Archive for January, 2013

The son of one of UGA’s most famous football players will take an official visit with the Bulldogs this weekend.

DeVondre Seymour is a 6-foot-6, 320-pound offensive lineman from North Gwinnett High School, and the son of NFL All-Pro defensive tackle Richard Seymour of the Oakland Raiders. The younger Seymour is a family relative who was adopted by the older Seymour.

DeVondre Seymour, son of NFL All-Pro and former UGA DT Richard Seymour (AJC)

The father and son will likely take the UGA trip together.

“Yes, DeVondre did come see me this morning and say that he is taking his official visit to Georgia this weekend,” North Gwinnett coach Bob Sphire said. “Richard is back home from the NFL season, and I think he’s taking DeVondre over there this weekend.”

This will be the first official visit for Seymour, who is also being recruited by Alabama, Florida and Tennessee, among others.

“I was out of town, and I just read that Rodney Garner went to Auburn,” Sphire said. …

Continue reading Surprise! Son of NFL star will visit UGA this weekend »

Within the last couple of months, new Cincinnati coach Tommy Tuberville has been accused of going postal on an assistant coach, leaving Texas Tech recruits in the middle of dinner to accept a new job, and running off longtime recruits at Cincy (AP)

Pebblebrook High School defensive back Demetrius Monday de-committed from Cincinnati on Thursday after never hearing from new coach Tommy Tuberville.

“I think it’s messed up,” his father, Bryant Monday, told the AJC. “You wait until a few weeks before signing day to say something? They could have told us a month ago.

“Now we’re left with less than a month until signing day to figure something out. He had other scholarship offers but he hasn’t talked to those coaches in six months … since he committed to Cincinnati on July 25.

“It’s really disappointing.”

The 5-foot-10, 180-pound Monday said he committed to Cincinnati over Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Ball State, Ohio and Georgia State, among others, last …

Continue reading Ex-football recruit on Tommy Tuberville: ‘It’s a bad situation’ (UPDATED) »

It will be interesting to see the impact that new Georgia Tech defensive coordinator Ted Roof will have on recruiting.

Roof still carries a big name in the Atlanta area because of his accomplishments as a football player at Georgia Tech and Central Gwinnett High School.

New Georgia Tech defensive coordinator Ted Roof will likely have a bigger impact on recruiting next year but then again … (AP)

What about the “Ted Roof effect”?

It will most likely be felt next year.

But it could make some things interesting this year — three weeks away from signing day.

One name to watch is Trey Johnson, the Under Armour All-American linebacker who is committed to Ohio State.

Johnson played at Central Gwinnett, the same high school as Roof. And, if you remember, that formed the bond of their friendship which caused Auburn (when Roof was defensive coordinator there in 2011) to be the first school to offer Johnson, and then for Johnson later to commit to the Tigers.

Johnson is so fond of Roof …

Continue reading How will Georgia Tech’s hiring of Ted Roof affect recruiting? (UPDATED) »

If you think your day is busy, consider the Friday schedule of 5-star defensive tackle Montravius Adams of Dooly County High School, a tiny rural community located 140 miles south of Atlanta.

There is an enormous amount of pressure on new UGA defensive line coach Chris Wilson (pictured) to make a first impression on Montravius Adams (UGA SID)

Friday is the first day of the NCAA “contact period,” and Adams will have three sets of coaches visit him at school:

• 8:30 a.m. Meet with new UGA defensive line coach Chris Wilson, defensive coordinator Todd Grantham, and offensive line coach Will Friend. This is a huge meeting for Wilson, who would be Adams’ new position coach for the Bulldogs if he signed there (after Rodney Garner left for Auburn). First impressions are always big: Adams has never met Wilson before.
• 10 a.m. Meet with Florida defensive line coach Bryant Young, who has already made quite the impression on Adams after he took an official visit with Gators last …

Continue reading Revolving door of college scouts for UGA target Montravius Adams »

One down, one to go for Robert Nkemdiche, the nation’s No. 1 college football prospect.

The defensive end from Grayson High School confirmed that he has set up an official visit to Ole Miss for Jan. 25.

Listed for $99 on eBay

Nkemdiche will take one more recruiting trip, touring LSU at some point within the next month, but he hasn’t scheduled a date for that yet. “Still in the process of setting up,” Nkemdiche said Thursday.

What about other schools? Nkemdiche flirted with the idea of checking out other schools, such as Alabama and Florida, but ultimately settled on Ole Miss and LSU. “I don’t want to get it all mixed up with other schools in there.”

Ole Miss, where his older brother Denzel Nkemdiche is a star linebacker, is the frontrunner for the 5-star prospect. “Yes, it would be real hard for me not to go to Ole Miss; that’s a family thing,” Nkemdiche said last week. “It would be real hard not to do that, real hard.”

