Inside high school recruiting
by Flynn Hill
Devon Kennard dominates the competition
Usually, recruiting camps such as the Nike Combines or the Army All-American Underclassmen Combine are taken with a grain of salt, as they should be. How a player plays with the pads on should be and is the most important thing that is taken into account when it comes to their ranking. Usually even an MVP-worthy performance at any of these camps needs to be looked at more carefully, especially since the competition within the position isn’t always the best.
Devon Kennard is not your usual defensive end prospect and the Southern Cal Rising Stars Camp is not your usual recruiting camp. Kennard is a cat quick 6-3, 257-pound defensive end who is wise beyond his years. His rush technique is as varied as any end prospect that’s come along in the past several years. On film, he’s clearly the best player every time he takes the field. The key concern that was voiced when rankings were first done was his frame. Listed at just 240 pounds, he was probably closer to being 230 pounds. But Kennard showed up at Southern Cal a muscular 257 pounds. He clearly has shown that he can be a rather large 275-pound end by his freshman year.
Kennard had a performance during the camp that will be long remembered. He didn’t just win the battles in the one-on-ones. He eliminated any doubt that existed about where his place in the recruiting should be. On the first day, he beat everyone he faced in dominating fashion, showing an array of spins, swims and bull rushes. The only way to stop him was to try to bring him down by the neck, a technique that current Southern Cal commitment Kevin Graf executed to perfection. Graf wasn’t the only top lineman that became a victim to Kennard’s rampage. John Martinez and Xavier Su’a Filo both at times were on the ground looking up at Kennard as he’d tap the tackling dummy for a victory. As soon as he was done with one rep, he’d sprint back to the other side of the line of scrimmage and get ready to do it all again.
Kennard not only eliminated any questions of his ranking that may have existed, he got rid of all but five potential suitors for his college destination. Kennard whittled down his list to USC, Arizona State, California, Texas and UCLA. While he has not announced a possible decision date, it’d be somewhat of a surprise in the recruiting world if he didn’t sign with Southern Cal.
Southern Cal kicks off the class of 2010
The Trojans are putting together one of their best recruiting classes with 2009, headlined by Matt Barkley, the new top prospect in the country, and new soon-to-be poster boy of college football. Other key members include receiver Randall Carroll, a speedy slot receiver who can stretch the field, Vontaze Burfict, a burly prototypical middle linebacker, and T.J. McDonald, a tall and rangy safety prospect. With 15 commitments already in the fold, the Trojans aren’t quite finished with their haul.
However, it’s certainly not an excuse for Pete Carroll and Co. to get a head start on their 2010 campaign for recruiting dominance. Also in attendance at the Southern Cal Rising Stars Camp was the 10th overall prospect in the class of 2010, Dylan Baxter. The dynamic, ultra-talented Baxter turned in quite a performance throughout the one-on-ones, showing off his outstanding hands. While he’s listed as a running back, he certainly can be a threat to catch the ball out of the backfield, or even play receiver in college. He ran crisp routes and never let the ball make contact with his body. He caught many passes that would have gone for six, especially ones that were thrown by Barkley.
New film on Baxter came out as well. His speed is probably listed closer to a 4.6 than a 4.5, but he’s just a sophomore. Joe McKnight, one of many in Southern Cal’s current stable of running backs, is certainly a player who Baxter can be compared to. Both show scary vision and the ability to hurt defenses in a number of ways. McKnight was listed as having a slow 40-yard dash time (4.7 during his junior year), but he’s clearly much faster than that. Baxter will certainly have time to improve on an already adequate forty yard dash time.
Hurricanes pick up second top running back
Already with Bryce Brown, the top running back and fifth best player overall in the class of 2009, Miami secured a verbal from Mike James, a 5-11, 210-pound grinder who can break off the occasional big run. He’s certainly not a player afraid of contact and he will definitely put his shoulder down and run over a defender or two. James’ pounding style is a great compliment to Brown’s all around style and both are able to play in Miami’s pro-style offense.
This commitment does come as a bit of a surprise, not because James pulled the trigger, but because Miami did. This is not a knock on James. He’s a top 150 player overall and certainly one of the 15 to 20 best running backs in the country, however there are other backs within the state who are rated higher and have serious interest in Miami. It’s clear Miami was targeting a bigger running back, eliminating Miami Palmetto’s Jaamal Berry, a slasher with home run speed. Berry never received a Miami offer and crossed the Hurricanes off his list as a potential suitor. Lamar Miller, a significantly more explosive back than James, has been rumored to have a ton of interest in Miami and holds an offer. He is rated as the 50th best player in the class of 2009 and has very good size (5-11, 205). The question now remains: Is Miami willing to take another running back?
