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It has been said by pretty much every football talking head since... Well... Ever:
"Nobody ever gives the big guys any love."
At Alabama, we often attempt to circumvent that stereotype as opposed to our usual southern culture tendencies and praise our big men as much as possible, but sometimes stereotypes just end up holding true. Between the end of the school year for everyone involved in the education world, and the NFL Draft saga for everyone involved in the football world, two offensive linemen slipped into the Crimson Tide's 2016 recruiting class behind a veil of obscurity.
On April 22nd, Chris Owens out of Arlington, Texas committed to the Crimson Tide. This came two days after his official visit to Tuscaloosa, and Owens was sold on the spot. The 6'3" 312-pound lineman is the 4th ranked offensive guard and the 25th ranked player in the state of Texas. He has mostly played right tackle and defensive line for his high school, but his body type and aggressive nature on pulling plays lead most to project him to play offensive guard in college. He was recruited by Alabama's new defensive back coach, Mel Tucker, and plans on enrolling next January.
— SwiftCat (@ChrisOwens00) April 22, 2015
A week later, the mammoth in-state lineman, Deonte Brown, announced his pledge to the Tide. The four star guard from Decatur, Alabama is considered by many to be the top offensive lineman in the state. He is rated as the 7th best guard in the entire nation. The 6'3" 340-pound mountain of a man is the left tackle for his high school. He has the length and girth to stay at tackle in college, but will need to improve his footwork and quickness if he does not want to be moved to the interior of the line at Alabama. Brown was also recruited by Mel Tucker, who is quickly making his mark as a recruiter with the team.
Yesss fully committed.. RTR
— Deonte Brown (@brown7171) April 29, 2015
These two players bring Alabama up to 7 total commits for 2016, three of which are offensive lineman (and a fourth, Raekwon Davis, could make the switch from defensive tackle to offensive line). Alabama now has the 15th ranked recruiting class after an uncharacteristically slow start.