Archive for the ‘Other SEC Schools’ Category

Buford DB Ryan Dillard

Ryan Dillard, one of the state’s top defensive backs, has changed his mind and will play college football at Yale over Air Force. He’s a 5-10, ,185-pounder from Buford High School.

“Ryan made his decision after meeting [with the Yale coaches] on his official visit last weekend,” his father, Oscar Dillard said. “Ryan really enjoyed seeing the facilities, meeting some of the players on the team and meeting some of the recruits that were considering Yale. Lastly, getting a world class education and degree from one of the top five universities in  the country was a great incentive to attend Yale University.”

Dillard, who has a 3.9 GPA, played on three state championship teams at Buford.

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Continue reading Buford DB Ryan Dillard switches from Air Force to Yale »

No. 783 was No. 1 in the eyes of many at Athens Nike Camp (AJC Photo)

Several of Georgia’s top college football prospects for next year were on display at Friday’s Nike camp in Athens.

However, it was a member of the Class of 2013 that grabbed the spotlight: Grayson High School’s Robert Nkemdiche, a 6-foot-5, 260-pounder who turned everybody’s heads as soon as he walked up to the registration table. He’s only a sophomore.

Nkemdiche dominated the drills, so much to the point that one other heralded defensive lineman — a junior — was overheard saying to a couple of others, “I’m just glad 783 (Nkemdiche’s camp number on his jersey) isn’t in the Class of 2012 with the D-Line rankings.”

The consensus of several recruiting analysts observing the camp, which included players from many surrounding states, was this: Nkemdiche will almost certainly be ranked at Georgia’s No. 1 overall prospect for 2013, and has a decent shot of being rated No. 1 overall in the USA.

Nkemdiche, who was …

Continue reading 2013 Grayson DL Robert Nkemdiche steals spotlight at Nike camp »

Josh Holsey, one of the state’s top prospects at cornerback, was wondering when Tennessee was going to offer a football scholarship.

How could he not? Tennessee fans had been asking Holsey about it over Facebook and Twitter for the last few months.

They were well aware of Tennessee’s connection to Creekside High, which is the alma mater of one of the Vols’ all-time greats, Eric Berry.

Creekside's Josh Holsey is "the best we've had since Eric Berry." says his coach. Holsey ran a 4.31 at camp last weekend and has a dozen offers, including Auburn, Georgia Tech and — now — Tennessee, alma mater of his mentor, Eric Berry.

Holsey’s social network finally got the answer they were looking for on Thursday when Tennessee offered Holsey and made serious inquiries about his Creekside teammate, cornerback Davion Tookes, who committed to Virginia Tech last February.

“It was shocking to get the Tennessee offer,” Holsey told the AJC. “I guess those people on Facebook and Twitter will be …

Continue reading Tennessee offers DB from alma mater of Vols’ great Eric Berry »

JaQuay Williams has been picking up trophies and scholarship offers, with LSU being No. 12 on Monday (AJC photo by Jason Getz)

LSU entered the sweepstakes for one of Georgia’s top prospects at wide receiver, extending an offer to Sandy Creek’s JaQuay Williams on Monday night.

“I’m excited, great school,” Williams told the AJC. He has around a dozen offers, including Auburn, Michigan, Ohio State, Tennessee, Clemson, South Carolina and Georgia Tech.

The 6-foot-2, 180-pounder recently won the top award at the 2011 Atlanta MVP Camp attended by many of the state’s top college football prospects.

Williams recently transferred from Heard County High School to Sandy Creek, the Fayette County school which has won back-to-back state championships.

– By Michael Carvell, AJC Recruiting Blog

Continue reading LSU is offer No. 12 for Sandy Creek WR JaQuay Williams »

One of Georgia’s top defensive ends has made a last-minute switch from Mississippi State to Vanderbilt.

There were some interesting circumstances around the flip of Chattahoochee High’s Barron Dixon on Monday.

Around two weeks ago, the 6-foot-4, 265-pounder committed to Mississippi State over Arkansas and Maryland, among others.

However, Vanderbilt had a good feeling about Dixon, maintained contact and urged him to take an official visit. Dixon’s parents also strongly supported a recruiting trip to Vanderbilt.

This past Saturday, Dixon said he was tempted to take a quick trip to Vanderbilt but decided against it because he didn’t want to jeopardize losing his scholarship to Mississippi State. On Sunday, Dixon changed his mind, driving with his family to Vanderbilt for a one-day official visit — the very last day allowed before the signing period under NCAA rules.

And guess what? Dixon ended up switching to Vanderbilt before leaving campus.