Last year they loaded up on linebackers, landing seven commitments and an astonishing 33 commits overall. Can Miami afford to use three on running backs in this year’s class, especially with limited numbers and pressing needs along the offensive line and at defensive end? Despite the tremendous potential that Miller possesses, it may be best for Miami pass on the standout. It is probably their best option to wait for 2010 to add more pieces to their backfield. Jakari Gore, Frank’s cousin, and Eduardo Clements, a Booker T. Washington High school standout, appear to both be leaning toward the Hurricanes. Both appear to be top 50 players nationally next year.
Pittsburgh adds key rush end
The recruiting year so far for Dave Wannstedt has been just blah. There hasn’t been a big-time recruit to commit following up on a great 2008 class. With the addition of key players like wide receiver Jonathan Baldwin and linebacker Shayne Hale, it was assumed that they’d follow up the momentum and pick up at least a few impact players early in the recruiting process.
While they still only have five commitments after securing two pledges this past week, none were bigger than the commitment from defensive end Jack Lippert. The Central Dauphin star racked up 8 sacks a year ago. At 6-3, 243, Lippert has good size and his 350-pound bench press is another plus. He has adequate straight-line speed (4.63), but his biggest asset is his motor that just doesn’t quit. He can definitely make an impact early on as a situational pass rusher, but he shows that he has the ability to chase down run plays as he develops. He was injured during his junior season, which can explain why his offer list is less than stellar.
Throughout the recruiting process Lippert made no secrets that his top school had been Penn State, not Pitt. He camped at Penn State four days prior to his decision and came away empty handed. After he realized that he would not be receiving an offer from the Nittany Lions, he pulled the trigger on Pittsburgh’s offer. However, this does bring up a concern about the firmness of his commitment, although he says that he is 100 percent solid on his commitment. But let’s play the hypothetical here. Lippert comes out and flat out dominates during his senior year, leaving no doubts about his health or talent, and the Nittany Lions decide to extend an offer. It won’t be the first time that a player chose to de-commit because his childhood favorite offers. Two years ago Brian Smith shunned the Iowa Hawkeyes after Notre Dame chose to offer and last year Dravannti Johnson decided to switch from Texas A&M to Texas. Only time will tell. Wannstedt had better continue recruiting Lippert as though he is not committed and make sure he does not lose this talented end.
Rutgers stays hot, lands cornerback
Is there a bigger surprise and better story in the recruiting world than the success of Greg Schiano’s Scarlet Knights? Wasn’t this the team that in 2002 went 1-11? After landing several top players in last year’s class including Art Forst, a huge tackle with big-time potential, Scott Vallone, a top defensive tackle, and Eric LeGrand, a hard hitting inside linebacker, Rutgers has begun to assemble one of their best classes in school history.
Already with 18 commitments in the fold, the Scarlet Knights landed a big commitment from a top cornerback Abdul Smith. The 6-0, 180-pound Smith has more than adequate size and has posted sub 4.5 40-yard dash times. He joins top quarterback prospect Tom Savage and one of the best center prospects in the land, Mark Brazinski. Smith fills a huge need, as he is the best defensive back prospect Rutgers has landed over the past two years. He can certainly play by his sophomore year and shouldn’t have to redshirt, enabling him to at least contribute on special teams.
So far in this year’s recruiting class, Schiano has shown he can get verbals from out-of-state players. Smith, Savage and defensive line prospect Jordan Hill were all taken out of the Quaker state and shifty running back Desmond Scott somehow was taken out of North Carolina. While Rutgers has shown they can get players from states near and far, what about those in state? Brazinski is a fine center prospect, clearly one of the best in the country, and is from Immaculata High School in Basking Ridge, New Jersey. Gerald Hodges, a big safety from Paulsboro, New Jersey, is a very good prospect who is in the mold of current starter Courtney Greene. The other commitments they have gotten from within the state are nowhere near Brazinski’s and Hodges’s talent level.
Rutgers has already let two of the state’s top prospects, defensive tackle Trevor Stockton and running back Theo Riddick, escape to Notre Dame. On top of those two, the state’s top player in the class of 2008, Will Hill, went to Florida. Some people have begun to talk about Rutgers possibly landing a top 10 class. While it is certainly not out of the realm of possibilities, Rutgers does not recruit New Jersey well enough to be a true contender for such a high ranking. With such success in this year’s class and so much already finished, look for Rutgers to try to really start hitting the 2010 roads really soon.