Alabama lands late addition to its 2022 class in JUCO TE
By National Signing Day back in February, the Alabama football team had signed three new tight ends to its 2022 recruiting class. On Thursday evening, a fourth was reportedly added to the mix in JUCO tight end Miles Kitselman of Hutchinson Community College in Kansas.
Andrew Bone, a recruiting analyst for BamaInsider.com, was the first to break the news.
At 6-foot-6, 250 pounds, Kitselman is a big-bodied tight end who — according to the brief highlights I’ve seen — has the ability to be another in-line option for the Crimson Tide. He only played in three games for Hutchinson this past season, reeling in 2 receptions for 16 yards and a touchdown.
No, those numbers aren’t going to blow anyone away, but watching Kitselman on tape, it’s not hard to see the appeal. Is he likely to push for playing time in Year 1 — or anytime soon? Probably not, but earlier this spring, Alabama coach Nick Saban discussed the importance of adding more depth at tight end.
“The tight ends are doing fine,” Saban told reporters. “We only have the three, but [Cameron] Latu has had a good spring. Robbie Ouzts has made a tremendous amount of improvement. He plays with a lot of confidence. He’s a tough guy. He’s a pretty good blocker. That’s an area of our team where we need to add depth. We’ve got a young guy that’s trying to learn how to play and we’ve got a couple of other guys coming in so it’s going to be really important.
“We haven’t played Kendall Randolph there at all this spring. We’re playing him on the offensive line, giving him every opportunity to be a starter. I’m not disappointed at all in the guys that we have. We just need more guys at that position.”
Top 10
- 1New
Jaxson Robinson injury
UK star to miss Tennessee game
- 2Trending
DJ Durkin
Auburn DC gets extension
- 3
AP Poll controversy
New Top 25 raises eyebrows
- 4
Penn State police warning
Saquon celebration triggers warning
- 5
Kai Trump
President's granddaughter holds $1.2M NIL Valuation
Get the On3 Top 10 to your inbox every morning
By clicking "Subscribe to Newsletter", I agree to On3's Privacy Notice, Terms, and use of my personal information described therein.
Kitselman is yet another guy at that position. Mission accomplished, right?
Granted, it’s rare to see one recruiting class sign four tight ends. Kitselman joins Amari Niblack, Danny Lewis and Elijah Brown. The two former will arrive this summer. Meanwhile, Brown took part in spring practice after enrolling early. We didn’t hear much about Brown this spring, but that isn’t surprising.
The main concern is that Alabama only had three scholarship tight ends available this spring in Latu, Ouzts and Brown.
Even with reinforcements arriving this summer with Niblack and Lewis, more is needed, and it was also going to be difficult to find that depth in the transfer portal. Why? Well, because the top of the depth chart is already set with Latu as the starter and Ouzts as the second option.
A top option out of the portal such as Michael Trigg or Baylor Kupp was unlikely to come under those conditions. So instead, Alabama added Kitselman, who offers some promising — yet raw — talent, from the JUCO ranks. If you think about it that way, the addition makes sense.
You can find Kitselman’s highlight tape below.
Miles Kitselman, Hutchinson C.C.
Are you subscribed?
Ready to get all your latest Alabama football news in one place? Become a member of BamaOn3 today. With your Bama On3/On3+ membership, you’ll not only have access to the goings-on in Tuscaloosa, but you’ll be able to peruse other fansites within the network to hear just how rivals are feeling about the Tide, as well. Make sure to follow along on Twitter (@BamaOn3) for all the Alabama news you need now!
