Atlanta Weather

| Traffic

Search
AJC College Sports Recruiting

LeMay, Conley among main targets at UGA Junior Day

4:11 pm February 26, 2010, by Chip Towers

I’ve been working the phones and scouring the Internet all day to come up with as good a list as I can for UGA’s Junior Day this weekend.

Keep in mind, you’re never going to get a comprehensive list for something like this. Only Georgia knows who is supposed to come — even they can never be sure who will actually show up — and they couldn’t release names if they wanted to as it is a recruiting event. But best I can tell there will be about 30 or so rising high school seniors in Athens for the one-day football clinic.

And, again, it’s an impressive group.

I posted a preliminary list yesterday but there were several notable names I didn’t know about. Among the most glaring omissions were: QB Christian LeMay of Matthews, N.C.; WR Chris Conley of North Paulding; WR Charone Peak of Roebuck, S.C.; and OL Watts Dantzler of Dalton.

First, a little about some prospects that won’t be there:

  • Wilcox County QB Nick Marshall won’t be there because he’s leading his basketball team in the state basketball playoffs against Montgomery County Friday night. Marshall averages 26.0 ppg as a 2-guard. The two-sport recruit is tentatively planning to be in Athens Wednesday for the Bulldogs’ basketball game against Kentucky.
  • Grady CB Damian Swann may or may not be in Athens, according to coach Ronnie Millen. It depends on if his baseball team wins Friday. If so, he won’t make it as he’ll have another game on Saturday.
  • Thomas County Central DE Ray Drew is not coming. “I was up there as an individual on Jan. 31. Had my own itinerary and everything,” said Drew, who attended Georgia Tech’s junior day the day before. “I’ll probably go back but not for a while.”
  • As previously reported, Tucker LB James Vaughters won’t be there as he is in Palo Alto, Calif., on a visit to Stanford.

As for the ones that will be there, expect LeMay to get a lot of attention. He may be the No. 1 quarterback prospect in the country before it’s all said and done. The 6-foot-2, 200-pound athlete competed 72 percent of his passes for 3,296 yards with 44 TDs and only two interceptions in leading Butler High to the state championship as a junior last season.

“He’s got offers from everybody in the country, more than I can count,” Butler coach Mike Newsome said. “But the University of Georgia is high on his list. They’ve been on him the whole time and, being the caliber of program it is and playing the NFL-style offensive system that they do he’s very interested in them.”

Conley, another top 10 prospect in the state, will actually be attending his second junior day with the Bulldogs. He went to the first one on Jan. 30.

Conley has become a hot commodity of late, drawing nine offers so far, including the most recent one from Alabama. But Georgia was on him early and actually tendered the first offer last summer. Conley’s criteria for choosing a school sounds favorable for the Bulldogs as well.

“My criteria is a school that puts faith first, a place where I can grow in my faith in Christ and as a person,” Conley said Friday. “I’m looking for a place that has a sense of family and accepts me along with my family.”

Of course, another one of UGA’s priorities will be the Carver-Columbus duo of RB Isaiah Crowell and DT Gabe Wright. And there are many other “elite prospects” at the invitation-only event.

Special thanks to Kipp Adams of UGASports.com for several of these names. Anyway, here’s the non-comprehensive, best-I-can-do-for-now list:

  1. David Andrews, OL, Wesleyan
  2. Sterling Bailey, DE/OLB, East Hall
  3. Jonathan Battle, DT, Americus-Sumter
  4. Quan Bray, RB, Callaway
  5. Devin Bowman, RB/DB, Ridgeland
  6. Chaz Cheeks, OL, East Hall
  7. Chris Conley, WR, North Paulding
  8. Isaiah Crowell, RB, Carver-Columbus
  9. Nile Daniel, WR, Griffin
  10. Watts, Dantzler, OT, Dalton
  11. Xzavier Dickson, DE, Griffin
  12. Amarlo Herrera, LB, North Clayton
  13. Neville Hewitt, DB, Rockdale County
  14. Grady Jarrett, DL, Rockdale County
  15. Christian LeMay, QB, Matthews, N.C.
  16. Uriah LeMay, WR, Matthews, N.C.
  17. Quincy McKinney, OL, Carver-Columbus
  18. Corey Moore, DB, Griffin
  19. Charone Peake, WR, Roebuck, S.C.
  20. Ra’Chard Pippens, DB, Ola
  21. Alan Posey, OT, Clarke Central
  22. Chris Sanders, DB, Tucker
  23. Damian Swann, CB, Grady
  24. Zach Withcett, WR, Atlanta-Washington
  25. Gabriel Wright, DT, Carver-Columbus
  • Print

56 comments Add your comment

kc

February 26th, 2010
4:30 pm

first!

