Top 2 recruit in Arizona visiting Alabama soon

The University of Alabama signed the No. 1 recruit from Arizona in the ’24 class, Top 100 EDGE Noah Carter (Centennial). The Crimson Tide returns to the Phoenix area in pursuit of another top defensive athlete. Rylon Dillard-Allen , four-star safety from Mountain Pointe High School, received an offer from Alabama safeties coach Collin Hitschler on Friday.

The communication with Alabama was initiated less than two weeks ago. He was offered by Washington in July. He is familiar with members of the new Crimson Tide staff including Coach Chuck Morrell (Sr. Defensive Analyst/Special Assistant to the Head Coach), who extended the offer from the Huskies last summer.

Coach Kalen DeBoer did not bring the majority of his former Washington defensive staff to Alabama which included both positions in the secondary. The new staff started with a fresh slate, but Coach Hitschler made sure to visit the Grand Canyon State for an in-person evaluation.

“Coach Hitschler wanted to make sure we were having a work-out when he came out to see me,” Dillard-Allen told BOL. He wanted to see how good my footwork was, and he wanted me to have an understanding of the way he coaches his players.

“He made it clear to me last week that they were going to offer, but as a Bama rule the position coach needs to see you in-person before they get me down for an official visit.”

BOL TV: CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TO THE BOL YOUTUBE CHANNEL! (FREE)

An official visit date is expected to finalize this week. The 6-foot, 170-pound athlete is eyeing May 31 or June 7 for the first visit with Alabama. Official visits dates are set with Texas A&M (6/14) and Washington (6/21). He also visited Arizona State on 4/19. Dillard-Allen said, “Now that ‘Bama has offered, I am gonna stop it there. I’ll only take those visits, and then decide in late July.

“It’s the biggest program in the nation. It feels very good to get the offer. It’s every kid’s dream to get an offer from Alabama. Coach Kalen DeBoer just won Coach of the Year. He is going to handle business with his new team.

“I am not too familiar with the position coaches yet, but Coach Hitschler seems like a cool guy and down-to-earth. I know he has coached at some good spots. The other DBs coach ( Maurice Linguist ) was the head coach at Buffalo. All the coaches have been coordinators. They are always going to have great people there with the facilities and resources they have.”

A decision isn’t too far away. Dillard-Allen noted a key component in recruiting is how comfortable he is with the staff, and everyone who he’s with each day. He also noted NIL opportunities play a role. He knows the top contenders have great facilities, trainers, etc. Life outside of football is also an important factor.

Dillard-Allen had 40 tackles, two interceptions, two forced fumbles and two touchdowns during the 2023 season.

BOL Early Take:

This is an intriguing offer. Alabama is looking to add at least one more safety in the ’25 class to go along with Derick Smith , No. 2 ATH per On3 Sports (Selma, Ala). There hasn’t been many ‘safety’ position offers since Coach DeBoer arrived at Alabama. The early commitment from Smith also helped the Tide as far as patience with others. UA spent the spring evaluation period also scouring the country for players not previously seen in person.

Dillard-Allen was evaluated, and he will now take an official visit. There’s also a previous relationship with Coach DeBoer, Coach Morrell and Courtney Morgan from their time at Washington (visited last year). Alabama will have a shot if it decides to put on the full court press once he arrives in Tuscaloosa in the next two-three weeks.

Want to talk with the BOL staff and also thousands of other Alabama fans about all the latest recruiting intel? CLICK HERE to join daily conversations about the Crimson Tide and much more on the BOL RoundTable .

The post Top 2 recruit in Arizona visiting Alabama soon appeared first on On3 .