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| Newest Big man on campus |
Nick Jacobs - 6-8 power forward from Atlanta, Georgia. Almost overlooked by many Tide fans this strong worker could fight for a starting position by the start of the SEC. Why? He is a perfect fit for Grant's system. He's been playing in a very similiar system similiar to Bama's while in high school. He is fourth Alabama player who was ranked in the top 100. Like Cooper, Nick is highy underrated. When I made the I-20 trip from Birmingham I had no idea what to expect. On the way back home it was one happy trip. Jacobs loves to play with his back to the basket and does a tremendous job getting his hip around the defender to shoot a lot of lay ups. He also has a soft running baby hook, and by the way he is another left handed shooter. The night I watched his South Atlanta team play he was dominating. I finally had to ask one of his family members if he was left or right handed. He loves shooting hook shots with either hand. You can't overplay him. That's big. He averaged 25 and 13 boards for the season. A late season injury hurt him in the Mr. Basketball race in Georgia.
If Bama continues to play Green in the post then you can expect to see a lot of Jacobs early on. I'd rate him 9/10. Strenght - great all around game. Strong as an ox. Long as a rainbow. This kid is going to be radioactive before he is through in Tuscaloosa. Weakness - I can't really think of a thing. Listen closely to what Coach Grant says in early camp. If the coach talks about him a good bit he's fit at the four.
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| Long and a streak of mean on the floor |
Moussa Gueye - The big 7 foot center was considered to be the odds on favorite for JUCO 1st team All-American. The he suffered a stress fracture. That turned out to be good for Bama. Gueye, who is from Senegal, had originally committed Valpo but after the injury he reopened his recruting. Final Three? Bama, Texas, and USC in that order. What does that tell you? He is already a defensive force inside. He needs to improve his offense but who better to work against than Green. This was a really big time recruit for Bama and one who could potentially change the entire complexion of Bama's half court game. He's not a bad guy to have at the bottom of the diamond on Bama's full court press either.
Strenghts - He is big and strong. He is an excellent shot blocker with good timing on when to committ to the block. High energy. He's a leader. Weakness - He had a really serious fracture in a support bone in his foot. His recovery had not been easy, and needs some more time to heal? Redshirt? 8/10 but would be higher if you knew he would be fine physically.
Retin Ojomah - 6-2 guard from Antwerp, Belgium... Hard to get a lot of information on him. Here's my take - Grant didn't have to use that scholorship. He could have quit at five but thought enough about Retin to offer. I finally got a couple of people to give me some of their personal insight on him. I was told he was a winner and a very, very intelligent player. Great ball handler and has an explosive first step off the dribble. His team is really into East German explosiveness training. At 6-2 he's very muscular and strong. He is a solid 205. The best thing I heard about him was that "he never seems to make a mistake."
Hard to say what a recruiting service would rank him. He also had offers from two Big East schools and a bevy of smaller NCAA teams. He turned down the chance to play professionally. I suspect he'd be a four star but that would just be a guess.
The football fans like to talk about Nick Saban's process. It is exactly the same for Grant except he really can't afford to miss on many players due to scholorship limits. Let me say it this way. - I bet I'm as happy to have Grant (as you all know) as football fans are having Saban.
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