Alabama-Mississippi All-Stars: Takeaways from Day 1

HATTIESBURG, Miss. -- Day No. 1 of practice at this year’s Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Classic is in the books. Day No. 1 one brought standout performances and recruiting news on both sides and the storylines to watch throughout the week are beginning to develop. Below are five observations from the first day of workouts.

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Malik Heath was one of the most impressive players on the first day of practice. He was also one of the loudest. Heath impressed in one-one-one work and let everyone without an earshot hear about his triumphs. He certainly outperformed his national ranking of 200. That much is clear. What isn’t so clear is if he’ll sign with the Bulldogs during the early signing period.

Heath says that he has not decided whether or not to make things official in December, as he continues to mull possible visits to Florida and Ole Miss among other schools. Heath has changed his tune on the subject a number of times, but said on Tuesday that he does not intend to sign until February but also worked in the caveat that things on that front could “change next week.”

“I don’t want to sign early because I want to be able to live my last high school year out,” Heath said. “I plan on visiting Florida in January, too. I just want to live my high school life and go to my last prom and all that. Then I can worry about signing in February.” - Cassidy

Kevontae’ Ruggs looks the part of a Power Five linebacker and shined during both practices on Tuesday. Ruggs, whose older brother Henry plays wide receiver for Alabama, continues to add weight and is starting to see the recruiting momentum to match. He has an official scheduled to Ole Miss for January and is also considering offers from a number of programs including Louisville, West Virginia, Florida Atlantic and Maryland.

Should Alabama push for his commitment, the Tide would be the heavy favorite. As things stand now, however, Ruggs is not a priority target for the home school. This will likely make things interesting down the stretch. - Cassidy

Center Cameron Hill arrived in Hattiesburg without much fanfare. He carries an unassuming offer list that consists of schools like Massachusetts, Bowling Green and Alcorn State. He played like a major prospect on Tuesday, however, as he rarely lost a rep during one-on-ones.

Hill is a bit shorter than would be ideal, but it’s hard to argue with the results, as he handed a number of defensive tackles with Power Five offers. Hill could shine at a lower-level major conference schools or a high-end Group of Five program. - Cassidy

Car'Damien Daniels is a long and rangy defensive back out of Birmingham (Ala.) Homewood who is committed to Memphis. He may end up with another Tigers, but we will get to that a little later. On Tuesday, Daniels stood out from the beginning of practice. From the defensive back drills to 7-on-7 — Daniels impressed. He showed great closing speed and he could be one who could see his stock as a recruit improve this week.

Speaking of recruiting — keep an eye on the Auburn Tigers. Rodney Garner recently checked in on him and Daniels is scheduled to take an official visit to Auburn in January. No offer yet, but one could be coming and if so, Daniels may go from a Memphis Tiger to an Auburn Tiger. - Simmons

Marcus “Tank” Jenkins is known for his aggression and his tenacity on the football and although it was shorts and shoulder pads on Tuesday, he flashed that. He had a few takedowns on day one, a couple could be called pancake blocks. He was impressive during the team work. He was strong in the one-on-one session too. He worked at tackle most of the time, but he is a guard long term. There is a lot of Louisville buzz down here around him, but Ole Miss and Oklahoma are right there too. Don’t rule Auburn completely out just yet either. - Simmons

Check out 1-on-1 drill video below from Alabama's practices Tuesday: