Jumbo Package: Another slow week

It’s Gump Day! I’m trying out a new format. I know all y’all bammers hate to change, but let me know what you think about it.

This one is a pretty big deal. Despite the publicity of Dylan Moses, Markail Benton, and VanDarius Cowan, Christopher Allen has quietly been working on becoming my favorite player of this recruiting class, if he sticks. He plays with a tenacity and ferocity that you don’t really see in the others. With luck, he’ll stay committed through the end.

In the past I’ve always made fun of Alabama’s tendency to “fudge” the sizes of some of their players. Many Tide receivers and offensive linemen have shrunk an inch or two by the time the NFL combine rolls around. Weights obviously fluctuate a little, but it’s rare for someone over 18 to ever change their height again.

Anyway, congrats to these guys for making it through some outstanding college careers and getting invited to the senior bowl. It’s a big honor, and I can’t wait to see them play in the NFL.

Wouldn’t it be something to see O.J. utilized in a high-volume passing offense? After 4 years of being mostly ignored (by both his own team and Clemson’s defense), Howard’s fortunes would really take a turn for the better.

There are many players who excel in college and flop in the pros. But every so often there is that player who really blossoms in the NFL. Teams are always looking for these “high potential” prospects, and most end up overdrafting a player who really just isn’t all that good.

O.J. Howard, though, just might be one of those guys. He’s a hyper-athletic tight end with decent hands and well above average blocking skills for a position that is slowly losing it’s blocking talent. He’ll be a volatile draft pick that's for sure. I can viably see him being picked anywhere from the 1st to the 4th round.

Personally, I think this could be a very underrated hire. Trickett was a solid QB for West Virginia (remember his 395 yard performance against Alabama to begin 2014?), and comes from a family of coaches. He’s been the quarterbacks coach for East Mississippi Community College for the last two years.

I think that his youth will make for a good pairing with Steve Sarkisian’s experience to combine for a wide berth of information and coaching to provide Jalen Hurts in the would of quarterbacking next year. Here’s to hoping we see it pay dividends and the passing games grows in its efficiency.

Andrew Bone put together a solid, concise round-up of what to watch out for over the next week in the Alabama football recruiting world. Bone is one of the best around, and isn’t one for embellishment. If you haven’t been reading any of CB969’s stuff here at RBR, this article will tell you most of the same things.

The biggest update is the snippet I linked. After a highly ranked kicker decommitted from Alabama for the second year in a row, I was beginning to lose all hope and join that crowd of people who believe in always going for it on 4th down. Joseph Bulovas, the top rated kicker in the nation, just re-opened his recruiting. It’s a new development that I don’t know much of anything about yet, but if his interest is real, that could be huge.

[UPDATE: Commit! Alabama Has a Kicker]

Get ready guys, National Signing Day is upon us. It won’t be anywhere near as dramatic as last year, but something always happens. And when it does, CB and I will be there to keep you in the know.