TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- When Alabama’s most experienced inside linebacker finished a footwork drill prior to the Crimson Tide’s first scrimmage of the preseason on Saturday, he observed the team’s newest inside ‘backer as he participated in his first practice at the college level.

Former 5-star recruit Ale Kaho arrived at Alabama on Friday and joined his new teammates on the field at Bryant-Denny Stadium for the first of two fall-camp scrimmages. He was not in full pads because of NCAA acclimation rules, but he was able to run in between dummies.

In his first glimpse of Kaho, junior linebacker Mack Wilson was impressed.

“I feel like he’s got potential to be a great player,” Wilson said. “I was just watching him as we were doing individual (drills), and he seemed to have high energy. He seemed to be happy. He said he was going through a lot, and we’re just trying to make him feel at home and just trying to take him in and show him how we do things at Alabama, what the brotherhood is all about.”

A native of Reno, Nev., Kaho was released from his national letter of intent with Washington on Monday of last week, and he chose Alabama as his next landing spot Wednesday. The No. 1 inside linebacker in the 2018 class, according to the 247Sports rankings, Kaho ended up in Tuscaloosa after a brief stop in Seattle because of academic issues at Washington.

On Saturday, head coach Nick Saban explained Kaho’s journey to the Crimson Tide program.

“There are circumstances -- and I don’t know all the circumstances -- where a guy doesn’t get admitted to the school that he signed to go to, that he gets an opportunity to go somewhere else and he gets a release or he can choose to try to get eligible over time but not be able to enroll in school,” Saban said. “So, I think, as I understand it, he was unable to get into school for academic reasons because of their institutional policies, not because of NCAA rules.

“He could get into school at most other institutions. So, he had opportunities to go other places. He didn’t want to sit out and continue to take other classes so he could go to the school he signed at and we were one of the people that recruited him. It came down to the wire in terms of whether we got him or not. When he got his release, we let him know that he had an opportunity to come here. We’re glad to have him. We’ll think he’ll be a good player.”

Alabama freshman LB Ale Kaho

The 6-foot-1, 218-pound prospect was a longtime BYU commit during the recruiting process before flipping his commitment to the Huskies just prior to the early signing period last December. He signed with Washington last year and arrived in Seattle this summer, but he never enrolled while wrapping up required coursework. Huskies head coach Chris Petersen cited “personal reasons” for the release of the program’s highest-rated incoming freshman.

The Crimson Tide was heavily involved in Kaho’s recruitment last year and was considered to have finished in a runner-up position. While committed to BYU, Kaho traveled to Tuscaloosa to camp with Alabama and promptly landed a scholarship offer from Saban. Kaho returned to town for an official visit to campus the weekend of Nov. 4 and saw UA earn a victory over LSU.

Wearing No. 10 on Saturday, Kaho’s long recruiting journey ended at UA. He is immediately eligible to play, but the true freshman will have to catch up with the rest of his new teammates that have already participated in week’s worth of practice, including one scrimmage.

As someone that has already endured a freshman year at Alabama, how long did it take Wilson, another former 5-star recruit, to feel comfortable during his first season in Saban’s system?

“It’s definitely going to take a while,” Wilson said. “It took me, like, almost a year and a half to learn the playbook, so it’s going to be kind of tough on him with him coming in halfway through fall camp. But we’re going to find a way to get him comfortable and get him down to learning the stuff so that he could maybe -- if Coach Saban feels comfortable with him playing him or he continues to go along and do good, if he catches up -- come in and play, at least have a role on special teams.

“We’re definitely going to try to coach him up and get him ready.”

Contact Charlie Potter by 247Sports' personal messaging or on Twitter (@Charlie_Potter).

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