Alabama
Recruiting Rundown: Alabama Begins Camping Season with Big Weekend of Visitors
![Recruiting Rundown: Alabama Begins Camping Season with Big Weekend of Visitors](https://www.si.com/.image/t_share/MTg5OTQyNDE3OTg4NzkwMDE0/img_9866.jpg)
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Camp season has arrived in Tuscaloosa. Alabama started its summer time camps Wednesday and can host a number of of the nation’s high athletes because it has 9 camps scheduled over the following few weeks.
After a gradual begin to its 2023 class, the Crimson Tide ought to start to see issues warmth up on the recruiting path as extra affords are doled out and recruits begin making their approach onto campus. There’s loads of intrigue for subsequent week when Alabama will host latest quarterback commit Eli Holstein in addition to No. 1 total recruit Arch Manning. Nonetheless, there can even be loads of high-profile guests in Tuscaloosa this weekend.
BamaCentral will break all of that down on this week’s Recruiting Rundown.
Photograph | Brandon Inniss’ Instagram account, @_.showtime1
Loads of massive names on campus
Alabama will welcome a number of high-profile campers to campus over the weekend. Listed here are just a few notable names to control.
Brandon Inniss (five-star WR, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.): After having to cancel just a few previously-planned journeys to Alabama, Inniss will lastly be making his solution to Tuscaloosa for an official go to. The 6-foot, 190-pound receiver is considered one of Alabama’s largest targets and has the power to contribute instantly on the faculty degree. Alabama is presently battling each Ohio State and Southern California for his dedication. This weekend may see the Crimson Tide make a big push.
Dylan Lonergan (four-star QB, Snellville, Ga.): Alabama’s pursuit of Lonergan could possibly be considerably subdued following Holstein’s dedication. Nonetheless, the Crimson Tide is on the lookout for two quarterbacks on this class. Ideally, that further passer could be Manning. Nonetheless, if the No. 1 total recruit decides to go on Alabama, the Tide may make a severe push for Lonergan to affix Holstein in subsequent yr’s class. Lonergan can also be a gifted prospect in baseball the place he throws within the low 90s off the mound.
Malik Bryant (four-star LB, Orlando, Fla.): After visiting Alabama in April, Bryant is returning to Tuscaloosa for the second time this yr. The 6-foot-2, 235-pound defender is rated because the No. 2 linebacker within the 2023 class, in accordance with the 247Sports Composite. Alabama seems to be in good place for Bryant, who will take official visits to Central Florida, Florida, Miami and Southern California earlier than asserting his choice on July 23. This weekend’s journey to Tuscaloosa gained’t be an official go to as Bryant plans to return to Alabama for an official go to this fall.
Riley Williams (four-star TE, Portland, Ore.): Alabama has had hassle reeling in elite tight ends in recent times. The Crimson Tide faces an uphill battle in attempting to drag Williams from his house state of Oregon. Nonetheless, getting the prized tight finish on campus is an efficient first step.
Luke Hasz (four-star TE, Bixby, Okla.): Hasz is dedicated to Arkansas and has two siblings presently attending college in Fayetteville. Nonetheless, Alabama’s want for an elite tight finish will see it proceed to push onerous for the top-100 recruit.
Holstein the helper
May Holstein’s dedication create a snowball impact on Alabama’s 2023 class? Typically, having a high quarterback on board helps attract different commitments. The Crimson Tide will hope that continues to be the case because it presently doesn’t have an offensive talent participant exterior of Holstein in subsequent yr’s class. As talked about above, the quarterback may assist sway Inniss’ choice. Holstein is likely to be much more influential in Alabama’s pursuit of fellow Lousiana native Shelton Sampson because the five-star receiver is about to journey to Tuscaloosa later this month.
In the end, it will likely be as much as the Crimson Tide’s teaching employees to do the heavy lifting, however Holstein may function a pleasant complementary piece in Alabama’s recruiting efforts transferring ahead. If he’s in a position to reel in just a few massive names, it ought to assist him develop into a fan favourite earlier than he even arrives on campus.
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Jake Crandall/ Advertiser-USA TODAY NETWORK
Will there be breakout camp performers?
Final yr, Kobe Prentice ran his approach onto Alabama’s radar, posting a 4.38 time within the 40-yard sprint throughout one of many Crimson Tide’s camps. That finally led to him receiving a suggestion and turning into a member of this yr’s class. Whereas greater names will generate the majority of the eye, Alabama is certain to see its goal checklist develop as extra hidden gems are unearthed over the following few weeks.
![Jahlil Hurley](https://www.si.com/.image/c_limit%2Ccs_srgb%2Cfl_progressive%2Cq_auto:good%2Cw_700/MTg3NTc0ODcwMTQ4NjU0OTkx/emutdz7xeaigm_b.jpg)
Jahlil Hurley’s Twitter account, @jahlilhurley_
Hanging on to Hurley
Jahlil Hurley turned Alabama’s second 2023 commit when he selected the Crimson Tide over Auburn, Georgia, Michigan, and Texas A&M amongst others in late February.
