Jacob Coker
Jacob Coker, three-star quarterback, St. Paul's High School in Mobile, Ala. (Class of 2011)
There were a slew of talented prospects in 2008 who helped lead St. Paul's to the Class 5A state championship. AJ McCarron was the junior quarterback who was starting to attract major attention and scholarship offers. Mark Barron was a star athlete on both sides of the ball who was committed to Alabama. The two had sensational careers in Tuscaloosa.
Jacob Coker took the reigns as the starting quarterback for St. Paul's the year following the departure of McCarron. Coker ran a Wing-T offense during his junior season. He did not post any gaudy numbers. There were schools who visited St. Paul's the following spring who started to take notice of his 6-foot-5, 210-pound frame. He started receiving camp invites.
The schools expressing the most interest prior to the summer included Auburn, Florida State, Ole Miss and Mississippi State. He did not have any offers. He attended in June at Florida State, Ole Miss and Mississippi State. Florida State and Mississippi State offered a scholarship. He was also offered by Arkansas State, Duke and South Alabama. He committed to Florida State on June 21.
Georgia defensive coordinator Jeremy Pruitt, who was an assistant coach at Alabama at the time, was in charge of Coker's recruitment. Coach Pruitt tried to convince Coker to attend the Tide's camp in July. Coker decided not to visit Tuscaloosa.
"I grew up an Alabama fan. I always liked Alabama, but I kind of loosened that up when my recruitment started and realized I had to look for the place that best fit me," Coker told Rivals.com in 2010. "I feel like Florida State is the best spot. I am 100-percent Florida State. I am not going to look at any other schools. It just wouldn't be right."
Coker moved to a pro-style offense during his senior season in Mobile. He completed 94-of-153 passes for 1,508 yards and 16 touchdowns. He added 61 carries for 355 yards and five touchdowns. He led St. Paul's to the Class 5A semi-finals. He was also selected to play in the Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Classic.
Coker received an offer from Alabama in January prior to signing day. The Tide had a commitment from Phillip Ely who signed in February. Ely later transferred and will start for Toledo this fall. The Seminoles took another quarterback a year later from the state of Alabama in Heisman Trophy winner, Jameis Winston.
It took a few years, but Coker finally made his way to Tuscaloosa. He may or may not become the starting quarterback for the Crimson Tide this fall. He'll have an opportunity to lead at some point this year or next.
"I was very impressed with everything on my visit to Tuscaloosa," Coker said when he decided to transfer to Alabama. "I feel very comfortable with the coaches and the players, and I'm looking forward to getting started at Alabama and competing. I also want to thank my coaches and teammates at Florida State. I had a great experience there, and I'm excited to build on that at Alabama."
Blake Sims
Blake Sims, four-star athlete, Gainesville High School in Ga. (Class of 2010)
Sims was a star for Gainesville High School and emerged on the recruiting scene after a tremendous junior season. He passed for 2,785 yards with close to 1,000 yards rushing and 42 total touchdowns. The first wave of scholarship offers came shortly after his junior season and prior signing day in 2009. He earned offers from Arkansas, Ole Miss and West Virginia.
Sims continued to collect offers after signing day, and in March named a top three of Georgia, Michigan and West Virginia. He listed the Bulldogs and Wolverines as co-favortes. Sims grew up a Georgia fan. He was quoted by UGASports.com in March of 2009 saying, "I grew up wanting to be a Bulldog."
Alabama extended an offer to Sims on April 3. He committed to the Tide the following day. He wasn't the only quarterback who committed to Alabama in the spring. The Tide also reeled in Phillip Sims who was ranked a Rivals100 member. Sims was highly regarded, and many believed was the future at the quarterback position.
"It doesn't affect me at all," Sims said of the two quarterbacks in the class. "Alabama was honest with me and told me up front they were going to take another quarterback and that he was their top choice. It didn't bother me, and it's Alabama. I expect there to be competition. I was happy because he's a good player. My first thought was 'welcome to the family'. I'm going to get to know him a lot better, and I hear he's a good guy. I know he's one heck of a player."
Sims completed 150-of-254 pass attempts as a senior for 2,288 yards and 28 touchdowns. He had 115 carries for 863 yards (7.5 per carry) and 13 rushing touchdowns. He led Gainesville High School to the AAA state championship (runner-up) and was named All-State (2x). Other schools continued to try and turn his head away from Alabama.
Sims de-committed one day after Alabama defeated Texas for the 2010 BCS National Championship. The schools in consideration were Georgia, Tennessee and West Virginia. Sims was concerned about his future position in Tuscaloosa. He wanted the opportunity to play quarterback. Other schools were telling him he would not have the opportunity at Alabama.
Sims returned to Tuscaloosa before taking official visits to other schools. All doubts were erased, and he re-committed to the Tide on January 17. Sims became more open to other positions. He believed the Tide staff would put him in the best situation to become successful on offense or defense.
It took a little bit of extra time for Sims to arrive on campus. He had to take summer classes before enrolling at Alabama. He received approval from the NCAA and joined the Tide in the fall. He redshirted his freshman year. He spent time at running back during his redshirt freshman season before moving to quarterback the following year.
Alabama has seen a number of players transfer through the years who never started or received significant playing time because there were better players ahead of them including Phillip Sims. Blake stuck with Alabama when he had chances to transfer earlier in his career. He had an excellent fall camp, and has a chance to earn the full-time starting job at quarterback for the Crimson Tide this fall. -
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