HUNTSVILLE — Dylan Howard was all smiles.

For good reason.

Howard's first signing class the Alabama A&M men's basketball coach was a booming success.

Alabama A&M added seven high school standouts on Wednesday, marking what many close to the program believe to be one of the program's most-talented signing classes in decades.

"We are extremely pleased with this class," Howard said. "From Day 1, our coaches targeted the type of players we need to compete at the level our fans expect. Our coaches worked extremely hard and signed a top-notch recruiting class."

The type of players Alabama A&M targeted was specific. The Bulldogs were looking for long, athletic guards to provide a much-needed scoring boost, both on the perimeter and off the dribble. The coaching staff also targeted big, athletic post players.

With this class, Alabama A&M got all of the above.

To find what Alabama A&M needed in post players, Howard headed north revisiting the Midwest region where he learned to play basketball as child.

Howard, who is from Fort Wayne, Ind., signed two players from the Hoosier state, including a 6-foot-8 and 205-pound forward in Jalen Johnson, who prepped at Emmerich Manual High in Indianapolis.

Another major pickup from the Hoosier state was Cameron Alford, a 6-2 and 200-pound guard from Brownsburg High (Ind.).

According to the Indianapolis Star, Johnson was ranked the 14^th best prospect in Indiana, and Alford was the 17^th.

While in the Midwest, Alabama A&M made a stop in Ohio to land a big prospect.
Emphasis on the word "Big."

Alabama A&M signed EJ Williams, a 6-11 and 280-pound center from Middletown High (Ohio). Williams was ranked a 3-star prospect.

"All three of those players were tremendous pickups," Howard said. "Obviously, I have ties to the Midwest, being from Indiana, and we're going to continue to recruit that region because of the number of quality players available.

"With the two bigs, obviously, we addressed a need. And Cameron is a big guard who should be a great fit in our system."

During the early signing period in November, Alabama A&M signed two in-state players Garrett Hicks, a 6-0 and 170-pound guard from James Clemens High in Madison, and Mason Ellison a 6-5 and 190-pound forward from Lee High in Huntsville.

The Bulldogs added two-more in-state players on Wednesday.

Alabama A&M headed to Southeast Alabama to land Tremere Brown, a 6-8 and 200-pound forward from Central High in Phenix City. The Bulldogs also landed one of the state's top prospects in Cameron Tucker, a 6-1 and 175-pound guard from Birmingham's Wenonah High.

"We're always going to put a heavy emphasis on recruiting the state," Howard said. "There are a lot of talented players here in Alabama, and our coaches are going recruit those players extremely hard.

"All four of the in-state players we signed in this class were labeled as some of the top prospects in Alabama. Cameron Tucker was the MVP on a state championship team, and the MVP in the Alabama-Mississippi All-Star game. He's a tremendous pickup who will help us immediately. Tremere Brown and Mason Ellison are long, athletic players who we feel can do a lot of great things. And Garrett Hicks is a young man who is extremely athletic, but also has a very high basketball IQ—a player who is a 91-percent free-throw shooter, which is an area we struggled in last season."

When asked how he would rate the day, Howard immediately answered.

"Today was a huge success," he said. "This is a great day for Alabama A&M basketball. This is first step in getting our program back to a championship level."