“Vanderbilt has a great academic …

Continue reading One of Georgia’s top defensive ends switches commitment from one SEC school to another »

Dalton's Watts Dantzler said he expects all of Georgia's offensive line recruits to remain committed to the Bulldogs despite Stacy Searels departure to Texas. (AJC photo by Chip Towers)

THE TEN AT 10:

1. The departure of Georgia offensive line coach Stacy Searels for the same job at Texas is disappointing to players he has recruited to become Bulldogs. But apparently it is not a deal-breaker.

Dalton offensive lineman Watts Dantzler, one of the first recruits to give Searels the nod early last summer, said he remains “100 percent” committed to UGA, as are most of his fellow offensive line commitments, all with whom he has been in contact.

“You know, I think [Searels] had to make a decision that was best for him and I understand,” he said Wednesday night. “But I committed to the school, not to him, and I’m still committed. I’m looking forward to seeing who they’re going to hire.”

Dantzler is one of five O-line commitments the Bulldogs have for 2011. He said he has been in …

Continue reading Ten@10: Stacy Searels’ recruits say they’re going to stick with Georgia »

Carver-Columbus RB Isaiah Crowell tops out the AJC's Fab 50 list of the state's top recruits. (AJC photo by Jason Getz/jgetz@ajc.com)

The 2011 AJC Fab 50 is out, and it might just be the strongest group of football players ever assembled on paper in this state.

Traditionally, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has at the beginning of each year produced a list of what we believe to be the best senior high school football players in the state. That’s not exactly what this is.

While most of the names you’ll find on this list certainly were fine high school players, that’s not why they’re included. This is intended to represent the 50 best “college football prospects” in the state. So it’s based as much on potential at the next level as much as it is high school production.

Leading the list was a trip of 5-star-rated recruits who remain undecided about their college choices. Carver-Columbus running back Isaiah Crowell gets the distinction of being the top prospect in the state. He’s …

Continue reading Carver-Columbus RB Isaiah Crowell tops AJC Fab 50 list »

Note: This is a story I wrote for the Sunday print section advancing the Under Armour All-America Game and practices this week in Florida. I’ll actually be traveling to Orlando early Monday and filing live reports later in the day, so be sure to check back regularly all day all week. . . .

AJC Super 11 tight end Jay Rome of Valdosta is one of 10 elite recruits from Georgia I'll be covering at the Under Armour All-America extravaganza in Orlando and St. Petersburg this week. (AJC photo by Jason Getz/jgetz@ajc.com)

Jay Rome, a five-star prospect and the No. 1 tight end in Georgia, had his choice of national all-star games in which to play. The NUC All-World Classic, the Offense-Defense Bowl and the U.S. Army All-American Bowl all sent him invitations. But Rome went with this week’s Under Armour All-America Game in Florida. He and nine other elite recruits from Georgia left for Orlando Friday.

“One of the main things is it’s closer to where I live,” the 6-foot-6, 240-pound high …

Continue reading Georgia’s finest represented in Under Armour game, practices »

Five-star recruit Marcus Lattimore looks like he's going to be the man for South Carolina. (The State)

Third in a series . . .

This week, answers come.

Until now, the worth of “elite” prospects was based on high school production and perceived potential. Now we get to see for certain if they have what it takes to become college football’s new stars.

We’ll get our first glimpse Thursday night when South Carolina opens up against Southern Miss. Marcus Lattimore, the No. 1 running back in the country, according to Rivals.com, will suit up for the Gamecocks in the ESPN nationally-televised game. Georgia, which intensely recruited the 6-foot, 210-pound tailback, will get an in-person look at Lattimore next week.

So far Lattimore has done his part. He managed to get through preseason camp without injury and has pushed established players in front of him on the depth chart. He remains behind senior Brian Maddox and sophomore Kenny Miles on the depth chart and head coach Steve …

Continue reading Freshmen of impact: RB Marcus Lattimore ready to fly for Gamecocks »

Whitefield Academy's Kennard Backman is interviewed by Ken Rodriguez during the U.S. Army All-American Bowl luncheon Monday at Fox Sports Grill. (Photo by Chip Towers)

Like I mentioned in yesterday’s Ten at 10, I attended the U.S. Army All-America luncheon at the Fox Sports Grill at Atlantic Station Monday as the 2011 nominees from Georgia were introduced.

I’d like to thank Dennis Caniglia, president of the Atlanta Touchdown Club and the Greater Atlanta Chapter of the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame, and Erik Richards of the U.S. Army All-American Bowl and Football University, for the invitation and for the tremendous hospitality.

I interviewed a few of the guys afterward and you’ll see updates on them in the coming days and weeks. In case you missed it, I already posted a story on North Gwinnett quarterback C.J. Uzomah.

Meanwhile, Fox 5’s Ken Rodriguez served as Master of Ceremonies for the event and he actually interviewed all 20 nominees in attendance …

Continue reading A closer look at Georgia’s U.S. Army All-America nominees »