According to recruiting analyst Tom Loy, very few recruits have expressed an interest in visiting Alabama.

A group of 34 top-ranked high school football prospects were in Las Vegas this week for Nike’s ‘The Next Ones’ event and had little to say about Alabama, according to national recruiting analyst Tom Loy, who was present. 247Sports interviewed almost every recruit at the event, including Crimson Tide targets Derek Meadows (WR), Nasir Wyatt (WR), and Seuseu Alofaituli (OL), among others.

“Not a lot of these guys were talking about visiting,” Loy said on Wednesday’s Football Recruiting Podcast. “It was unusual not to hear Alabama from these kids. But I also believe they are being patient. This staff is presumably fine with that. I doubt they would have big expectations for that, however. They’re going to be patient and see what happens.”

Loy stated that recruits are being patient as Alabama continues to reshape its staff and roster under new head coach Kalen DeBoer. He predicted recruiting activity should ramp up in March and continue into the 2024 season, but it’s still shocking how quiet things have been for the Crimson Tide.

“I expect March to be a big month,” Loy stated. “The guys who don’t pledge before the start of their senior seasons will wait and see how Alabama plays this fall. I expect them to do well this year, although things are quiet right now with the Crimson Tide.”

Earlier this week, Alabama moved Nick Sheridan, the tight ends coach, to offensive coordinator. He replaces Ryan Grubb, who departed to join the Seattle Seahawks over the weekend, and should get along well with prospective prospects, especially quarterbacks, according to director of scouting Andrew Ivins.

“Sheridan is a younger guy (35), but he’s already pretty well-traveled,” Ivins told me. “He’s really one of the key reasons Michael Penix Jr. went to Indiana and later Washington, since he met the Sunshine State native while working as a graduate assistant at Tennessee. He didn’t have many major recruiting successes at Washington, but he was engaged with some important quarterbacks during his time with the Hoosiers.”

According to national recruiting editor Brandon Huffman, promoting Sheridan provides Alabama and DeBoer with much-needed stability on the new staff as well as a candidate with talent for recruiting tight ends in addition to quarterbacks.

Recruiting news and thoughts from Nike’s ‘The Next Ones’ event in Las Vegas (VIP

“Sheridan’s move to offensive coordinator means a couple of things,” Huffman went on to say. “Finally, Kalen DeBoer’s staff in Tuscaloosa has some continuity, as does a coordinator with recruiting experience. He was instrumental in recruiting tight ends at Washington, including Decker DeGraaf in the 2024 class. He also did an excellent job recruiting from the portal at tight end.”

Inside the 247Sports Composite’s No. 1 2026 prospect Jahkeem Stewart’s top schools

The New Orleans (La.) St. Augustine five-star discusses his current process and a few programs that have piqued his interest.

St. Augustine five-star Jahkeem Stewart, the 247Sports Composite’s top prospect in the 2026 class in New Orleans (La.), has named his top 15 schools, including LSU, Ohio State, Texas A&M, USC, Tennessee, Florida State, Oregon, Alabama, Penn State, Georgia, Auburn, Texas, Miami, Colorado, and Michigan.

“I’m looking for a program who can help me become the best version of myself on and off the field,” Stewart said in an interview with 247Sports. “All of these schools have made it known I’m a priority for them.”

Several more than others.

SEC baseball preseason power rankings: LSU, reigning College World Series champion, has significant competition in 2024.

Here’s how 247Sports sees the SEC lining up as the college baseball season begins on Friday.

All 14 SEC baseball programs will begin their seasons on Friday, with many teams traveling to escape inclement weather in mid-February. College baseball has returned, and the SEC should once again be one of the sport’s hardest leagues — if not the toughest — in the final year of its present format before Texas and Oklahoma enter the competition.

LSU, of course, enters 2024 as the defending national champion. However, the Tigers appear to have regrouped, as the conference lacks a clear preseason favorite.

Florida, last year’s national runner-up, should be in contention. Arkansas, Tennessee, and Vanderbilt have also frequently ranked around the top of the SEC and will consider themselves College World Series hopefuls. As usual, the SEC appears to be a deep league capable of sending four or more teams to the CWS, with up to ten or more teams making the NCAA Tournament.

Get 30% off your annual VIP membership! Get the most recent football and recruiting information about your favorite college team today.

So, how is the SEC shaping up as the season begins? Here are 247Sports’ preseason power rankings for 2024.