The 2015 Under Armour All-America High School Football Game will be televised by ESPN2 on Friday, January 2 at 3pm CT / 4 pm ET from Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, FL.
Under Armour helmets for the @AllAmericaGame #UAALLAMERICA pic.twitter.com/4YdTvRhzT5
— Tom VanHaaren (@TomVH) December 27, 2014
Twelve Alabama commitments will participate in the game. Nine will play on the White Team, three on the Black Team.
COMMITTED TO THE TIDE
Blake Barnett QB 6'5"/200 Corona, CA (Santiago) #8 White Team - By now you have heard of this 5-star. After dominating the camps this summer, he flew up the ratings charts and now sits as the nation's top dual-threat quarterback. This summer, I posited that he could be the Bama QB of the future. After seeing what Blake Sims did with the Tide offense this year, it may be sooner then we think. He has graduated from high school and will be enrolling in January 2015.
Calvin Ridley WR 6'1"/169 Coconut Creek, FL (Monarch) #2 White Team - Just like his future QB, Ridley blew everyone away at summer camps, receiving a fifth star, and has risen to the TOP receiver in the nation. I believe he too is an early enrollee for January. The recruiting Dream Team of Mario Cristobal and Billy Napier get credit for this one.
Shawn Burgess-Becker S 6'0"/200 Coconut Creek, FL (Monarch) #2 White Team - That is not a typo. Both Ridley and 4-star Burgess-Becker went to the same high school and both will be wearing number "2" for the White team. Now, THAT is how you do a package deal!
Minkah Fitzpatrick CB 6'1"/194 Jersey City, NJ (Saint Peter's Prep) #21 Black Team - The New Jersey 5-star committed to Alabama back in April but I am a little concerned about him sticking.
Deionte Thompson S 6'1"/175 Orange, TX (West Orange-Stark) #3 White Team - A long and rangy 5-star safety who will be a terror once strength coach Scott Cochran puts some bulk on him. A top 2 safety.
Lester Cotton OG 6'4"/328 Tuscaloosa, AL (Tuscaloosa Central) #76 White Team - After playing his high school ball about a mile from Bryant-Denny Stadium, this 4-star is as solid a commit as the Tide will get.
Richie Petitbon OG 6'4"/313 Washington, DC (Gonzaga CHS) #74 White Team - His father, Richie Petitbon Sr., spent 14 seasons in the NFL at safety and another 15 as an assistant coach/DC with the Washington Redskins. The younger Richie is 4-star top 3 guard.
Daylon Charlot WR 6'0"/177 Patterson, LA (Patterson) #13 White Team - This 4-star took an official visit to LSU December 5 and heads to Arizona State January 23. To sway him, they will have to top his January 16 visit to Tuscaloosa. Nola.com seems to think he'll flip to LSU.
Hale Hentges TE 6'4"/230 Jefferson City, MO (Helias) #83 White Team - This 4-star Missouri native will fill a GREAT need for Alabama in 2015. He is a superb blocker and has great hands.
Adonis Thomas OLB 6'4"/219 Lawrenceville, GA (Central Gwinnett) #6 Black Team - One of the latest to commit to the Tide, the 4-star is a possible candidate at the Jack position once he bulks up.
Joshua McMillon ILB 6'3"/249 Memphis, TN (Whitehaven) #28 Black Team - This versatile 4-star defender has a 4.3 GPA. I am a little concerned about his commitment. Bama has not had a lot of luck keeping recruits from Ole Miss territory as of late.
Brandon Kennedy OG 6'3"/285 Wetumpka, AL (Wetumpka) #51 White Team - He has a 4.2 GPA and will enroll in January. Rivals ranks Kennedy as the #1 center in the nation but he is projected as a guard at the college level.
UNCOMMITTED
Alabama has 23 high school seniors verbally committed to the Crimson Tide, there are very few slots left.
Damien Harris RB 5'10"/208 Berea, KY (Madison Southern) #34 White Team - Many consider Harris to be the number one or two back in the nation. He is also considering his home state Kentucky as well as Ohio State. My feeling is that he stays home.
Daron Payne DT 6'3"/348 Birmingham, AL (Shades Valley) - #94 Black Team - This 5-star has long been an Alabama lean and it is believed that he will announce his decision at the game. I have a good feeling he rolls with the Tide.
Byron Cowart DE 6'4"/258 Seffner, FL (Armwood) #99 White Team - Considered the top defensive end in the nation, he has long looked like a Florida lean. We will soon learn if new Gators coach Jim McElwain can finish the job started by Will Muschamp. I'd love to have him but my gut says the Tampa-area kid stays in-state.
Kendall Sheffield CB 6'0"/181 Missouri City, TX (Thurgood Marshall) #11 White Team - The country's #3 corner has many suitors at his door including Kirby Smart. Sheffield was in T-town on his own dime for the Iron Bowl. The Bama staff hopes he uses his final official visit on a return trip. The plan is for him to announce during the game. Most observers are predicting he goes with Texas A&M but you never know.
POTENTIAL FLIPPERS
Save the dolphin jokes. A "flipper" is a recruit who commits to one school and then switches to another.
Terry Godwin ATH 6'0"/170 Hogansville, GA (Callaway) #4 White Team - Bama is very high on this kid but he has been a soft verbal to Georgia since last January. He took two unofficial visits to Tuscaloosa this fall on consecutive weekends (Southern Miss game, Florida game) and will take an official visit on January 23. He is classified as an "Athlete" but likely lands at wide receiver in college.
Leo Lewis ILB 6'1"/230 Brookhaven, MS (Brookhaven) #5 White Team - Once committed to Bama, Lewis flipped to Ole Miss earlier this fall. However, it isn't over until pen meets paper.
ON CAMPUS
January-enrollee Bo Scarbrough has been a part of the team practices for most of December. He has been working on the scout team in the role of Ohio State's leading rusher, Ezekiel Elliott. There is no reason to believe he won't be in classes come January 7.
All verbal commitments and coaches' offers are unbinding by either party until a signed Letter of Intent (LOI) is in the hands of the respective school on or after National Signing Day, February 4, 2015. #NSD2015