The offers started pouring in for Dylan Brooks after programs began watching his sophomore film. Alabama offered early. Auburn, LSU and Tennessee quickly followed suit. Since then, the rush end out of Roanoke (Ala.) Handley has been a heavily pursued prospect.
Brooks likes to keep a low profile as a recruit. He quietly took visits before the NCAA's dead period and is in regular contact with a group of programs. While he is not expected to make an early decision, Brooks could up and surprise us at any time.
If a decision came soon, who would be the favorite to land the Rivals100 talent? We rank the programs we feel have the best shot.
MORE RANKING THE CONTENDERS: Tunmise Adeleye | Ga’Quincy McKinstry
1. LSU
This race is tight, and despite Brooks being in Alabama, we view LSU as the favorite. Ed Orgeron is very involved here, and that combined with the Tigers' track record of development on the defensive side of the ball has put the reigning national champions in a good spot. Brooks is familiar with LSU, he is high on Orgeron as a coach and these out-of-state Tigers seem to be pressing all the right buttons right now.
2. AUBURN
Brooks grew up an Auburn fan. His family is allowing Brooks to make his own decision, but those close to him seem to favor this in-state program. Gus Malzahn and Rodney Garner are both working this one extremely hard and Brooks knows he is a priority for Auburn. He was at an Auburn basketball game before the NCAA's dead period started and Brooks was shown a lot of attention.
3. TENNESSEE
Over the last couple of years, Brooks has gotten familiar with Knoxville, and just to put into perspective how much interest he has in the Vols, he chose to visit Tennessee when it hosted Vanderbilt instead of attending the Iron Bowl last season. Tennessee is right there with LSU and Auburn, and the top three appears to be very close. What we are hearing is that he has really connected with those in Knoxville and the vibe and opportunity there really has his attention.
4. ALABAMA
Can Alabama, the in-state program that has won multiple national championships while Brooks was growing up, be at No. 4 on Brooks’ list? It looks that way right now. He knows about the Tide’s history, how they send players to the NFL and, on his last visit to Tuscaloosa, they really impressed with their talk about how Brooks fits into their scheme. The Crimson Tide are still very much in this, and of course they are expected to be in this until the end, but Auburn, LSU and Tennessee look to have an edge on Alabama.
5. FLORIDA STATE
Mike Norvell and the new staff at Florida State have hit the ground running in Tallahassee. The Seminoles got Brooks on campus on March 1, which proved to be good timing as the NCAA would implement a dead period less than two weeks later. That visit propelled Florida State onto this list. Do the Seminoles still have work to do to move up this list? Yes, but that visit was a strong start. Brooks was planning a return visit to watch a spring practice, so the interest is there.