Three-Point Stance: SEC snapshot, Sam Bruce, five-star look backs

Today’s edition looks at the state of recruiting in the SEC, Sam Bruce's dismissal at Miami and former five-star prospects that should have been ranked No. 1 overall.

PREVIOUS THREE-POINT STANCE: The aftermath of Miami-Florida State

With recruiting at a slow point in the middle of the season, I thought I’d take each of my next five columns to create a snapshot of sorts for each Power Five conference. Today we start with the SEC.

Biggest get: This one is obvious as Alabama lured the nation’s No. 1 player, running back Najee Harris, across the country to commit to Nick Saban. Whether it sticks or not is still up for debate, with Michigan charging hard and local programs like USC an option. It’s hard to think of Harris turning down Alabama and the chance to win national titles and all that Heisman attention, but distance has always been brought up with his recruitment.

Out-of-state steal: I’ll pass on Harris here since it’s not fair if he wins two categories, so let’s go with Pennsylvania running back D’Andre Swift to Georgia. Yes, I know, Alex Leatherwood and Jerry Jeudy committed to Alabama as well from out of state, but the Dawgs landing a top back from the Northeast is more impressive to me. Throw in his buddy Mark Webb and you have a nice double dip into Pennsylvania.

Biggest surprise: Is it a surprise that Dylan Moses ended up at Alabama? I guess now, when you consider the firing of Les Miles, maybe not, but if you asked this question before the start of the season almost everyone would have called him an LSU lock.

Surprising class: South Carolina is No. 10 in the country coming off a simply awful season and struggling this season with a 1-4 record in the SEC. No one expects a quick turnaround from the Gamecocks, but this recruiting class could speed up the process a bit for Will Muschamp, who is showing he can recruit with the best of them.

Struggling class: Ole Miss doesn’t have a ton of commits and the average star rating for the class isn’t as impressive as it’s been in recent years. Could it be the ongoing NCAA investigation? It has to be, because the Rebels are a fun team to watch loaded with talent and should be very attractive to recruits.

Recruiting battle to watch: It was Alabama vs. Georgia for a while but now its LSU vs. Texas A&M as the Aggies are in line to steal a few away from the Tigers with the coaching situation in flux. And it doesn’t hurt that Texas A&M has been playing awesome.

Must keep: Who’s the one player in SEC country that a team in the conference leads for that it must not lose? Cam Akers comes to mind, and I think Ole Miss is in good shape here. I’ve always thought Akers would stay home and become the elite running back the Rebels have wanted and needed for years.

Do or die: Miles was in this situation heading into the season, but he’s gone now so who does that leave? Clearly it’s Auburn coach Gus Malzahn, who is on one of the hottest seats now in the SEC. How the Tigers finish the season will help determine how they close in recruiting.

Best 2018 get: Tennessee already has elite lineman Cade Mays committed and locked up for 2018. He’s a nasty road grader who will help the Vols' line very early in his career.

If you haven’t read this article on CaneSport.com then please do.

I want to point out how impressed I am with Sam Bruce’s mother Tracye Wilkerson. I never had much interaction with Bruce's mom during the recruiting process, but I interviewed Sam many times and got to know him a little bit as a person. And I liked Bruce. He was affable, funny, competitive and electric to watch. So I have been surprised with how his career at Miami spiraled downward to the point of dismissal.

So many prospects that are heavily recruited are promised the world by college coaches, and it’s nice to see a parent hold a child accountable and simply expect him to grow up. With support from a woman like Wilkerson, who clearly loves her son but won’t coddle him, Bruce will learn a valuable lesson from this and will start a successful second chapter to his career. There will be no victim mentality enabled for Bruce and he will be better off for it. I wish him the best.

Looking back on some former five-star prospects last week during Rivals.com's Five-Star Week was so much fun I thought I’d continue to do it here and there. Today I’ll give you five prospects who were on the cusp of being ranked No. 1 overall and likely should have been.

Reggie Bush: I’m only looking at prospects that were in range of No. 1, so let’s make that clear before anyone throws out J.J. Watt or someone else. Our No. 1 in 2003 was Ernie Sims, who had a solid career at Florida State and was an eight-year pro in the NFL. But anyone who has watched the highlight tape of Bush in high school can see he should have been No. 1.

Myles Garrett: No. 2 in 2014, I’m still kicking myself for this one as it came down to a debate between Da’Shawn Hand and Garrett for No. 1 overall. Our group was pretty split at the time as well, with just a few more in the Hand corner than Garrett. So far, it is clear that Garrett should have been the guy.

Josh Rosen: No. 2 in 2015, this is another one I’m upset with myself about. Rosen was No. 1 heading into the all-star evaluation after overtaking Byron Cowart with a great senior season. Rosen backed out of the Under Armour All-America Game while Cowart dominated the week and had a very good game, so we flipped them back. That’s not looking so smart right now even with Rosen having an up-and-down season.

Eric Berry: Jimmy Clausen was the man in 2007 and I was right with everyone else having him No. 1 in the country. Berry was No. 3 that year and, while Clausen had a good career at Notre Dame despite an awful offensive line, Berry was more rare at his position. He should have been the guy.

Sheldon Richardson: Rueben Randle was No. 1 for a long time in 2009 and then Bryce Brown took over the top spot after an amazing performance at the U.S. Army All-American Bowl, but Richardson (No. 4) was the freak of the group. This was just a few years before defensive tackle became the most coveted position outside of quarterback.