DAWGNTEXAS

February 26th, 2010
4:31 pm

Great list of prospects. Get them in early and let’s roll. Our schedule is finally going to help us.

UGA 2010

February 26th, 2010
4:33 pm

I just cant wait for the season to start…..

Atlanta Jackets

February 26th, 2010
4:35 pm

No one there can touch the Robot. Not one.

shanegsu

February 26th, 2010
4:36 pm

The young man from North Paulding needs to get tougher. He runs very timid. They have another wide receiver who is bigger and faster and tougher. I am pretty sure he inpresses the coaches when he is running sprints. His mom is a track coach.

Decory Bryant

February 26th, 2010
4:57 pm

I hope that CMR treats him better than he did me….

Worm

February 26th, 2010
5:02 pm

Please just give us Christian Lemay!..Best player in North carolina last year..Best I’ve seen since Peyton!

Einsteindawg

February 26th, 2010
5:06 pm

The way Wesleyan has played the past two years, I’d hand out a few more scholarships…Andrews is a beast and he has some really good teammates that can play in the SEC. Also, why doesn’t Bobo use his Thomasville heritage in South Georgia recruiting? We could sure use some of those SGA players who know how to tackle, cover, and not turn the ball over, and always seem to go to FSU, FLA, etc. Just my opinion.

jack bull

February 26th, 2010
5:08 pm

do i see another package deal in the works with the LeMay boys??? and Chip, which is the better QB in your professional opinion, LeMay or Nick Marshall?? can’t really see us going after both. I’ve seen Marshall in person(at the championship game in the Dome), and he is really impressive. Don’t know much about the LeMay kid..

and yes, shanegsu, i agree with you. the young man from N.Paulding is a little timid..but i thought that of C.Durham and R.Brown coming out of high school as well….

Whatever

February 26th, 2010
5:20 pm

Apparently Crowell’s not going after all, but Gabe and a couple other Carver kids are.

ReptilesRule

February 26th, 2010
5:43 pm

James Vaughters, go ahead and take that thrip to Cali, but we expect to see you wearing orange and blue terrorizing in the Swamp next year.

bank walker

February 26th, 2010
5:57 pm

Why didn’t Crowell make it?

Dap01

February 26th, 2010
6:09 pm

Conley: Next year when Alabama plays on TV, watch for the shots of Saban on the sidelines. Read his lips and then decide if he fits the criteria for the kind of man that you would want to play for.

r

February 26th, 2010
6:34 pm

reptilesrule, thrip? Seriously?

ReptilesRule

February 26th, 2010
6:56 pm

Yeah, that whats you do in Cali nowadays…thrip…or maybe my fingers just slipped on the keys…you make the choice.

ReptilesRule

February 26th, 2010
6:56 pm

whats!!??

Chip Towers

February 26th, 2010
7:12 pm

bank walker: Why didn’t Crowell make what?

DRC

February 26th, 2010
7:41 pm

Conley: Next year when uga plays on TV, watch for the shots of richt on the sidelines. If you can read his lips at all, (being emotionless as he is), then decide if he fits the criteria for the kind of man you would want to play for.

theTruth

February 26th, 2010
7:48 pm

CHIP, I think Bank Walker is asking why didn’t Crowell make the trip to Athens this weekend. Rumor is he isn’t coming???

Debose

February 26th, 2010
8:40 pm

Mark “2-7″ Richt is working the recruiting trail hard…………………….for yet another QB.

S.E. Dawg

February 26th, 2010
10:23 pm

Chip, are there not any good recruits in south georgia? My dad (81 yrs) has always said that UGA doesn’t recruit south georgia. I know there’s been a few but not that many.

Bodine

February 26th, 2010
11:03 pm

Ahhh….the great myth of South Ga football. That ranks right up there with general Lee’s shadow and the tooth fairy. Give it a rest.

zulucanibal

February 26th, 2010
11:36 pm

Can somebody tell me why the augusta area is such a void of talent…it is the 2nd largest city in Georgia, yet your rarely hear on any propect coming from there…how about a story on this!!!

Red Dog 77

February 27th, 2010
2:00 am

Of this group, the ones who are offered by UGA, will either committ, or they won’t. Point is, UGA needs kids who want to be DOGS…….no more, no less……..GO DOGS !!! GATA !!!