Not too long ago, there have been rumors of the five-star cornerback flipping to Auburn. That will be particularly regarding for the Crimson Tide contemplating fellow 2023 defensive again commit Elliot Washington II introduced final week that he “shall be visiting extra colleges to totally consider and examine all my alternatives as a student-athlete.”
Whereas Hurley’s dedication will proceed to be in query, it’s key that the Crimson Tide will get the Florence, Ala., native on the town this weekend to enhance its momentum transferring ahead.
Right here’s what Hurley advised BamaCentral about Alabama after committing to the Crimson Tide:
“They produce DBs, safeties, each place within the backend they’ll put within the NFL. I need to be a flexible secondary participant, and so they can do this with me. Cornerback coach T-Rob [Travaris Robinson] simply obtained there, and I have been cool with him for a minute since he is been at Miami. I really like Coach Saban and the way he’ll coach me actually onerous.
“Then, why not Bama? Why would not you select a faculty like that?”
This week’s occasions and affords
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Alabama
Leaving Alabama’s IVF programs open to attack | BRIAN LYMAN
![Leaving Alabama’s IVF programs open to attack | BRIAN LYMAN](https://www.gannett-cdn.com/presto/2023/05/23/PMOY/d8e1634d-d741-4f8b-8012-e84ea7288d32-reflector01.jpg?auto=webp&crop=3599,2025,x0,y208&format=pjpg&width=1200)
A recent episode of Dan Carlin’s “Hardcore History” podcast offered an appropriate metaphor for Alabama politics.
Carlin discussed Alexander the Great, the ancient Greeks and their methods of fighting. When those kingdoms and city states came to blows, they put on their armor, grabbed their shields and formed tight units called phalanxes. Each man in the phalanx — which could run dozens of rows deep — carried a tall spear in his right hand and a shield in his left.
Being reasonable people, the ancient Greeks wanted to minimize their risk of getting stabbed by long sticks. So when that possibility loomed, a soldier would raise his shield with his left hand, and huddle as much as he could behind the shield of the person on his right.
As a result, phalanxes tended to drift to the right during combat. That was the safest part of the battlefield.
These hoplites would feel at home in the Alabama Legislature. The politicians in our mostly Republican government fear that if they don’t appease the extremes, they’ll leave themselves open to attack.
So they drift to the right. Where they feel safe.
And this means they debate issues that aren’t a matter of debate.
Did Alabamians as a whole want to keep up statues of long-dead white supremacists?
Are programs that encourage people to get along dehumanizing?
Do medical professionals helping teenagers navigate gender dysphoria deserve prison time?
Should Alabama force the victim of a sexual assault to carry a resulting pregnancy to term?
Don’t second-guess yourself. Reasonable people had come to a consensus on these matters.
But in Alabama’s one-party system of government, unreasonable people drive the conversations.
This is how you get a government that makes it hard for Black communities to remove statues of slaveholders; that makes life hell for transgender youth, and that forces victims of rape and incest to repeatedly live out their traumas.
It doesn’t serve the people of the state. But our government wasn’t designed for the people here. It’s aimed at ensuring that the powerful stay that way.
With one party perpetually in charge, primaries are more important than general elections. Primaries draw the most extreme GOP partisans.
And so our leaders step to the right to ensure they survive those battles.
In general, this need to appease the extremes falls hardest on marginalized groups — like transgender people, who make up less than 1% of Alabama’s population. The state’s leaders have an ugly tradition of targeting people with limited ability to fight back. But in general, they’ve left popular ideas or services alone.
But now in vitro fertilization has the attention of extremists.
It’s another issue that wasn’t broadly controversial until February. Who would object to loving couples having children? Well, the Alabama Supreme Court, led by Chief Justice Tom Parker, who wants to impose a reactionary version of Christianity on the state.
Justices ruled in February that a frozen embryo was a child. Destruction of frozen embryos could mean a parent could collect damages. Which made it very hard for IVF clinics in the state to operate.
Amid a national outcry, the Republican-controlled Legislature swiftly passed a law to protect IVF providers from criminal and civil liability.
But will they stick with it?
Republican leaders decided not to consider proposals from Democrats that would have addressed the heart of the Alabama Supreme Court’s finding on fetal personhood. The immunity bill was sold to lawmakers as a stopgap proposition that would allow legislators to explore the issue in depth, through a commission.
Of course, IVF wasn’t an issue until the state courts made it so. But now we’re seeing the outlines of a more sustained attack on the service.
Already, litigation in Mobile County is challenging the Legislature’s fix. The Southern Baptists, who count many Alabama lawmakers as congregants, now oppose helping infertile couples with this treatment.
Can we count on lawmakers to resist this new offensive?
The early signs aren’t good. Legislators keep punting on that IVF commission. If the Mobile County lawsuit gets to the Alabama Supreme Court, the law could be a goner. Parker all but invited challenges to legislative fixes in his concurrence to the court’s ruling in February.
