Alabama has been known as a football school for many years now, but men’s head basketball coach Nate Oats has built quite an impressive program on the hardwood as well.
Oats has gone 145-63 in six seasons as Alabama’s head coach, and the Crimson Tide have made the NCAA Tournament for the past five seasons in a row. That includes a Final Four run in 2023-24.
A huge part of Oats’ success at Alabama has been his ability to bring in top talent via the recruiting trail and now via the transfer portal, and he and the Crimson Tide just landed an extremely interesting small forward in the 2026 class named Tarris Bouie.
Bouie is a four-star from Geneva, Ohio (SPIRE Academy) who committed on Wednesday to the Crimson Tide over the likes of Mississippi State, Cincinnati, Marquette, Georgetown and others.
It was the connection to Oats that really sold the 4-star on the Crimson Tide.
“I have a very good relationship with Coach Oats. We talk often, and that was the big difference in my decision. He is a genuine guy,” he said via Paul Biancardi of ESPN
