By Michael Casagrande
sports@timesfreepress.com
DECATUR, Ala. — The most notable absence in Alabama’s stack of football letters of intent today will be one from five-star prospect Keenan Allen.
Once committed to Nick Saban and the Crimson Tide, the safety from Greensboro, N.C., reportedly backed out of his pledge earlier in the week and will sign today with California, Clemson or Penn State.
The Allen defection still leaves the Tide with six defensive backs planning to sign today with four of the top five secondary players from the 2009 national championship season departing.
Not all is lost for the Tide, and the intrigue isn’t over yet. Alabama got a boost on the eve of the big day when four-star offensive lineman Arie Koutndjio told the Washington Post he was going with Alabama over Southern California and New Mexico.
Former Auburn commitment and Mississippi’s top prospect Shon Coleman recently visited Tuscaloosa. The offensive tackle will choose among those teams, the Tide and Miami, another school he recently visited.
One other highly regarded offensive lineman, James Stone from Nashville, reportedly is picking between Alabama and Tennessee.
Both Coleman and Stone evidently have spots open even if all remaining committed players sign. Entering today, the Tide have 26 players pledging their services and new Southeastern Conference rules limit signing classes to 28 members.
Graduating nine of 11 starters from one of the nation’s best defenses didn’t mean the Tide is loading up on players from that side of the ball. Of the 26 known commitments, 12 play defense, 12 play offense and two are specialists.
Several big names remain locked into their commitments to Alabama, including one of the nation’s top quarterbacks. Phillip Sims, ranked second at that position by Scout.com and Rivals.com, was among the seven players who enrolled at Alabama in January and are already taking classes.
The defensive gem of the class joined Sims in Tuscaloosa early. Defensive back DeMarcus Milliner of Millbrook is the No. 1 cornerback in the nation, according to Scout.com, and second by Rivals’ evaluation. He was joined by fellow Tide commitments Jarrick Williams and Nick Perry in the secondary for Alabama in the annual all-star game with Mississippi in December.