With thirteen verbal commitments already in the bag, 'Bama adds another member to the 2012 recruiting class. Per Izzy Gould:
Darren Lake has verbally committed to Alabama, according to several published reports.
The 6-foot-3, 328 pound defensive lineman from York Sumter High was offered a scholarship within the past two weeks.
You can add Lake to the list of camp standouts who earned an offer the hard way. He attended camps at both Alabama and Tennessee and picked up offers from both schools after his camp performances, and in fact Nick Saban and company immediately gave him an offer a week ago before he even left camp in Tuscaloosa. He has been pretty impressive as a prep standout at York Sumpter High, but he's from small town Alabama and playing against low-end competition, hence the necessity of the camp performances against higher competition.
Moving forward, though, you have to be intrigued by Lake. He tips the scales at 6'3 and just short of 330 pounds, and he apparently posted some very impressive times in agility drills during camp. To be a standout at nose guard in the 3-4 you have to be strong, explosive, and have lateral agility, and it seems like Lake, raw as though he is at this stage, may very well have those raw physical tools. Moreover, depth at nose guard looks thin beyond the 2012 season, so Lake is a much-needed pick-up in terms of adding depth to a critical position. Furthermore, he has scored a 25 on the ACT, so there are no worries about qualifying academically.
Lake becomes the 14th commitment of the 2012 recruiting class.