Continue reading Robert Nkemdiche: Makes a date with Ole Miss (UPDATED) »

Arkansas is the most recent scholarship offer for LaGrange High School defensive end Joe Sanders, who has been best friends with 5-star Reuben Foster since the sixth grade.

Sanders committed to former Tennessee coach Derek Dooley and officially remains pledged to the Volunteers; but he is considering other options due to the coaching change.

Sanders will make an official visit this weekend to Washington, accompanied by Reuben Foster and another one of his longtime friends, Troup High School offensive tackle Maurice Swain. All three are are childhood buddies, played together at Troup last season, and are likely being recruited as a “package deal” by Washington.

New Tennessee coach Butch Jones has 3 commits from Georgia. The Volunteers are also in the chase for Carl Lawson and Vonn Bell (UT)

“I don’t know about that,” said Sanders, when asked about a package deal. “I just know they (Washington) called, they wanted me to visit, and they’re supposed to offer …

Continue reading Notebook: WWRFD … What Will Reuben Foster Do? (UPDATED) »

After UGA lost Naim Mustafaa to Oklahoma State earlier this week, the Bulldogs set their sights on Chamblee High School defensive end Davin Bellamy.

And because former UGA recruiting coordinator Rodney Garner left for Auburn, Bellamy is now seriously considering the Bulldogs.

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The 6-foot-5, 230-pound Bellamy, who is committed to Florida State, has set up an official visit to UGA for Jan. 25.

“I’m really feeling Georgia right now,” Bellamy told the AJC on Tuesday night.

When Bellamy seriously considered UGA the last time, he didn’t have the same positive feelings. He soured on the Bulldogs because of a bad experience, as first reported by ESPN DawgNation’s Kipp Adams.

“Coach Garner invited me down one weekend for an unofficial visit to get a feeling for the campus,” Bellamy said. “When we got down there, nobody knew about the meeting, and Coach Garner wasn’t …

Continue reading Davin Bellamy: Will longtime FSU commit flip to UGA? »

• UPDATE: Lawson has set his first official visit, touring Clemson this weekend.

After Robert Nkemdiche, one of the Georgia prospects that made the biggest impression at the Under Armour All-America week was Milton High School defensive end Carl Lawson.

Lawson, who is ranked as the nation’s No. 2 overall prospect by ESPN, dominated practices with his pass-rushing skills. In Friday’s game, Lawson finished with one quarterback hurry.
“It was a great week,” Lawson said. “I’m a little mad because I was so close to so many quarterback sacks (in the game). These quarterbacks get that ball out there so fast. The offensive linemen were good, and when I did get free, I would get a hair away from a sack. It was a great experience. I can’t complain.”

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The 6-foot-2, 240-pounder is still officially committed to Auburn but said he will set up official visits later …

Continue reading Ex-UGA recruiting coordinator Rodney Garner meets with 5-star Carl Lawson’s family »

Monday was a rough day for Clemson in the state of Georgia.

Two wide receivers from the state that had been committed to Clemson decided to go to other schools.

Lassiter High School’s Ryan Jenkins flipped from Clemson (where his brother plays) to Tennessee (where his father played).

Demarcus Robinson also ended the year’s wildest recruiting soap opera.

The AJC Super 11 wide receiver from Peach County High School originally committed to Clemson, switched to Florida, changed back to Clemson, de-committed last week from the Tigers at an all-star while wearing a Florida hat, was set to announce for a fourth time on NBC on Saturday but canceled because he wasn’t ready, then announced on Twitter on Monday that he would be enrolling that same day at Florida.

I love my gators can’t wait to arrive on campus!

— Demarcus Robinson (@demarcus11robin) January 7, 2013

Jenkins made up his mind after visiting Tennessee last weekend. “After spending time with the coaches and walking …

Continue reading Clemson loses two Georgia WRs in the same day »

What a week for Robert Nkemdiche.

He pretty much won over everybody with his freak athleticism and warm personality at the Under Armour All-America game, including his teammates, his coaches and the recruiting media. And he was treated like a rock star when he attended the Ole Miss bowl game on Saturday to watch his brother play.

Robert Nkemdiche (Chris Hays/Orlando Sentinel)

What’s next for the nation’s undisputed No. 1 prospect? The final stretch of recruiting. This week, he will decide on dates for official visits to his two finalists, Ole Miss and LSU.

That’s not really anything new. What is new is that Nkemdiche said he’s eliminated the possibility of visiting other schools, including Clemson (where he was formerly committed to), Florida, USC, Oregon, etc.

At least that’s the plan at the moment.

“Yes sir, that’s it; it’s just Ole Miss and LSU,” Nkemdiche said. “I don’t want to get it all mixed up with other schools in there. I will figure out when I will visit …

Continue reading Robert Nkemdiche will only visit Ole Miss and LSU »