Tide's Smith to get close look at star freshman

TUSCALOOSA | He stands 6-foot-5. He plays end. He was the No. 1 high school football recruit in America last season, according to some people.

And his name is not Julio Jones.

Instead, it is DaQuan Bowers, a defensive end who has gotten nearly as much attention at Clemson as Jones has received at Alabama. He is expected to be a pass-rusher in the Derrick Thomas mold. He played at a small Class 1A high school (Bamberg-Erhardt, located about three hours from Clemson in the south-central part of South Carolina). Some of the difficulties of the transition from Class 1A football to a big-time college program were eased for Bowers, who was able to enroll at Clemson in the spring and participate in the Tigers' spring practice.

While most national services rated Jones as the nation's No. 1 prospect coming out of high school, ESPN — which admittedly gave little love to Alabama's recruiting efforts — opted for Bowers. He built enough of a reputation that another former national recruit – Alabama tackle Andre Smith – has heard of him.

Smith, the Crimson Tide's left tackle, will get a closer look on Saturday, but he was not about to be drawn into a war of words when he met with the Alabama media earlier this week.

'He was a great high school athlete,' Smith said. 'He did really well in the (Clemson) spring game. He has a spring under his belt, so therefore he has college experience now. He's going against a great offensive line (in practice) at Clemson. I'm not going to boast or brag. I'm just going to go out there and have fun, do what I'm supposed to do.'

Bowers will not be the only defensive end that Smith sees on Saturday night when Alabama and Clemson meet in a 7 p.m. CT nationally televised game from the Georgia Dome. The touted freshman isn't in the projected starting lineup for Clemson, although Tiger coach Tommy Bowden said he anticipates Bowers being on the field 'about 50 percent of the time.'

Kevin Alexander, a junior, will get the starting nod.

For his part, Bowers said in an interview with the Spartanburg Herald Journal that he was 'trying to avoid the hype.'

'I came to Clemson to play football and get an education,' Bowers told the Herald Journal. 'I think I can make an impact right away but I still have a long way to go and a lot to learn.'

When Clemson defensive coordinator Vic Koenning wasn't busy making jokes this week, he did indicate that Bowers would 'play a lot.'

'Da'Quan Bowers is a really good player and everyone in America wanted him,' Koenning said. 'Da'Quan is going to play a lot and we expect him to make some plays.'

With Bowers in the game or on the sidelines, protection for quarterback John Parker Wilson will be critical to Alabama's offensive success.

'John Parker has had a great offseason, but we've got to protect him,' center Antoine Caldwell said earlier this week. 'Clemson will test us in that area. They'll be a great test of where we are as a football team.'

(Reach Cecil Hurt at cecil.hurt@tuscaloosanews.com or 205-722-0225.)