After another crazy few weeks in sports, the athletic world has slowed its momentum as of late. The Bucs won the superbowl after a dominating performance against Patrick Mahomes, Kamaru Usman defeated Gilbert Burns on the main card, and Daniel Berger won the PGA Tour. This week, however, we are not going to focus on the main sporting events and occasions that took place. Instead, we will focus on one of my favorite topics to talk about: college football recruiting. In this week’s addition of Pierson’s Potency, we’ll dive into a few of the 2021 college football recruiting classes and see how talented they are.

Alabama is dominating on and off the field

Alabama had one of the best seasons in college football history this past year and it showed in recruiting. The Tide continued their momentum for their national championship run into the 2021 class. They have the #1 class in the country, including seven 5 stars and 16 4 stars. With all 27 commits, the Crimson Tide have the best recruiting class ever, topping the 2009 Florida Gator squad led by Urban Meyer. With a loaded class, a few players standout as the next Bama greats. Let’s take a look at the next Bama stars.

5 Star RB Camar Wheaton

Camar Wheaton is a great all around back. He can make homerun type plays or be a part of a ground and pound attack. He is very physical but can also make defenders miss with his nice elusiveness. He is one of Alabama’s best recruits in the 2021 class. Although he will be joining a loaded RB room in 2021, I expect him to get a decent amount of touches in the season. Camar will look to learn behind RB’s like Brain Robinson, Trey Sanders, and Jase McClellan. He will most likely wait until his 3rd year and then he will have an enormous impact for the tide. 

5 Star ATH Ga’Quincy McKinstry

McKinstry is one of the most athletic recruits in the 2021 class. He’s so athletic that he is going dual sport and playing basketball for the Crimson Tide as well. Although the type of spot he’ll have on the team is to be determined, playing two sports in college is unheard of. Ga’quincy as a football player is a phenomenal corner. He uses his speed well to make plays on passes and loves to press cover. If he adds weight, he will have an instant impact for Alabama. He is also a solid receiver so I would not be surprised if he is used like a Jabrill Peppers and returns kicks. He is a very solid recruit as he should have a great impact for the 3-4 years that he is there for. 

4 Star ILB Kendrick Blackshire

Kendrick Blackshire could have the most potential out of any defensive recruit in the 2021 class. He is a modern day linebacker with great strength and insane speed. His coverage and some of his techniques are the only question marks about him, but he can definitely improve those abilities while he’s at Alabama. He reminds me of a Devin White/Devin Bush type linebacker that can be a huge run stopper and tackler. I do not think he’ll see the field much in the first two years, but after he develops, he could be one of the best linebackers in the country

Oklahoma’s sneaky good class

When people talk about the top classes in the country, they talk about Bama, Ohio State, and Georgia’s recruiting classes. But I don’t hear about Oklahoma’s class and I don’t know why. If you included the transfers along with the 2021 class, Oklahoma has the second best class in the country (according to 247sports). Let’s look at a few of their top prospects

Transfer RB Eric Gray

The former 4-star prospect that committed to Tennessee is the most important piece in this 2021 cycle. He joined fellow Tennessee teammates Wanya Morris and Key Lawrence in going to the Sooners. Oklahoma had a huge hole at the running back position as senior RB Rhamondre Stevenson left for the draft after an impressive 2020 season. Kennedy Brooks returns from an opt out from this past year along with returning sophomore Seth Mcgowan. But Eric Gray has homerun type talent and will be the back of the future for the Sooners

4 star DE/LB Clayton Smith

Clayton Smith will be the next defensive legend at OU. He has the frame to become a great pass rusher. He also is very quick off the line. Clayton played both sides of the ball (TE/DE) in high school, but should be used on the defensive side of the ball. Smith seems a bit raw at the sport but can definitely work on his technique in Norman. If he gets the right techniques, and bulks up, he is going to be a 2-3 year starter at OU. He sits behind Isaiah Thomas, Nik Bonitto, and Reggie Grimes right now, but in two years, he should get the starting job.

4 star ATH Billy Bowman

A former 5 star Texas commit joins OU’s 2021 cycle as one of the highest rated players in the class. He is going to OU because of Texas’ coaching change and his girlfriend is playing softball at OU. Billy is a stud on both sides of the ball and will have an immediate impact for the Sooners. He plays receiver/halfback on offense and DB on defense. Bowman is rumored to be playing on the defensive side of the ball for defensive coordinator Alex Grinch, but it is not official. Even if he does play defense, he will be used in the return game to bring back kicks and punts. A state champion out of Denton, Texas should be a key piece in years to come for Lincoln Riley and the Oklahoma Sooners