Archive for October, 2011

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Georgia Tech made a big impression on one of the state’s top running backs.

Shadrach Thornton of Liberty County High School committed early to Kentucky but decided to finish out his official visits. He traveled to Vanderbilt and N.C. State, while saving his last recruiting trip for Georgia Tech this past weekend.

“Right now, my top two are Vandy and Georgia Tech,” Thornton told the AJC. “They stuck out to me the most when I took my visits there. That’s why they are my top two.”

What about his commitment to Kentucky? Thornton already admitted weeks ago that perhaps he rushed his decision and that it was a “soft” commitment. Is he still committed in some form or fashion to Kentucky? “I have to get in touch with them and let them how I am feeling,” Thornton said. “I don’t believe in stringing anybody along. I have to talk to them before I say anything.”

Liberty …

Continue reading Georgia Tech makes big impression on RB committed to Kentucky »

Duke has not traditionally recruited players from the state of Georgia. However, Coach K wants Miller Grove's Tony Parker really bad, making three visits to the Atlanta area to check on the highly-regarded basketball star (AP photo/Chuck Burton)

When Duke makes a rare effort to recruit a player from Georgia, is it a foregone conclusion that the Blue Devils will get their man?

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That’s the discussion following around Tony Parker, the 6-foot-9, 270-pound power forward from Miller Grove High School who made an official visit to Duke this past weekend.

Parker, who is ranked among the nation’s top 25 college basketball prospects, is considering Duke, Ohio State, UCLA and Memphis.

People want to know: Could Coach K really make an all-out effort to recruit a Georgia player and not succeed?

Parker has heard the talk. “Everybody has their opinions,” Parker said with a laugh. …

Continue reading Could Duke make an all-out effort to recruit a Georgia basketball star and not succeed? »

Paul Johnson scored points with recruits with Georgia Tech's upset over Clemson on Saturday (AJC)

Georgia Tech had its biggest and best recruiting turnout of the year for Saturday’s upset over Clemson.

More than two dozen of the state’s top college prospects turned out for the game, including Allatoona High School running back Miles Jones.

“It was a pretty lively atmosphere for college football,” Jones told the AJC. “Everybody was pretty excited. There were a lot of people there. The place was packed, and it was loud. I liked it a lot. It made you want to go out on the field and play yourself.”

Around 10 Georgia Tech commitments for 2012 showed up on Saturday, including Central Gwinnett defensive end Francis Kallon, Sandy Creek offensive lineman Will Adams, and running back Marcus Allen of Hilliard, Fla.

Sandy Creek cornerback Shaquille Wiggins and Tri-Cities offensive lineman Shamire Devine were among a select group of the state’s top juniors who attended the …

Continue reading Will Georgia Tech offer Allatoona RB Miles Jones? »

AJC Super 11 DE Dalvin Tomlinson

Georgia Tech will have an all-star cast of college prospects attending Saturday’s game against Clemson.

Shadrach Thornton, a running back from Liberty County High School, will be on his official visit to Georgia Tech. Thornton is a “soft verball commitment” to Kentucky, but still considering the Yellow Jackets.

AJC Super 11 defensive end Dalvin Tomlinson of Henry County High School is also expected to attend. He’s one of Georgia’s top uncommitted prospects, and considering Georgia Tech, Alabama, Indiana, UGA, Clemson and Tennessee, among others.

At least eight Georgia Tech commitments are scheduled to be the game: Central Gwinnett defensive end Francis Kallon, Greater Atlanta Christian offensive lineman Chase Roberts, Sandy Creek offensive lineman Will Adams, Statesboro wide receiver Micheal Summers, Carrollton defensive tackle Pat Gamble, running back Marcus Allen of Hilliard, Fla., quarterback Dennis Andrews of Tallahassee, Fla., …

Continue reading Georgia Tech entertains all-star cast of recruits for Clemson game »

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Does playing Florida in Jacksonville every year hurt UGA’s recruiting efforts?

By playing Florida at a “neutral site” every year, UGA loses out on the opportunity to host and entertain recruits for an additional home game every other year against one of its biggest rivals. Also keep in mind that the two teams are UGA and Florida, the flagship universities for two states that rank among the top in the U.S. for producing college football prospects, along with Texas and California.

On the other hand, there are some that say that having the Georgia-Florida game in Jacksonville every year ultimately helps both schools with recruiting. Over the years, the game has developed a tremendous amount of history and tradition, generates an enormous amount of hype and buzz, and is more like a bowl game-like atmosphere than part of the regular season.

