Chris Jordan heads to Alabama

Alabama is pushing Georgia for the top recruiting class in the SEC for 2008. The race got very interesting this weekend as Brentwood, TN athlete Chris Jordan committed to Alabama.

The Brentwood Academy running back (6-1, 210) chose Alabama over Clemson. Those two schools had been his finalist because they told Jordan that he could play running back. We will see if that is true but he certainly wants to play RB. How he ranks:

Rivals: #24 athlete
Scout: #30 running back
ESPN: #19 outside linebacker

Clearly, there is dissension about where young Chris Jordan will be playing.

The transfer from Norcross, GA plays his high school ball not even three miles from my house. I have watched him in person twice this season play against the very powerful Montgomery Bell Academy, including the state championship game.

Jordan is as naturally a gifted athlete I have ever seen in the state of Tennessee. His blend of size, speed and fluidity is startling. He is a very gifted runner for his size. There is no wasted movement as he picks his whole and he hits it. Coaches love that. He throws his body around as he will always fall forward.

Even as gifted as Jordan is at running the ball, he is just as solid at outside linebacker. He has great range and can really run sideline-to-sideline. He is not a huge speciman at OLB but with solid play in front of him he can be a monster. He flies to the football with solid instincts and good overall feel for the game of football.

One of the really impressive things about his defensive game is his pass coverage. He is very mature in his technique when it comes to getting his drops in zone schemes. His football IQ is great in coverage, something that most kids just do not have coming out of high school. He also has the speed to match-up with any tight end and a lot of running backs in man-to-man action.

Since he is so set on playing running back it will be interesting to see where he ends up. I can see Nick Saban salivating about him playing a rover type weakside linebacker in that 3-4 scheme he runs.

Georgia beware, if Alabama lands Julio Jones, Jerrell Harris or William Green they will likely take the 2008 SEC recruiting crown.