The 2019 class is officially on the clock and with the early Signing Period just about nine months away and the first opportunity for prospects to take official visits coming this spring, it’s time for recruiting fans from across the country to start familiarizing themselves with the class of 2019.

We at Rivals.com are here to help. Over the next two weeks, we will introduce the top five players at each position in the class. Today we take a look at defensive tackle.

MEET THE 2019 CLASS: PQBs | DTQBs | AP RBs | RBs | WRs | TEs | OL | SDE

Early contenders: LSU, Alabama, Clemson, Florida, Florida State, Michigan, Ole Miss, Oregon, among others

Breakdown: Sopsher hails from Amite, La. the same town that produced National Championship game hero, Alabama wide receiver Devonta Smith. Much like Smith, Sopsher’s recruitment is shaping up to be a battle between the Tide and LSU. He’s already made multiple trips to both campuses and seems to be a major priority for both programs. Clemson, Florida State and Michigan are jockeying to make it more than just a two-horse race, but expected a prolonged battle between LSU and Alabama to play out over the next nine months.

Early contenders: Notre Dame, Oregon, Washington, USC, Alabama, UCLA, among others.

Breakdown: A native of Hawaii, Tuitele is just getting started on his tour of mainland colleges and has plenty of options to weigh on his ever-expanding offer list. In the coming weeks he’s expected to visit LSU, Texas and Oklahoma with trips to Alabama and Ohio State set for next month. Of course, those programs are playing catch up to Washington and USC, two programs who have already hosted Tuitele for visits. Obviously, the Pac-12 programs have an early lead on the competition but his upcoming trips could help some other contenders from around the country enter the mix.

Early contenders: Michigan, Ohio State, Notre Dame, Cincinnati, Iowa State, Virginia, among others.

Breakdown: Briggs has been rather quiet about his recruitment in recent months as he weighs his responsibilities in other sports with trying to plan out visits. Early in his recruitment, Michigan seemed like the early favorite, but the Wolverines have come back to the pack with Ohio State, Cincinnati and Iowa State all now heavily involved. Can the Bearcats or Cyclones pull a major upset and nab Briggs away from the Wolverines and Buckeyes? Or will those two programs turn up the heat? Briggs visit patterns during the spring and summer will be telling.

Early contenders: Rutgers, Virginia Tech, Penn State, Michigan, Ohio State, USC, Notre Dame, among others

Breakdown: Alfano nearly announced a commitment in December after cutting his list to a “final 12”, but has since slowed things down as he continues to evaluate his options. Both Penn State and Ohio State are high on his list with the Nittany Lions looking like the early favorite. But Rutgers is also in the picture and the in-state Scarlett Knights are selling Alfano on the ability to help fuel the program’s turnaround. Notre Dame is also in the mix and Alfano has spoken openly about taking visits nationally.

Early contenders: Utah, BYU, Alabama, Oregon, USC, Washington, among others

Breakdown: Ika had been committed to BYU for nearly two years before electing to back off his pledge last month. With new offers coming in on a regular basis, the Utah native decided to take a step back and evaluate his options. Since that time, Washington, USC and Oregon have emerged as possible destinations, with the Cougars not likely to give up anytime soon either. Alabama has also increased its presence in Utah over the past few cycles and will also likely do its best to make a run in the coming months. After making such an early commitment the first time, Ika is likely to take his time before making another decision.