And people already teetering over the right edge of public discourse now want restrictions on a procedure they showed little interest in before the Alabama Supreme Court’s ruling. Rep. Ernie Yarbrough, R-Trinity, even compared current IVF procedures in the state to the Holocaust.
I’d like to think that making it hard to have babies would be too much for our self-professed “pro-life” politicians. They could stiffen against this assault — if not for families pursuing IVF, then for keeping the support of suburban GOP voters.
But I also thought no one would ever force sexual assault victims to carry their attackers’ children. The Alabama Legislature did. And faced no consequences.
It doesn’t matter that IVF is popular. If extremists shout down support for the procedure, our leaders will start seeking protection.
They will take yet another step to the right. And as they do, they’ll leave infertile couples open to attack.
Brian Lyman is the editor of Alabama Reflector. He has covered Alabama politics since 2006, and worked at the Montgomery Advertiser, the Press-Register and The Anniston Star. His work has won awards from the Associated Press Managing Editors, the Alabama Press Association and Robert F. Kennedy Center for Human Rights. He lives in Auburn with his wife, Julie, and their three children.
Alabama Reflector is part of States Newsroom, an independent nonprofit website covering politics and policy in state capitals around the nation.
Alabama
Alabama State Parks adding 12 pollinator gardens thanks to RC&D grant funding
![Alabama State Parks adding 12 pollinator gardens thanks to RC&D grant funding](https://alabamanewscenter.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Pollinators-1.jpg)
Alabama
Beekeepers monitor hives for Africanized honeybees after confirmed detection in Alabama – The Cullman Tribune
![Beekeepers monitor hives for Africanized honeybees after confirmed detection in Alabama – The Cullman Tribune](https://www.cullmantribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/51084001116_d45dd3b686_o-scaled-1.jpg)
AUBURN UNIVERSITY, Ala. — The Apiary Protection Unit of the Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries (ADAI) confirmed the presence of Africanized honeybees (AHBs) in beehives in Jackson and St. Clair counties through genetic testing.
Officials at ADAI are developing a strategic monitoring plan for AHBs. Swarm traps will be placed within a five- to 10-mile radius of the confirmed cases. Bees from nearby beekeepers will also be sampled as a precaution. ADAI said this proactive measure aims to assess the extent of AHB infiltration and prevent future spread.
Monitoring hives in Alabama
Jack Rowe, an Alabama Cooperative Extension System bee specialist, said Alabama hasn’t had an AHB presence before, which keeps the state’s beekeepers from having colony management problems.
“The Apiary Protection Unit maintains a careful watch on the Port of Mobile to prevent an AHB invasion,” Rowe said. “It is up to the rest of us to ensure that we don’t bring AHBs in by accident. Vigilance is important, as is compliance with Alabama’s apiary laws.”
AHBs look like European Honeybees, but their behaviors are different. AHBs are more defensive, more easily disturbed and respond in greater numbers. Other identifying qualities are outlined in the press release from the ADAI (https://agi.alabama.gov/plantprotection/2024/06/africanized-honeybees-detected-in-alabama).
Apiculturists who regularly collect swarms or conduct bee removals should be alert for bees that seem highly aggressive to humans or animals. If encountered, Phillip Carter, an apiary inspector with the plant protection division of ADAI, encourages apiculturists to contact the plant protection division so a sample can be collected and tested for AHB genes.
“Investigators are speculating the two confirmed AHB colonies are a result of purchasing queens, packages and illegal nucs from other states with the presence of AHBs,” Carter said.
Follow laws to protect Alabama’s bee population
Rowe said Carter is asking all beekeepers to obey the No Comb Law by not purchasing nucs from out of state.
“We have this law in place to prevent exactly what is now happening, not just honeybee pests and diseases,” Carter said.
When purchasing mated queens or packages from another state with a confirmed presence of AHBs, it is imperative that the buyer request the seller’s certificate, confirming their testing for AHBs through their state’s apiary program.
“We must all comply with Alabama’s apiary laws to protect the bee population in Alabama and prevent the spread of AHBs in our state,” Rowe said.
Extension recommendations
Rowe said if beekeepers are receiving packages or queens from the following states, it is best to request certificates stating that the bee stock that they were raised from are free from AHB genes:
- Florida
- Louisiana
- Arkansas
- Texas
- New Mexico
- Arizona
- Nevada
- California
More information
If you think you’ve encountered an unusually aggressive hive, contact Rowe or Allyson Shabel, both members of Alabama Extension’s beekeeping team. Also reach out to the Apiary Protection Unit through the following contact information:
Central and north Alabama beekeepers, contact Jason James at 334-850-7757. South central and south Alabama beekeepers, contact Phillip Carter at 334-414-1666 or Randy Hamann at 334-850-7758. You may also contact Daniele Sisk in the ADAI Montgomery office at 334-240-7228.
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