Fourteen players signed letters of intent for the University of Alabama football program on Wednesday, including nine on defense. Of the nine that were sold on the Crimson Tide, three came in the secondary – a position in which the team is losing six guys after this season.
While Nick Saban is happy about Josh Jobe, Jalyn Armour-Davis and Saivion Smith, Smith’s experience in junior college provides him with the best chance of starting next year. He and four-star defensive end Jarez Parks were both cleared to practice with Alabama on last week.
In the Tide’s preparation for the Allstate Sugar Bowl against Clemson, it is good to have a cornerback that can display looks into how Ryan Carter and others in the Tigers’ defensive backfield could attack Alabama. Before he signed, Smith was a five-star prospect at Louisiana State University in 2016. He totaled four tackles and two pass breakups in 10 matchups as a freshman, and would then transfer to Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College.
As the No. 2 JUCO prospect and top-ranked player in the state of Florida – IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla. — Smith possesses sound ball skills, tackles well in space and can be very explosive on special teams. Deion Belue and John Fulton were two former Tide standouts that went the junior college route, but Saban is very excited to have Smith moving forward.
“Any time you can get a guy that’s played major college football games before and probably knows a little bit more about what it takes, probably has more maturity, I think that is always a positive,” Saban said of Smith.
He won’t practice with the team in New Orleans nor participate in the game, but getting quality action in Tuscaloosa should bode well for him. Despite Trevon Diggs and Shyheim Carter having some experience at cornerback, Smith may bring a sense of stability to the group.
“We are excited to have the opportunity to work with him, even though in this time it’s a little more difficult because we are working on an opponent,” Saban said. “He’s still out there getting reps and we are still trying to coach him.”
Stephen M. Smith is the managing editor and senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @Smsmith_TDALMag.
