Recruiting Roundup: 5 recruits that Alabama fans need to keep a close eye on in July
Alabama is expected to pick up some steam on the recruiting trail in July. A number of 2024 and 2025 prospects are set to announce their decisions with the Crimson Tide being at the forefront in their recruitment.
Thus far, Alabama has 10 commits in the 2024 recruiting class and three commits in the 2025 recruiting class.
The 2024 prospects cannot take official visits until the end of July, so there will be a window of about three weeks where recruits choose to commit. Some will close down their recruitment while others will continue to take visits to see what other programs have to offer.
Ultimately, I expect July to be one of the biggest months in Alabama recruiting history. There are a number of recruits that have set commitment dates while others could decide to commit at any time. I really like Alabama’s chances of closing out the summer on a good note.
Roll Tide Wire lists five recruits that Alabama fans should keep a close eye on in the month of July.
2024 Safety Jakob Gude
Commitment date: July 6
Finalists: Alabama. Ohio State, UCF, Florida, Oregon
Alabama had been on the outside looking in for Gude prior to his official visit to Tuscaloosa from June 23-25. However, things seemed to have changed for the Georgia native. Gude previously played for Sandy Creek High School before transferring to Langston Hughes High School this offseason. Sandy Creek is where former Alabama defensive back Brian Branch played. With Alabama looking to sign two safeties in the 2024 cycle, Gude is likely to commit to the Crimson Tide this week. The other school likely pushing for Gude’s commitment is UCF. However, the expectation is that Alabama is the team to beat for Gude.
2024 IOL Casey Poe
Commitment date: July 12
Finalists: Alabama, Auburn, LSU, Oklahoma, Texas Tech, Clemson, Georgia
Poe has entertained each of his finalists, but it appears to be a two-team race between Alabama and Oklahoma at this point. The Texas native took an official visit to Alabama from June 23-25. Although he never took an official visit to Oklahoma, he has taken five trips to Norman. Poe has already made a decision and has shut down his recruitment according to his Twitter account. With that being the case and Alabama receiving the final official visit, I fully anticipate Poe committing to the Crimson Tide.
2024 TE Caleb Odom
Commitment date: July 15
Finalists: Alabama, Ole Miss, Miami (FL), Texas A&M, Florida
The Alabama coaching staff has been in heavy pursuit of the Peach state native ever since he took an official visit to Tuscaloosa from June 2-4. While Odom also took official visits to Auburn, Miami, and Florida, the Crimson Tide are the clear favorites to land Odom’s commitment. The two-sport athlete at Carrollton High School is a teammate of 2026 quarterback and Alabama target Julian Lewis. There is a strong chance that Alabama lands the two of them.
2025 WR Jaime Ffrench Jr.
Commitment date: July 22
Finalists: Alabama, Penn State, Florida State, Ohio State, Notre Dame
Alabama already has one elite wide receiver in the 2025 recruiting class with Ryan Williams committed to the Tide. Another 2025 wide receiver that is trending toward committing to Alabama is Jaime Ffrench Jr. While Ffrench Jr. is a high school teammate of Florida State quarterback commit Tramell Jones, he will likely spurn the home state Seminoles for the Crimson Tide. With Ffrench Jr. having two years of high school remaining, there is a chance that he entertains offers from other schools. If that is the case, Florida State will certainly be a school to keep an eye on.
2024 LB, Georgia commit Demarcus Riddick
Commitment date: July 26
Finalists: Alabama, Auburn, Georgia
Demarcus Riddick has been committed to Georgia since November. However, the Alabama native has taken a handful of visits to both Alabama and Auburn. All three schools have confidence in Riddick choosing to play for their program. At this time, the expectation is that Riddick is trending toward the Crimson Tide. After all, he has made four trips to Tuscaloosa since the beginning of March. Each time, the coaching staff has laid out the ‘red carpet’ for Riddick and his family. If there is any recruit in the country that Alabama wants to flip and get on board, it is Riddick. He is set to announce his final decision on his mother’s birthday.
