Stafford Willis reported an offer from Alabama football on Tuesday after visiting the Crimson Tide.

Willis is a 2027 offensive lineman prospect out of Arab High School in Alabama. He currently garners a three-star rating from most recruiting sites and holds more than 30 D1 offers. Those offers include previous offers form South Carolina, Virginia, Virginia Tech and others.

The Crimson Tide currently does not hold a commitment from a 2027 offensive lineman, but Alabama is making a push for several. Willis joins this list.

At 6-foot-5 and 290 pounds, Willis is a physical offensive lineman who displays the ability to properly execute a variety of blocking assignments. One can see him executing effective combo blocks and continuing to find work at the second level of defenses throughout his film. Stafford also flashes some agility along with some impressive strength.

Alabama will look to get the rising senior back to campus for an official visit soon.

Watch Stafford Willis’ Highlights Below:

Justin Smith is the Managing Editor and Lead Writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine with over 10 years of writing experience & expertise. Smith has consistently delivered high quality, extensively researched information on the University of Alabama’s Crimson Tide football team that fans can trust. Smith is official credentialed media with the University of Alabama under Touchdown Alabama Magazine. He is also the Director of Recruiting for Touchdown Enterprises, specializing in scouting and analyzing high school recruits around the nation, specifically focusing on recruits within the state of Alabama.

A federal Alabama judge has prohibited the state from executing an inmate this week using the controversial new method of nitrogen gas, ruling that it amounts to cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the U.S. Constitution.

U.S. District Judge Emily Marks issued the ruling on Tuesday, June 9, that could stop the execution of Alabama death row inmate Jeffrey Lee. Lee is scheduled to be executed on Thursday, June 11, for a double murder during a pawn shop robbery in 1998.

The ruling also stops the state of Alabama from executing other inmates with the method, though no others are scheduled this year, and the state is expected to appeal the ruling, which could put the matter in front of the U.S. Supreme Court.

The office of Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey did not immediately respond to a request for comment from USA TODAY.

Marks’ ruling stems from a hearing about how much pain inmates experience during a nitrogen gas execution. She concluded that they experience up to three minutes of “severe air hunger” resulting in emotional distress, anxiety, physiological stress, and physical discomfort.

The U.S. Constitution does not guarantee a death row inmate a pain-free death but does require executions to be free of cruel and unusual punishment.

Defense attorneys, death penalty opponents and some witnesses to nitrogen gas executions argue it amounts to torture and so is a clear constitutional violation.

Alabama was the first state in the nation to carry out a nitrogen gas execution, that of Kenneth Eugene Smith in 2024. Since then, the state has executed six other inmates with the method, and Louisiana has used it once.

Under the method, executioners strap inmates to a gurney with chest and shoulder harnesses and attach a mask to his face. Ultra-high-purity nitrogen gas flows into the mask, and that displaces breathable air until none is left. The inmate loses consciousness and dies.

Witness accounts from the first four Alabama executions describe “suffering, including conscious terror for several minutes, shaking, gasping, and other evidence of distress,” Louisiana Chief District Judge Shelly Dick wrote last year when addressing the method in her state. The witnesses saw inmates “writhing” under their restraints, “vigorous convulsing and shaking for four minutes,” heaving, spitting, and a “conscious struggling for life,” she wrote.

Initially, Marks ruled last week that Lee showed he was likely to experience pain during his execution but not to an unconstitutional degree. The 11th U.S. District Court of Appeals disagreed with her on Monday and sent the case back to her for reconsideration.

Lee’s execution would be the first in Alabama this year. Another inmate, Charles Lee “Sonny” Burton, had been set to be executed by nitrogen gas in March, but Ivey commuted his death sentence to life just two days before the execution. The decision had nothing to do with the execution method. Ivey said it would be “unjust” to take Burton’s life when he wasn’t the triggerman in an AutoZone robbery gone bad in 1991.

It was the second time the Republican governor has commuted an inmate’s sentence in her nine years in office. She has presided over 25 executions.

Amanda Lee Myers is a senior crime reporter who covers the death penalty, cold cases and breaking news for USA TODAY. Follow her on X at @amandaleeusat.

As expected, running back Tai Phillips made his pledge to the Crimson Tide. He camped in Tuscaloosa a few weeks ago and the Bama staff was sold. Phillips canceled his official visit to Florida State and will OV the Capstone starting Friday. Alabama will hold their second High School Camp this weekend with several other prospects visiting as well

Also in the running for his commitment were Ohio State, NC State, and Penn State.

In 2025, Phillips had 116 rushes for 919 yards (7.9 ypc) and 12 TD in just seven games. He has been clocked at 10.86 in the 100 and 22.04 (1.2) in the 200. He is rated 3-stars but is rising fast. Don’t be surprised if he gains another star by December. Updated rankings will likely come sometime after the summer camps conclude and the Dead Period begins (June 22). Phillips is from Fayetteville, NC, but will play at Irmo HS in Columbia, SC this fall.