By Alec Nederveld
For the first time since 2006, somebody other than Nick Saban is the head coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide. Fresh off a National Championship Appearance at Washington, Kalen DeBoer has taken the reigns from the GOAT coach. The 49-year-old coach has a lot to live up to and it all starts on the recruiting trail.
CB Dijon Lee
Mission Viejo, CA (Mission Viejo)
#23 NAT, #5 CB, #1 CA
Under Saban, Alabama always had stars at the CB position. From Dre Kirkpatrick to Marlon Humphrey and most recently, the shutdown duo of Terrion Arnold and Kool-Aid McKinstry, likely first-round picks in 2024. Dijon Lee could be the next one. He has elite size for a CB at 6’3.5″, 180-pounds, is very physical, and shows fantastic football IQ.
DeBoer has recruited Lee for some time now, Washington was his sixth offer back on February 10th, 2023, and visited Seattle two times. He was offered by Alabama shortly after the hiring of DeBoer, visiting in March with an official visit scheduled in June.
Alabama faces stiff competition in Georgia, USC, and Washington for the prized cornerback. Of the Tide’s eight commits, six are projected to play defense (including two athletes), although none would be CBs. Getting Lee would prove DeBoer’s recruiting ability and secure a top talent at a position of need.
Javion Hilson
Cocoa, FL (Cocoa)
#35 NAT, #1 EDGE, #5 FL
Javion Hilson is a top talent whom Alabama is trying to get back. Hilson originally committed to Bama on December 8th, 2023, but decommitted following Saban’s retirement. He flipped to Florida State on January 16th of this year, but he’s getting reeled back in by the new staff.
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Hilson visited Tuscaloosa in March and has one of four Official Visits scheduled with Alabama on May 31st. He will also visit Florida, UCF, and Florida State. Since committing to the Noles, Hilson has unofficially visited them twice.
Elite Edge Rushers are game wreckers, and Hilson’s junior year stats show that. He ended with 97 tackles, 27 for loss, 14 sacks, 44 QB hurries, 3 FF, 2 PBU, and a FR. There’s a reason why he’s the top EDGE in the class and the 6’3.5″ 235-pounder would make a big impact for any school. I believe this one will come down to the wire, and Alabama has a good chance to flip Hilson back.
Jackson Lloyd
Carmel, CA (Carmel)
#197 NAT, #21 OT, #18 CA
The Tide are in the race for multiple LT targets, like David Sanders Jr., Ty Haywood, and Michael Fasusi, but I see Alabama finishing as runner-ups. This leads us to Jackson Lloyd. His story is similar to Dijon Lee, an early target of Washington who was quickly offered by Alabama after DeBoer’s hiring. He’s got incredible length at 6’7″, 290-pounds, moves well for his size, and is very physical.
Lloyd is a three-sport athlete who has visited Alabama once and I expect more over the summer. He has not set any Official Visits yet, but we are expecting UCLA, USC, and Washington alongside Alabama and possibly a fifth team, likely also in the southeast.
Alabama doesn’t have any offensive line commits in 2025 and LT is proabaly the second most important position behind QB. Landing Lloyd sures up a position of need and gives a legit talent at the position.
