Alabama’s Cold Summer is re-surfacing.
The Crimson Tide continued to roll on Tuesday with a commitment from elite four-star RB Akylin Dear. One of Mississippi’s best picked Alabama over Ole Miss and Mississippi State.
Dear, the No. 4-ranked running back in the Rivals250, was previously committed in-state to the Rebels before reopening his recruitment in June — after an official visit to Tuscaloosa.
Alabama has been trending up with Dear ever since.
“I feel like I would fit in from a football standpoint in Alabama because I have the heart of a champion, and that is Alabama‘s mindset,” Dear told Rivals.
“They have a culture of winning, which is the same culture I foster. The mindset I have is to always be the best version of myself.”
Dear, a one-time Ole Miss verbal, reopened his recruitment after his official visits in June. He returned to Tuscaloosa at the end of July for the Champions Cook-Out.
Along the way, he’s continued to strengthen his connection to running backs coach Robert Gillespie, who inked Danny Hill from Meridian (Miss.) High and struck again with Quitman (Miss.) High’s Dear.
“I love Coach G. Honestly, I learned that he really coaches and develop the best running backs,” he explained.
First-year Crimson Tide HC Kalen DeBoer also made a strong impression on Dear and emphasized his fit in the offense.
“I loved his history,” Dear said of Alabama’s new coach. “I feel like I can fit into his offense great because of how he used Dillon Johnson.”
The Tide has been a staple in Dear’s recruitment since the new coaching staff arrived at Alabama at the start of the calendar year.
Even being verbally committed in-state to the Rebels, Alabama made a mark on Dear’s recruitment.
“Alabama has always been in a close race with Ole Miss and the visit definitely gave me some new perspective,” Dear said after his official visit to Tuscaloosa. “From my guest player host to Coach Gillespie and Coach DeBoer, everything was fantastic. They treated me and my family like family so I commend them on that.”
“My family had a great time in Alabama as well and they were extremely happy that everyone there treated them so nicely and with so much love,” he continued. “They catered to my family the entire visit and they showed my family how much they wanted not just me, but my whole family as well.”
