Alabama Lands 4-Star RB From Mississippi

The Crimson Tide continues to roll on the recruiting trail, with Kalen DeBoer outperforming many people's ideas of what Alabama recruiting would look like in the post-Nick Saban era of Alabama football.

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Alabama's offense is set to be one of the best in the country under Kalen DeBoer, and recruits are taking notice. Alabama's running backs are set to have a big season led by Jam Miller and Justice Haynes, and high school recruits see the potential in Alabama's backfield.

According to Hayes Fawcett of On3 Sports, former Ole Miss running back commit Akylin Dear has committed to Alabama.

Dear is ranked as the No. 31 overall recruit according to 247 Sports composite and is a current five-star prospect. He's ranked as the No. 2 running back in the country and the No. 3 player in the state of Mississippi, behind wide receiver Caleb Cunningham.

Dear had been committed to Ole Miss since March 30. and decommitted on June 28.

The 6-foot-1, 200-pound prospect from Quitman, Mississippi also held offers from Georgia, Michigan, Oregon, Texas, and several other top-tier programs in college football.

Dear visited Alabama during the June 14 recruiting weekend. Alabama also earned commitments from Jackson Lloyd, London Simmons, and Alex Asparuhov from that weekend.

In 2023, Dear ran for 2,016 yards and 27 touchdowns. In 2022, he rushed for 800 yards and 21 touchdowns.

Dear shows a strong ability to turn the corner on inside zone runs or outside runs to the sideline. He also shows good breakaway speed in the open field. He can plant his outside foot in the ground and cut well, and he does not often go down with the first contact. He boasts a sturdy frame and has the ability to catch out of the backfield.

According to 247 Sports, Dear was recruited by Freddie Roach and Robert Gillespie.

Alabama's 2025 recruiting class currently looks like this:

Dijon Lee - 5-star CB
Keelon Russell - 5-star QB
Caleb Cunningham - 5-star WR
Ty Haywood - 5-star OT
Akylin Dear - 5-star RB
Justin Hill - 4-star EDGE
Kaleb Edwards - 4-star TE
Darrell Johnson - 4-star LB
Chuck McDonald III - 4-star CB
Dawson Merritt - 4-star LB
Jackson Lloyd - 4-star OT
Micah DeBose - 4-star OL
Anthony Rogers - 4-star RB
Michael Carroll - 4-star OL
Mal Waldrep - 3-star OL
Abduall Sanders Jr. - 3-star LB
Lotzier Brooks - 3-star WR
Luke Metz - 3-star LB
London Simmons - 3-star DL
Alex Asparuhov - Punter
Peter Notaro - Kicker

Alabama still holds the No. 2 recruiting class in the country - behind Ohio State.

Wyatt Fulton is the Brand Manager and DME for Tide 100.9, serving as an on-air host from 11:00 a.m. to noon CT every weekday and Sports Reporter covering Alabama Football and Alabama Men's Basketball. For more coverage, follow him at @FultonW_ on X, the social media app formerly known as Twitter.