the long-term decline of that program mixed with the latest NCAA allegations resulted in Cooper never giving serious consideration to the hometown Hurricanes. Furthermore, for what it's worth, Cooper made it clear from the outset that distance was not going a consideration in deciding his college of choice.
In any event, after the strong camp showings, Cooper saw his proverbial stock take off and in the end his offer list included several major programs, including Alabama, Miami, Florida State, and Ohio State, among others. Additionally, he received invitations to play in both the Under Armour All-American Game and the Army All-American Bowl.
Cooper becomes the 19th commitment of the 2012 recruiting class.