Who was Alabama's Highest-Rated Recruit at Each Position? All Things CW

How the 2023 Crimson Tide might look if the recruiting services were perfect and things like experience and development didn't matter.

The All Things CW notes column by Christopher Walsh appears in five parts each week, with the latest on the Alabama Crimson Tide. This is ...

Take 4 

We're going to try something just for fun.  

Let's say that recruiting evaluators are always correct with their assessments. You know, the ones who don't work for teams, and sometimes don't have a lot of experience as talent evaluators. 

They're not. If they did, every player dubbed a 5-star prospect would end up being a first-round draft pick, and even with them they're under 40 percent at hitting that mark. 

Hey, the coaches miss pretty often as well. 

But for the sake of argument assume that they never miss, and things like experience and development don't matter (although obviously both are huge). How would the lineup for Alabama football look this season, at least on paper? 

This is based off ratings by Sports Illustrated, with composite rankings by 247Sports used to fill in the gaps. For one position, interior linebacker, the top player from both is listed. On the offensive line and in the secondary, the top overall player was used to fill a spot that would cause him to change positions. 

What does it mean toward the 2023 Crimson Tide? Very little.  

Offense

QB: Ty Simpson (RFr)

RB: Jase McClellan (Sr.)

Note: This will be Richard Young when he arrives over the summer. 

WR-X: Kendrick Law (So.)

WR-Z: Ja'Corey Brooks (Jr.)

WR-H: Emmanuel Henderson Jr. (So.)

TE: Amari Niblack (So.)

LT: JC Latham (Jr.) 

LG: Tyler Booker (So.)

C: Darrian Dalcourt (Gr.) 

RG: Elijah Pritchett (RFr.)

RT: Kadyn Proctor (Fr.) 

Defense

DE: Damon Payne Jr. (So.)

NT: James Smith (Fr.)

DE: Tim Smith (Sr.)

JACK: Chris Braswell (Sr.)

This will be Keon Keeley when he arrives over the summer

SAM: Jeremiah Alexander (So.)

MLB: Deontae Lawson (So.)

WLB: Quandarrius Robinson (Sr.)/Shawn Murphy (RFr.) 

CB: Kool-Aid McKinstry (Jr.)

CB: Dezz Ricks (Fr.) 

SS: Terrion Arnold (RSo.)

FS: Caleb Downs (Fr.)

STAR: Earl Little II (So.) 

MONEY: Jahlil Hurley (Fr.)

Based on this, Alabama's roster will have 16 5-star talents this season, seven on offense and nine on defense, including two players who would be considered reserves in this scenario, freshman outside linebackers Yhonzae Pierre and Qua Russaw. Another defensive player just missed at No. 33, Dallas Turner, who 247 had as the No. 9-overall prospect in 2021.

Just food for thought. 

See Also:

Take 1: Alabama Football Spring Roster by the Numbers

Take 2: Is Massive Home-Court Advantage Just an Alabama Thing?

Take 3: What the Alabama Depth Chart Might Look Like at the Start of Spring