Breaking news: Crimson Tide lands major talent on defensive line
The early signing period for college football has begun, transfer portal activities are underway, and the Alabama Crimson Tide is stacking up on defense in anticipation of the departure of a highly skilled class of pass rushers.
Former five-star prospect LT Overton from Texas A&M was acquired by Alabama via the transfer portal. According to Nick Alvarez of AL.com, Overton is a lineman who “should provide immediate depth and veteran presence to Alabama’s defensive front.”
Two recruits, four-star Jeremiah Beaman and three-star Isaia Faga, as well as possible Aggie teammate Fadil Diggs, arrived in Tuscaloosa this past weekend and joined Overton on the defensive line. Two four-star edge rushers, Jayshawn Ross of Kansas City, Missouri, and Sterling Dixon of Spanish Fort, who excelled in-state, are also new to Tuscaloosa.
Kevin Steele, the defensive coordinator, will probably be happy to see the new players because four of the Crimson Tide’s best pass rushers are seniors and juniors who will probably be selected early in the NFL draft.
This season, lineman Justin Eboigbe and Tim Smith, together with linebackers Dallas Turner and Chris Braswell, have collectively racked up 26 sacks.
Trezmen Marshall and Deontae Lawson, two linebackers who have only combined for 5.5 sacks this season, will be the Tide’s most seasoned pass rushers going forward due to those probable departures. With 1.5 sacks in 2023, junior defensive lineman Jah-Marien Latham is the best returning player.
Although replacing that much output would be difficult, Alabama seems to have enough talent between new hires and portal work. Which of the new faces will emerge victorious from camp and workouts to earn snaps come fall is the one unanswered issue.
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Texas A&M loses another to transfer portal, this time a former five-star WR
In College Station, things are shifting, but some who are close to the Texas A&M Aggies are holding out faith that the shift will be positive.
Mike Elko, who went 16-9 in two seasons at Duke, a school not usually associated with the AP Top 25, replaces Jimbo Fisher.
Elko might be the coach who takes Texas A&M to the promised land, but any leadership transition will have its share of stumbling blocks. That means watching another gifted player leave the building for Elko and the Aggies.
The excellent sophomore wide receiver Evan Stewart, who was one of the team’s top receivers in 2023, is the most recent in a run of deflections following the coaching change.
He will be recorded as Texas A&M’s fifteenth player to depart this offseason through the transfer portal.
Stewart brought a lot of hype to College Station, and he largely lived up to it, so the Aggies have suffered a significant loss. He was a five-star recruit as a 2022 class wide receiver, according to 247Sports, who also had him ranked as the No. 6 recruit overall.
Stewart’s 649 yards and two scores on 53 receptions in Year 1 earned him a spot on the All-SEC freshman team. As a sophomore, he caught 38 receptions for 514 yards and four touchdowns.
There will be two more years of eligibility for him.