Recruiting Update 27Feb: Leather Helmet Blog

February 27th, 2010
4:02 am

[...] The AJC lists the 25 Junior Day attendees. [...]

duckey

February 27th, 2010
7:49 am

augusta area just sucks at football it has for years now

Please stop the Interstate Harvester

February 27th, 2010
8:19 am

Conley has become a hot commodity of late, drawing nine offers so far, including the most recent one from Alabama.
Carver-Columbus RB Isaiah Crowell
Carver-Columbus Gabe Wright
Tucker’s James Vaughters
Shannon Brown

But the real advantage Ala­bama players have is Nick Saban, their coach who has extensive ex­perience in pro football as well as the college game.

“He gets them not just ready from a standpoint of understand­ing offense and defense, but mentally, he makes them tough, he makes them competitive, he makes them strong,” the San Fran­cisco 49ers’ general manager said.

drock10

February 27th, 2010
9:29 am

How can LSU Oklahoma Auburn Clemson among atleast others D1 schools offering Avery Walls and the bulldogs are not paying any attention to someone under there nose. When this one end up at Alabama Florida or LSU we can only question Coach Richt and Gardner why the best are winning championships elsewhere

SEC Fan

February 27th, 2010
9:44 am

As for Walls, interest is a two way street.

Magic Man

February 27th, 2010
9:46 am

Supposedly, Crowell had a family commitment come up and had to back out. Wirght and McKinney are still expected though, which is a good sign considering the debacle at Carver last year.

Magic Man

February 27th, 2010
9:50 am

SEC Fan

UGA hasn’t offered Walls yet. And, it doesn’t seem that they will. They have offered Chris Sanders, Corey Moore, Enrique Florence, and Brian Randolph at the safety position, which tells me that they evaluated all of them higher than Walls. That is interesting considering Walls impressive offer list, but who knows. However, they have already received commitments from Moore and Sanders – two safeties, one strong and one free – and I doubt they are going to pursue Walls for whatever reason.

Oddsmakers favor Alabama to win a second consecutive BCS title

February 27th, 2010
9:52 am

INDIANAPOLIS — For years, Gil Brandt was a respected ex­ecutive with the Dallas Cowboys. Now he’s a draft analyst for NFL.com, and he’s mar­veling this week about the quality and quantity of Alabama players who are par­ticipating in the NFL Scouting Combine.

“There’s a lot of good character players there,” he said.

What does he mean by “character”?

“They’re good people,” Brandt said.

“Nobody has less off-the-field problems than Alabama does.

“No. 1, if I remember correctly, Coach (Nick) Saban doesn’t offer a scholarship to anybody he hasn’t seen personally. That means he’s been in the house and he knows what he’s getting. They have enough clout that they can get just about anybody they can get.

Magic Man

February 27th, 2010
9:52 am

Sorry, that last comment was meant for drock10.

You ever think maybe they know what they are doing. FWIW, Scout has both of the committed safeties ranked higher than Walls. Plus, Nick Williams has been moved back to safety. I also read yesterday that Sanders Commings will start out at safety, but could move back and forth between corner and safety.

Simply put, Walls wasn’t as high on our board. We can’t sign every top prospect in Georgia, there are too many.

Magic Man

February 27th, 2010
9:54 am

Oddsmakers

What about Robbie Green? Ever heard of the textbook scandal at Bama? Great character indeed.

Oddsmakers favor Alabama to win a second consecutive BCS title

February 27th, 2010
10:03 am

Magic Man “Nobody has less off-the-field problems than Alabama does.

Oddsmakers favor Alabama to win a second consecutive BCS title

February 27th, 2010
10:07 am

Magic Man——– In January, cornerback Donovan Baldwin and fullback Fred Munzenmaier were arrested for alcohol-related offenses. Baldwin was arrested on DUI charges, while Munzenmaier was arrested for drinking underage, and he will be suspended for the first game.

On May 14, Freshman Offensive Lineman Clint Boling was arrested because he was pulled over for driving recklessly and he refused to take a breathalyzer test. He has been suspended for one game.

On June 5, Defensive End Jeremy Lomax, was pulled over for speeding and having a concealed firearm. He simply was ignorant of the fact that he was not allowed have the gun under his driver’s seat.

On the morning of June 27, Sophomore Offensive Linemen Trinton Sturdivant and Justin Anderson were charged with a misdemeanor of simple battery after touching a girl inappropriately. It was reported that they had been drinking. Their punishments are being handled “internally.”

On the night of June 28, Sophomore Defensive Lineman Michael Lemon punched Demarius Jackson at least five times in the face, fracturing the victim’s left eye socket. Lemon was charged with a felony. He has been kicked off of the team, and was arrested again this morning for drinking underage.

On Aug. 2, junior long-snapper Jeff Henson, who had been charged with a DUI in November, became the eighth Georgia player arrested this offseason.

He was arrested for public intoxication and urinating in public. He has been suspended from the team.