While it is …

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Shadrach  Thornton, who is a candidate to be Georgia’s No. 1 prospect at running back, will make an official visit to Georgia Tech this weekend.

The 6-foot-1, 200-pounder from Liberty County High School is a “soft verbal commitment” to Kentucky, picking the Wildcats while visiting there last month. “Even when I made that commitment to Kentucky, I felt like I made a haste decision,” Thornton told the AJC. He vowed to finish out his recruiting trips, visiting N.C. State and Vanderbilt after Kentucky. Georgia Tech will be his fourth and final official visit.

“Georgia Tech gave me a scholarship offer this past summer,” Thornton said. “They had been looking at me for two years and when I went to camp last summer, that was the first time that coach [Paul Johnson] got to see me in person. I went to camp to have fun, and they really liked what I did up there …

Continue reading RB Shadrach Thornton will make official visit to Georgia Tech this weekend »

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Will Johnson, a speedy cornerback from Chattahoochee High School, is one of the state’s hottest senior prospects.

College scouts are still learning about Johnson, who is a former basketball point guard playing only his second year of football. He first caught the attention of recruiters after being clocked at 4.36 seconds in the 40-yard dash at Vanderbilt camp this summer, and has followed it up with a breakout senior season as the most dominating player for Chattahoochee, the defending Class AAAA state champions.

The 5-foot-11, 180-pound Johnson will be one of the featured prospects when Chattahoochee plays at South Forsyth at 7:30 p.m. Thursday. The game will be broadcast live on WSB-TV’s digital channel 2.2 and on www.wsbtv.com.

“I’ve been fortunate over the years at Chattahoochee and as an assistant at Tucker, Camden County and Burke County to have I think …

Continue reading Speedy Chattahoochee DB catches attention of Georgia Tech and UGA after breakout senior year »

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UGA’s No. 1 recruit is not hearing as many negative things about the Bulldogs and Mark Richt’s future after they recovered from an 0-2 start with five straight wins.

“You don’t hear as many people these days saying ‘Oh, Mark Richt is on the hot seat,’” said John Theus, the 5-star offensive lineman from Jacksonville who committed to UGA last summer.

“It was really intense when they were 0-2 but they had played two good teams. Now that Georgia is 5-2, not as many people are saying things like that, which is really nice. Hopefully, they have a chance to win out the rest of their games. Hopefully that can happen and Coach Richt’s job can be pretty secure.”

Flashback to six weeks ago: The 6-foot-6, 290-pound Theus was hearing so much speculation about UGA after the 0-2 start that he agreed to take an official visit to …

Continue reading UGA 5-star OL recruit John Theus returns from Notre Dame visit, feeling better about Richt’s future »

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Dalvin Tomlinson, the AJC Super 11 defensive end who is one of the state’s top uncommitted prospects, has decided on at least two of his five official visits.

And the first two winners are?

“I know I’m taking one to Alabama for sure, and most likely Indiana,” Tomlinson told the AJC. “The other ones, I have to think about.”

The 6-foot-3, 270-pounder is also being heavily recruited by Georgia Tech, UGA, Florida, Clemson and Stanford – and will decide between those schools for his final three recruiting trips. This season, Tomlinson has made unofficial visits to Georgia Tech (twice), UGA and Florida State.

“He has got a ‘poker face’ with his recruiting; he hasn’t made a decision yet and he’s weighing his options,” Henry County coach Mike Rozier said. “Academics are important to his recruiting because he’s got a 3.9 GPA with honors.”

For a senior as …

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UGA QB commit Brice Ramsey (Camden County HS)

Where was UGA offensive coordinator Mike Bobo when the Bulldogs were off this past weekend?

He traveled to South Georgia to personally scout UGA’s quarterback of the future, Brice Ramsey, the junior from Camden County High School who committed to the Bulldogs last summer.

“I talked to Coach Bobo like every day on Facebook, and he was down on Friday at the game, which was good because it was one of my best showings of the season,” Ramsey told the AJC.

The 6-foot-3, 190-pounder led Camden County (7-0), which is ranked No. 1 in the state’s largest classification, to a 56-7 win over Jenkins.

Ramsey and Bobo talked on the phone after the game. “Coach Bobo said I throw the deep ball well, along with the short and intermediate passes.  He also said I could run. He told me that he can’t wait to coach me after we win two state championships at Camden County.”

Florida offensive coordinator Charlie Weis also stopped by Camden …

Continue reading Mike Bobo travels to scout UGA’s QB of the future »