Archive for the ‘Florida State’ Category

 Loading …

Stephenson High School RB Mike Davis liked Thursday’s recruiting trip to UGA so much that he plans to come back in January for an official visit.

When asked to rate Thursday’s trip on a scale of 1-10, Davis said, “I’d give it a 10. I was really impressed. They really showed that they wanted me, they really need running backs, and I think I could fit in very well in their offense. It was good visit, they want me to come back for an official visit, and I’m planning on going back there on Jan. 28.”

The 5-foot-9, 200-pound Davis, who de-committed from the Florida last week after being pledged to the Gators for around a year, got the royal treatment during his four-hour tour UGA on Thursday.

After arriving on campus, Davis attended a meeting between UGA assistant Bryan McClendon and the team’s running backs. When practice started, Davis said he …

Continue reading RB Mike Davis liked UGA trip so much he will return for official visit »

 Loading …

Will it be Georgia Tech or UGA for Robert Carter?

He’s the 6-foot-9, 250-pound power forward from Shiloh High School who is ranked among the nation’s top 25 overall basketball prospects.

Carter is scheduled to announce his college decision at 5 p.m. Thursday at Stats Restaurant. Carter is reportedly torn between the two in-state schools, Georgia Tech and UGA. He took official visits within the last month to both schools, along with Florida. Don’t count out the Gators in the chase for Carter.

Georgia Tech has a few things in its favor. When Carter made his recruiting trip with the Yellow Jackets on Oct. 22, he arranged it where he would be visiting the campus at the same time as Georgia Tech’s two signees, North Gwinnett guard Chris Bolden and North Clayton swingman Marcus Hunt. They all got to be good friends while playing basketball on the AAU circuit.

Another …

Continue reading DECISION Day: Georgia Tech or UGA for Robert Carter? »

 Loading …

The state of Georgia has three of the top 25 overall college prospects in the nation with Miller Grove’s Tony Parker, Southwest DeKalb’s Shaq Goodwin and Shiloh’s Robert Carter.

Wednesday was the first day of the NCAA’s early signing period, and Carter is tentatively scheduled to announce between Georgia Tech and UGA, among others, at 5 p.m. Thursday.

What about Parker and Goodwin? They may wait until April’s late signing period.

Duke and Ohio State are considered the frontrunners for the 6-foot-9, 270-pound Tony Parker, who also took official visits to UCLA and Memphis.

“Tony is probably signing late,” Miller Grove High School coach Sharman White told the AJC on Wednesday.

After school on Wednesday, Parker texted “I’m not signing this week.” We …

Continue reading Recruiting drama!!! What will Tony Parker and Shaq Goodwin do? »

 Loading …

It was no surprise on Tuesday when one recruiting service came out with its rankings for the nation’s top high school juniors, and Robert Nkemdiche was at the very top of the list.

The 6-foot-5, 270-pound defensive end from Grayson High School was rated No. 1 in the country for the class of 2013 by 247sports. Nkemdiche has denied longtime rumors that he is a “secret commitment” to Alabama. His only unofficial visit this season was to last week’s game at Alabama. He is officially considering Florida and LSU, along with Alabama.

The bigger surprise was that another junior from Georgia was ranked No. 2 overall in the country – Troup County linebacker Reuben Foster, who is officially committed to Alabama but also still talking with UGA, Auburn and Florida.

“It was really a tough decision among the people that decided between Robert and Reuben,” said Rusty Mansell of …

Continue reading Robert Nkemdiche officially ranked as nation’s No. 1 junior football prospect »

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 »

 Loading …

Georgia Tech took its best shot at landing one of the state’s “Big Three” basketball prospects over the weekend.

Robert Carter, a 6-foot-9, 250-pound power forward from Shiloh High School, made an official visit to Georgia Tech over the weekend after taking a recruiting trip to UGA last week. Carter is one member of the “Big Three” — three Atlanta area seniors ranked among the nation’s top 25 overall prospects, a special group which also includes Southwest DeKalb’s Shaq Goodwin and Miller Grove’s Tony Parker.