Additionally on Aug. 2, Defensive Back Donovan Baldwin and Linebacker Marcus Dotwin were hospitalized after a brawl. Following the incident, Richt also dismissed Baldwin from the team because it was his second incident this off-season.

While Baldwin and Dotwin were in the hospital many UGA players, like good teammates, visited them to see how they were doing. Just when it seems like things cannot get any worse for the Georgia Bulldogs, on August 3rd, teammate, junior linebacker Darius Dewberry, was visiting his teammates when he decided to vandalize a parking lot control arm and plant container pots causing a whopping $2100 in estimated damages.

Dewberry became the sixth player that was either suspended or booted off of the team this off season, when Richt decided to suspend him for the first two games of the year. The hospital decided not to press charges, but on top of the suspension Dewberry’s punishment includes extra conditioning at 5:30 AM, 20 hours of community service, a mandatory part-time job to pay off the damages, and mandatory counseling.

The number of offenses is alarming, but the other thing that is alarming is how many of them are alcohol-related. An off season full of booze is not a way to win an SEC or national championship.

It just spells a lot of trouble for a team during the regular season when they are having lots of off-field incidents, and it makes it worse when they are alcohol-related. It has to make you wonder how many people on the team are doing these things and not getting caught.

I am sure that Richt is going to give his team a mouthful about proper off-field conduct when they start practice on Monday afternoon, and his team deserves it.

I am not one who delights in the transgressions of opponents, even if it is a rival like the Georgia Bulldogs, but these signs cannot be promising for Georgia heading into the regular season.

I hope the Bulldogs can get themselves together and behave off of the field, because 2008 seems like it is going to be a great year in college football. It would be such a shame to let off-field incidents ruin the season of such a talented team.

Oddsmakers favor Alabama to win a second consecutive BCS title

February 27th, 2010
10:14 am

ATHENS, Ga. — Georgia defensive end Montez Robinson was suspended indefinitely from the team Friday following his arrest Thursday on charges involving two altercations with a female student.

big south mike

February 27th, 2010
10:51 am

Stafford got $42 Million. Come on down Lemay’s. Richt’s coached up 2 Heisman trophy winners at FSU and coached in 5 National Championships. Lovin’s that 22-to-1 TD to Int ratio. WOW!!!!

Conley sounds like a PERFECT MATCH for Coach Richt form a values standpoint. Exactly the kind of guy we’re lookign for.

Richt's Butt Cut

February 27th, 2010
11:17 am

Does anyone know who #3 is that plays with LeMay? That kid looks awesome- wow factor…

Richt's Butt Cut

February 27th, 2010
11:18 am

Check out LeMay’s highlights but look at #3…Kid looks bad a$$..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tEfVjGP90JE&feature=related

Oddsmakers Favor Alabama to Receive Championship of NCAA Violations and Infractions

February 27th, 2010
11:45 am

The Gump’s real claim to fame

TommyP

February 27th, 2010
5:06 pm

Crowell didn’t go. Something about family obligations.

bobby dude

February 27th, 2010
5:10 pm

has anyone seen paul’s johnson?

UGA

February 27th, 2010
7:13 pm

If georgia get neville hewitt to comit they will have a hard hitting ball hawking safety

SickandTired

February 27th, 2010
8:43 pm

What a joke….it seems that the great Mark Richt and his recruiting machine develops brain lock when it comes to recruiting……..Sometimes I think all they do is call up Jamie Newberg and say “hey J, who we need to look at?” Mark Richt, a joke of a coach and even worse at recruiting…..Gwinnett County Mark, Gwinnett County….I know they’re close and all, but the only players you ever get are the ones that fall in your lap.

poopdawg

February 27th, 2010
9:43 pm

You are very sick SickandTired.

Recruiting Update 28Feb: Leather Helmet Blog

February 28th, 2010
4:02 am

[...] The AJC lists the 25 Junior Day attendees. [...]

Bobbydawg

February 28th, 2010
9:42 am

Enter your comments here

fishook dawg

February 28th, 2010
12:04 pm

Back last year, the AJC said that AJ Johnson (LB from Gainesville) said that GA was his long time favorite school. At 6-5,230 he sounded real good for GA, but it seems like they only get Rennie Curren size guys at LB. Anyway, AJ was not at GA’s 1st junior day and according to the AJC he said GA did not seem to be interested in him. According to your lastest list Chip, it seems he’s not coming to their 2nd junior day either. Do you know if GA has even offered him?

Wreckmaniac

February 28th, 2010
1:08 pm

If you can’t win the nat champ with a $42 million QB and a first round
running back when will you ever win it ? UGA always believe that you win championships with offense. Thats the problem

1 2 Next » Show All