Payton Kirkland, four-star offensive tackle from Dr. Phillips High School in Orlando, Florida, took a trip to Tuscaloosa this week. He arrived on Tuesday, participated in camp on Wednesday and departed on Thursday. He was in town on an unofficial visit. Kirkland has four official visits scheduled this month which means he can still use his fifth visit this fall.

Kirkland visited Alabama for the first time in November and received an offer from the University of Alabama on January 19. The coaching staff got an up-close evaluation this week before he announces a decision next month.

"It was a great experience," Kirkland told BamaInsider. "I really enjoyed being hands-on with the staff and having conversations beyond the phone. The camp was great; being able to see the teaching is a huge difference than hearing about it.

"I felt like I performed very well. It's a grind. It's not for everybody. I also took photos, met with Coach Wolf (Alabama OL coach Eric Wolford) and toured the campus."

The massive lineman visited Alabama with his mom. He worked out at both tackle positions and received positive feedback from Coach Wolford. Kirkland briefly spoke with Nick Saban during the visit, but expects to have a FaceTime call with him soon.

"Coach Wolf talked about the little things," he said. "He says I'm a great athlete especially for my weight. He said when it comes to technique that I have been taught very well."

Kirkland told CaneSport.com after his visit to Tuscaloosa: “They’re pushing at me pretty hard, are very serious about me. Alabama is Alabama, the proof is in the pudding; we’ll see what happens with it. Whether they will be over the other teams, we’ll see.”

Kirkland will take an official visit to Oklahoma this weekend. He will also visit Florida (June 10-12), Michigan State (June 17-19) and Miami (June 24-26) this month. Kirkland is scheduled to announce his college decision on July 23.

He was named one of the top overall players this spring during the Rivals Camp Series after his performance in Miami.

"Kirkland had an outstanding showing at the Miami Rivals camp as he continues to look like he's getting in better shape and it really showed during the one-on-one portion. The four-star was very quick to get into his set at the snap and used his great length and strong punch to make sure that defensive linemen weren't able to get to the quarterback.

With his sheer size and wingspan it should be hard for nearly any defensive lineman to beat him on an inside path to the quarterback."

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