Alabama’s loaded recruiting weekend features a trio of players who are the top-ranked prospects at their respective positions in the Class of 2023. Those three are quarterback
Arch Manning, safety
Caleb Downs, and tight end
Duce Robinson.
Getting Manning on campus was crucial for the Crimson Tide. He previously took trips to Georgia and Texas in March, with that stay in Austin lasting multiple days.
It is also an important visit when looking at the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine. With this visit to Alabama, the
RPM gives the Crimson Tide a 35.6 percent chance of landing the Five-Star Plus+ target.
A quick note is that the RPM takes into account machine learning, social sentiment, visits, historical trends, and other factors. However, expert predictions are still a big piece of the RPM equation.
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What makes Alabama’s lead interesting here is that there is only one prediction on Manning’s On3 profile, and it’s in favor of the Longhorns. As mentioned above, visits are also taken into account, but Manning has checked out Alabama the same amount of times — three — as he’s been to Texas.
All of this is to say that Nick Saban and Company do not hold the lead on the RPM due to just a higher volume of visits or having a prediction in their favor; there are other factors at play here benefitting the program.
Another intriguing note is that the
Crimson Tide are also the favorites on the RPM for fellow Louisiana-based quarterback Eli Holstein. Alabama’s 2023 class won’t feature both quarterbacks, but they appear likely to land one based on the RPM’s current projections.
The RPM does fluctuate, but the Crimson Tide do hold the lead following recent visits to three schools — Alabama, Georgia, and Texas — that most presume to be the favorites for Manning at this time.
LOOK: Arch Manning on Alabama’s campus
Although Manning is not one to use his social media accounts too often (he just created a Twitter account in February), we were able to get a look at him on Alabama’s campus.
The photo below is via On3 National Recruiting Analyst Sam Spiegelman, and it shows Manning at Bryant-Denny Stadium on Saturday. While on the field, he’s seen talking with 2022 Crimson Tide signee
Shazz Preston.
Preston is a recent example of how well the Crimson Tide do on the recruiting trail. Preston, a top-50 overall prospect on the
2022 On3 Consensus, was a part of
an Alabama class that finished second nationally last cycle.
Consistently recruiting top talent has led to immense success for the program on the field. Manning’s head coach, Nelson Stewart, highlighted that success in a conversation with
BCS last month.
“Obviously, they’re a winner,” Stewart
previously told us. “They’ve won year in and year out. That’s why they’re in it [for Manning’s recruitment] because of the total success that they’ve had as a team.”
Stewart also credited Alabama for their development of quarterbacks, especially in recent years.
“He loves it,” Stewart said of Manning’s thoughts on Alabama’s QB development. “From Lane Kiffin to [Steve Sarkisian] to now Coach [Bill] O’Brien, they stay the same. They build on what they do. I think that’s a staple of good organization. Regardless of the coordinator, they’ve found success. I think that’s speaks volumes about how they are as a team… I think he’s been tremendously impressed with how they’ve developed quarterbacks.”
The No. 1 player overall regardless of position, Manning is one of just three
Five-Star Plus+ prospects in the 2023 class, the others being
Cormani McClain and
Malachi Nelson. A Five-Star Plus+ recruit is a player who is a five-star on all four major recruiting media services
According to the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine, the Alabama Crimson Tide now lead for Five-Star Plus+ quarterback Arch Manning.
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