Charlot signs with Alabama

Patterson High School standout Daylon Charlot ended his recruitment Wednesday morning by signing a national letter of intent to play college football at the University of Alabama.
Charlot, whose decision drew live streaming from NOLA.com/The Times Picayune, agreed to attend the school he had declared his commitment to in 2013 before re-opening it up late in the year.
He chose Alabama over LSU and Miami in the school’s gymnasium to applause and cheers of Roll Tide.
“This is one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever had to make, but this fall I will be attending the University of Alabama,” Charlot said.
He thanked his parents, coaches, teachers, classmates and the Patterson community.
Charlot will head to Alabama after a standout career at Patterson High where he recorded 131 receptions for 2,667 yards and 44 touchdowns, and was a multi-year all-state selection.
As a senior, he caught 30 passes for 711 yards and 14 touchdowns. He averaged 23.7 yards per reception. He was honored as a first-team All-District 9-3A selection both on offense at wide receiver and on defense at defensive back as well as a Class 3A first-team All-State selection at wide receiver by both the Louisiana Sports Writers Association and the Louisiana Football Coaches Association.
A four-star recruit, Charlot is ranked as the ninth best receiver in the country, according to Rivals.com, while he’s the fourth rated player in the state and 78th best player in the country overall.
“I love the coaches and the facilities there,” he said of Alabama. “It just felt right, and I love to compete and I know the coaches will teach me and the players will push me to get better every day in practice.”
Charlot’s high school coach, Chad Blanchard, thinks the 6-foot, 180-pound wideout and the Crimson Tide’s offense are a good fit.
“Alabama is a spread team now,” Blanchard said. “They get the reputation of being a downhill running team and they are, but they spread people out with four and five wide receiver sets and that gives him a chance to get on the field. They lost some receivers this year, and they’re bringing in a good class and they’re going to get an opportunity to learn, to develop and to play early.”
The Tide’s 24-member class was ranked No. 1 by 247Sports and ESPN and second by Scout and Rivals.com.
After his senior season, Charlot participated in the Under Armour All-American game in St. Petersburg, Florida, where he returned a punt 50-plus yards for a touchdown. His three returns for 101 yards set a new record for punt return yardage in the game, breaking ex-University of Alabama standout Amari Cooper’s mark when he played in the 2012 game.
Ironically, Cooper went on to excel at wide receiver for the Crimson Tide before declaring for this year’s NFL draft.
Additional reporting by The Daily Review Sports Editor Geoff Stoute.