As Alabama gears up for the 2026 college football season, the Crimson Tide held its annual A-Day Game on Saturday. Going into his third season with the team, head coach Kalen DeBoer is looking to lead Alabama to its 18th national championship title in program history and first since 2020.
While remaining focused on next season, he and his staff continue to hit the recruiting trail. The Crimson Tide has slowly built up its 2027 cycle. As of now, the group ranks eighth in the SEC and 23rd in the nation with four commitments.
With hopes of adding more top-tier talents, Alabama has been pursuing EDGE Anthony Sweeney. Standing at 6-foot-4 and weighing 230 pounds, he is a five-star recruit, the No. 3 EDGE and the No. 20 player in the nation, per Rivals Industry Rankings.
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The Baltimore, Maryland, native put together a strong junior season at Our Lady of Good Counsel. In 11 total games, Sweeney recorded 34 tackles, five tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks.
He'd been showing strong interest in Alabama, visiting Tuscaloosa twice for unofficial visits. When naming his top 12 schools, the Crimson Tide made the cut. They were joined by Tennessee, South Carolina, Georgia, Oregon, Auburn, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, LSU, Miami, Maryland and Texas Tech.
Unfortunately for DeBoer and his staff, though, they did not come out on top in this battle. On Monday, Rivals' Hayes Fawcett reported that Sweeney has committed to the Red Raiders.
After the work put in to make a strong impression, it's a disappointing outcome for Alabama. Sweeney would have been the second defender the team added in the 2027 cycle, alongside defensive lineman AJ Pauley.
However, the Crimson Tide has offers out to a handful of other EDGE recruits. That includes four-star Chris Whitehead, four-star Abraham Sesay and four-star JaBarrius Garror. The Rivals recruiting prediction machine gives Alabama the best chance (46.6%) to land Garror's commitment.