When asked to rate his Georgia Tech trip on a scale of 1-10, Carter said, “I had a good time at Georgia Tech. I enjoyed spending time with the coaches and players, and I like the direction that coach [Brian Gregory] is taking the program. I don’t know if I could really rate it, though.” After pausing for a few seconds, Carter said, …

Continue reading Robert Carter talks about official visit to Georgia Tech; next trips are Florida, FSU »

You know you’ve made it as a big-time football prospect when a college head coach sings you “Happy Birthday.”

That’s what happened with Tray Matthews, a junior defensive back from Newnan High School who has already committed to UGA.

On Tuesday, Mathews turned 17 years old, and he was talking on the phone that night to UGA assistant John Lilly. We’ll let Matthews tell the rest about a birthday he’ll never forget:

Mark Richt sings "Happy Birthday" to recruit (AJC photo)

“Coach Lilly said I’ve got somebody who wants to talk to you and it’s Mark Richt. As soon as Coach Richt got on the phone, without saying anything else, he started singing me ‘Happy Birthday.’ And he sung the whole song to the finish. I was shocked. It made my day. I’ve never had a coach sing me ‘Happy Birthday’ before. That was really cool.”

Matthews said both he and Richt had a good laugh about it, and then talked for a few more minutes. “He wanted to know how my season was …

Continue reading UGA’s Mark Richt sings ‘Happy Birthday’ to football recruit »

AJC Super 11 pick Geno Smith of St. Pius (AJC)

Alabama DB commit Geno Smith is planning an unofficial visit to archrival Auburn but it’s not why you think.

Yes, Auburn was the runner-up to Alabama for the AJC Super 11 DB’s commitment but his trip to Auburn would be to go see Alabama play. This year’s Iron Bowl will be played at Auburn on Nov. 26.

“Other than the Iron Bowl, I don’t plan on visiting any other schools than Alabama,” said Smith, who still hears from Auburn, UGA, LSU, Arkansas and Florida State on a regular basis.

Smith has kept an extremely low profile since committing, focusing on his senior season at St. Pius, which is 7-0 and ranked No. 2 in Georgia’s Class AAA. Smith stars on both sides of the ball for St. Pius, also playing tailback.

Smith has flourished under the incredibly high expectations that were put on him for his senior season. “I know the expectations are high, but I don’t really think about it that much because I’m confident …

Continue reading Geno Smith, Alabama DB commit, still hearing from UGA, LSU, FSU and Auburn »

Raphael Kirby won't be able to make an official visit to UGA but is still considering the Bulldogs (AJC photo by Michael Carvell)

Raphael Kirby, one of Georgia’s top linebackers, said it was between UGA and USC for his fifth and final visit.

He ended up picking neither. At least for now. It could change.

The top prospect from Stephenson High School told the AJC on Tuesday night that he will only take four recruiting trips – he has already been to Vanderbilt, with upcoming visits planned for Miami, Florida and South Carolina.

“Yes, more than likely it will be those four,” Kirby said. “I mean, I’m not … I don’t know, I don’t know. I will probably take four visits, but I’m not sure.”

The recruiting process has been grueling on Kirby, who pledged to Miami last spring and insists he’s still committed to the Hurricanes – but began looking at options after Miami was accused of massive NCAA violations in August. Kirby’s attention has been divided between …

Continue reading Recruiting Insider: Will LB Raphael Kirby take an official visit to UGA? »

 Loading …

The state of Georgia has three basketball stars that are ranked among the nation’s top 25 overall college prospects — Shiloh High School’s Robert Carter, Southwest DeKalb’s Shaq Goodwin and Miller Grove’s Tony Parker. The threesome, who all play power forward, have been dubbed “The Big Three” by college recruiters.

The best chance for both UGA and Georgia Tech in keeping at least one member of “The Big Three” at home for college appears to be Robert Carter.

The 6-foot-9, 250-pounder took an official visit to UGA over the weekend, and will make a recruiting trip to Georgia Tech on Friday. Carter will also visit Florida, Florida State and either Kentucky or Maryland within the next few weeks.

When asked to rank his UGA trip on a 1-10 scale, Carter said, “It was up there. It was in the 8, 9 or 10 range. Well, I couldn’t really tell because …

Continue reading How did Robert Carter rate his official visit to UGA? (Next stop is Georgia Tech) »