This weekend Alabama hosted Rivals100 No. 1 Da'Shawn Hand on his second of three official visits. The defensive end from Woodbridge (Va.) Woodbridge Senior has been totally focused on the Crimson Tide for the last few weeks.
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[TD="align: center"]Florida will host Hand for his final official visit on November 9.[/TD]
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"I got down here on Saturday and ate breakfast," said the 6-foot-4, 248-pound Hand. "After we ate breakfast we went to the game. The game was amazing and of course they won. After that I ate a lot. The food was crazy good. I met with all the coaches and players and hung out with some of the players. It was a good visit."Hand mentioned before the trip that he wanted to see how life would be in Tuscaloosa.
"I talked with O.J. Howard," he said. "Everything was cool. He just told me how it really is down there. He told me how things go and that when you come in you have to work hard and nothing is given to you."
Academics are playing a huge part in Hand's decision and that was one of the big question marks for Alabama before this visit.
"The engineering dean is the man!" Hand exclaimed. "He is that guy! I met with the business professor too and he was good. The academic support is amazing. They have individual tutors and that's good to help you manage your time."
Hand also could not say enough good things about the coaching staff.
"Coach Rumph, Coach Thompson and all of them are normal people," he said. "They have this swagger and they won't let anybody get in the way of that. They want to use me as a 'Jack' linebacker or a defensive end depending on how I fill out."
Now that Hand has finished his second official visit, he will shift his focus to Florida, his other finalist.
"I won't compare the Michigan and Alabama visits," said Hand. "I've been focusing on Alabama now I'll focus on Florida. I'm just excited to see what they have to offer and what they can put on the table."
Hand is scheduled to visit Florida on Nov. 9 and announce his decision on Nov. 14.
http://alabama.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1567238
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[TD="align: center"]Florida will host Hand for his final official visit on November 9.[/TD]
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"I got down here on Saturday and ate breakfast," said the 6-foot-4, 248-pound Hand. "After we ate breakfast we went to the game. The game was amazing and of course they won. After that I ate a lot. The food was crazy good. I met with all the coaches and players and hung out with some of the players. It was a good visit."Hand mentioned before the trip that he wanted to see how life would be in Tuscaloosa.
"I talked with O.J. Howard," he said. "Everything was cool. He just told me how it really is down there. He told me how things go and that when you come in you have to work hard and nothing is given to you."
Academics are playing a huge part in Hand's decision and that was one of the big question marks for Alabama before this visit.
"The engineering dean is the man!" Hand exclaimed. "He is that guy! I met with the business professor too and he was good. The academic support is amazing. They have individual tutors and that's good to help you manage your time."
Hand also could not say enough good things about the coaching staff.
"Coach Rumph, Coach Thompson and all of them are normal people," he said. "They have this swagger and they won't let anybody get in the way of that. They want to use me as a 'Jack' linebacker or a defensive end depending on how I fill out."
Now that Hand has finished his second official visit, he will shift his focus to Florida, his other finalist.
"I won't compare the Michigan and Alabama visits," said Hand. "I've been focusing on Alabama now I'll focus on Florida. I'm just excited to see what they have to offer and what they can put on the table."
Hand is scheduled to visit Florida on Nov. 9 and announce his decision on Nov. 14.
http://alabama.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1567238
