Auburn vs. Alabama and the state’s top five

By Robert Rousseau  |   Thursday, July 17, 2008  |  Comments( 1 )

Alabama Crimson Tide
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In 2008, the Crimson Tide won the state playoff recruiting race in a landslide over the arch-rival Auburn Tigers, collecting Alabama's five best prospects and seven of the top 10. Meanwhile, the Tigers didn’t land any of the state’s top 10.

Of course, Auburn often ends up recruiting very well out of state.

Regardless, four of the state's five top recruits in 2009, according to Rivals, are still up for grabs (third-rated defensive tackle D.J. Fluker has already committed to Alabama). Therefore, let’s hear a little about the rest of the top five.

1. Dre Kirkpatrick: A 6-foot-2, 180-pound defensive back from Gadsen who accumulated 113 tackles and 11 interceptions over the past two seasons combined, this five-star prospect has great ball skills.

In fact, Rivals believes he has the second-best ball and coverage skills in the entire class, which is the main reason he’s considered the 13th-ranked overall prospect for '09.

Both Alabama and Auburn are on his list, as are many other schools.

2. Nico Johnson: The 6-3, 226-pound inside linebacker from Andalusia runs the 40 in 4.6 seconds, bench presses 300 pounds and squats 500. However, it’s his 196 tackles over the past two seasons, including 28 for a loss, that have people excited. Right now Johnson is thought of as the third-best ILB for the '09 class.

You guessed it -- Alabama and Auburn are on his list of potential schools.

4. Tana Patrick: The 6-3, 215-pound ILB from Stevenson has 4.5 speed, a 295-pound bench press and a 555-pound squat; further, he's considered the fifth-best inside linebacker in this class. Also, he’s been productive to the tune of 175 tackles combined over the past two seasons.

Yet again, Alabama and Auburn are on his list.

5. Kendall Kelly: The 6-4, 210-pound Kelly, a wide receiver from Gadsden, runs the 40 in 4.45 and possesses a whopping vertical leap of 38 inches, making him a very intriguing prospect. He’s currently considered the 100th-best player in the nation, just making the Rivals 100.

The Iron Bowl rivals are both on his list, too.

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About Robert Rousseau

Robert Rousseau is a sports writer that has been published in a variety of print and online venues. He’s been writing for RealFootball365.com for almost three years now. When Rousseau isn’t writing about college football he tends to be penning mixed martial arts pieces for MMAFighting.com or...
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