There have been quite a few changes on the Alabama staff since five-star outside linebacker Sav'ell Smalls visited for the Champions Cookout last June, namely his primary recruiter Tosh Lupoi leaving the Capstone.

The change didn’t eliminate the Crimson Tide from contention for the nation’s No. 1 outside linebacker, in fact it was UA that landed in his top 12 just a few short weeks later when the Burien (Wash.) Kennedy Catholic product put out his list.

Smalls has been to Tuscaloosa twice thus far in his recruitment, and the next visit could be the most important with what has transpired.

“That was my main recruiter; that was my guy,” Smalls told BamaOnLine of Lupoi. “That’s the coach I was with 90 percent of the time when I was there when I was with a coach. That’s who would have been coaching me. For me, I just have to get back down to Tuscaloosa, which I’ll be doing sometime either in May or June, and just see what it would be like without him, because I know how it’d be with him. I just need to see how life would be without Tosh.”

Nick Saban called Smalls shortly after Lupoi’s departure. After that, new offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian took the reins on the five-star ‘backer’s recruitment.

“He was just checking up on me, letting me know I was still a priority for them,” Smalls said of his conversation with Saban. “Just a hey, and recapping the season a little bit, talking about what happened in the championship game. We were just catching up on everything that’s been going on with me.

“Coach Saban is Coach Saban, he’s about business. He’s either in football mode or when he’s not in football mode, he’s really chill and laid back. It’s easy to talk to him.”

The relationship with Sark is still one that’s developing, but that’s because Smalls is more of an in-person type of guy.

“We talk every now and then,” Smalls said of he and his new recruiter from Alabama. “Just for me, I don’t really like talking on the phone because it’s kind of meaningless … and that’s not just with Sark, it’s with all the coaches. It gets a little repetitive. I’m just excited for the spring and the summer so I can get on these campuses, especially get back to Tuscaloosa and see how it’s going to be now.”

Even not being a fan of talking on the phone much, Smalls says UA is “definitely” one of the schools recruiting him hardest still.

The West Coast standout is looking forward to seeing what Bama does next after it’s un-Bama-like finish to the 2018 season.

“Even though they lost, Bama is still Bama,” he said. “It’s not the first time they’ve lost a national championship game. As we’ve seen in previous years, they lose and come back with vengeance. They come back and handle business. It’ll be interesting to see how they handle this upcoming season and what they’re going to do. That (2019) class is ridiculous and 2020 is already No. 2 or No. 3 in the nation.”

When it comes to Smalls’ recruitment, the door is open for really any team to grab hold of some momentum in the coming months.

“For me, a West Coast guy, I think it would be interesting from an outside point of view just to see how my recruitment goes just because I’m pretty out in the open right now,” he said.

The tour of visits upcoming — all of which will be unofficials — will determine which schools will get official visits when Smalls puts out his top six in August. He says it will be a Washington school and five official visits elsewhere in his top six.

“Just see who I feel like would be the best fit,” Smalls said of what he’s looking for on his upcoming Southern swing. “See who’s not just talking, but who’s showing me how I would succeed at their school and in their defense.”

Bama has already painted a picture of how they feel Smalls could contribute at the Capstone.

“They just want me to get to the passer and make that money in the league (NFL) there … which is some good money,” Smalls said.

With the departure of Lupoi in the rearview mirror, Alabama has a big opportunity upcoming, and considering Smalls will be in Alabama for a basketball tournament at some point in the coming months, he says it’s possible that he visits Tuscaloosa twice in the near future.

“Next time I visit, how everything goes and how comfortable I feel is really going to be big for me with my recruitment with them,” he said.

At 6-foot-3, 230 pounds, Smalls is rated the No. 1 outside linebacker and the No. 7 overall player in the country, per the industry-generated 247Sports Composite Rankings.