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Don’ta Hightower got attention from Tennessee, but wanted some love. He got it from Alabama.

The 6-foot-3, 245-pound linebacker/defensive end from Marshall County High School in Lewisburg announced Wednesday he will sign with the Crimson Tide. Hightower’s two finalists were Alabama and Vanderbilt.

“My decision to go to the University of Alabama was due largely to my relationship with the coaching staff,” Hightower told rivals.com. “Coach (Kevin) Steele and Coach (Nick) Saban were upfront with me and showed me a lot of love. I got attention from Tennessee. They recruited me pretty hard but I feel like they didn’t want me as bad as Alabama or Vanderbilt. Passing up on a great education that I would receive at Vanderbilt was hard, but I believe I will get just as good an education at Alabama.”

Hightower was the News Sentinel’s sixth best preseason prospect in the state.

“The facilities at Alabama are amazing,” he told rivals.com. “I visited some other schools like Georgia Tech and Tennessee but they don’t compare to what I saw at Alabama.”

© 2007, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.