Alabama flips Michigan State legacy away from the Spartans
The flip season continues. Jace Clarizio, three-star running back from East Lansing High School in Michigan, has spurned the home town program for a school rich in tradition, especially at the position. Clarizio, who took an official visit to Alabama two weekends ago, announced his flip from Michigan State to Alabama on Tuesday.
“Alabama has always been one of my favorite teams growing up,” Clarizio said after his visit to Tuscaloosa. “It’s been Michigan State and Alabama. I’m from East Lansing. My dad played (Craig Johnson) for Michigan State, so I’ve always loved Michigan State. But I’ve always liked Alabama a lot, too. It’s a great program with great coaches. A lot of guys go to the NFL from there. It’s all around great.”
It was a quick turn-around for the 5-foot-11, 195-pounder who received an offer from the Crimson Tide on November 6. Alabama had been in contact with Clarizio prior to the offer with an original connection to offensive line coach Chris Kapilovic who recruited him while he was coaching at Michigan State prior to arriving in Tuscaloosa (spent two months at Baylor this past off-season).
Robert Gillespie, Alabama’s running backs coach, connected with Clarizio after evaluating senior film (which has not been released via hudl). The ball was rolling in the right direction and within a few weeks he received an offer from Coach Kalen DeBoer.
Clarizio took an official visit with Alabama this past weekend. It was his first time ever visiting Tuscaloosa. He always had a passion for the program and was eager to see after the interest significantly increased.
“They looked very good,” Clarizio told BOL after attending Alabama’s game against Mercer. “A lot of big running backs. At Alabama, you have a lot of good running backs. The energy in the stadium was something I wasn’t used to, and they were playing Mercer. The atmosphere was definitely crazy.”
His father, who signed with Michigan State in 1985, was recruited by none other than Nick Saban while the former Alabama head coach served as the Spartans defensive coordinator. It’s a unique story.
Coach Saban recruited another former Michigan State legacy, Mark Ingram, who received a late offer from Alabama. It was Coach Saban’s first full-year recruiting class (2008). Coach DeBoer, in his first class at UA, has added a Michigan State legacy at the same position. It was also a late offer.
Alabama is excited about the new addition. He is one of two backs who will sign with Alabama on December 4 joining AK Dear, No. 3 overall RB from Quitman HS in Miss. Both are scheduled to enroll early.
Clarizo rushed for 1,632 yards and 29 touchdowns during his senior season. He rushed for 1,247 yards and 16 touchdowns in only 7.5 games during his junior season. He was an All-State selection. His East Lansing team fell in the Division 2 semi-finals (vs. Byron Center) on Saturday.
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