Anquin Barnes stays home, commits to Alabama
Anquin Barnes was planning to take visits this spring, spend time evaluating the different schools in pursuit, but earlier this week, he made the decision to commit to Alabama.
On Friday afternoon, he made that news public.
"I committed to the coaches earlier this week, and I told coach Roach about it first," said Barnes. "I think I surprised him when I called. He was real excited when I told him.
"After I talked to coach Roach, I talked to coach Saban, and he was just welcoming me and happy to hear the news also."
It came down to a handful of SEC schools to the athletic defensive tackle out of Montgomery (Ala.) Lee.
"I picked Alabama over Auburn, Georgia and Florida.
"I really knew it was Alabama when I went down there last time. I had the feeling that day, and I feel like it is the right time to do it. I knew it was where I wanted to go, so there was no reason to wait.
"Alabama is the right school because of the family environment. I also like the team, the staff and how they develop players. The school is basically set up to help the players succeed."
Barnes still plans to use his five official visits, but he sounded strong about his commitment to the Crimson Tide when revealing the news to Rivals earlier this week.
"It was a fun process, but it feels great to be an Alabama commit. I am excited about. Alabama just feels like the right school for me."