Obviously last night was pretty crazy. In the end (and feel free to call me a sunshine pumper, I’ve been called worse here) I think those changes to the commitment list are likely good for the class and the program. Here’s why: If the Gaddys aren’t going to qualify (and @Volstorian told me this weeks ago - if he will let me I will c/p his private message) then there is no need for them to either end up signing and taking two spots or create the impression with other DL that we have less opportunity here than we truly do; as for Cotman, reasonable people can disagree whether we should take him and try to find a position fit, but if the coaches feel like that’s unlikely than signing him not only wastes a spot in this class but also potentially wastes time that the coaches could spend trying to develop another player on the roster.
So the commitment list looks like this right now:
CB Labruzza
CB Jackson
CB Bailey
CB Shamburger
DE Bembry
DE Lawson
DE/DT Bennett
DE/TE Bumphus
DT Crosby
LB Burnam
LB Page
LB Henderson
LB Ignot
LB/S Gray
K Cimaglia
OL Locklear
OL Calbert
RB Chandler
RB Coleman
TE Brown
WR Murphy
WR Jones
WR Fant
I think it is likely that we move on from Burnam, which would leave us with 22 and likely 6-7 spots depending on any further attrition, how we can close, and any greyshirts (Cimaglia?).
Admittedly I am more bullish on the class as a whole than some on here. I would rate the class as a whole a solid B, with TE being the only position where I don’t’ feel confident we have some number of future starters. IMO we have the opportunity to move that grade up depending on the caliber of player we add.
I think the following are instant impact players on Team 121 either at their respective positions or on STs:
Labruzza
Jackson
Bailey
Shamburger
Bennett
Bumphus
Crosby
Page
Henderson
Ignot
Gray
Chandler
Coleman
Muprhy
Jones
I am of the opinion that the following players are very underrated by the rankings and/or the GQ:
Gray – sounds crazy, but I think his potential impact on the roster is being overlooked because I think he’s a future stud LB and not a S
Labruzza – LSU wants him, enough said for a DB
Jackson – great athlete with size/speed who played out of position for his HS
Bembry – potential pass-rushing specialist with (IMO) a Corey Vereen floor
Page – fits system, coaches love him, having a monster season for a team playing for the state title
Henderson – fits system, I like that Dantonio wants him
Locklear/Calbert – two potential building blocks on OL that will have the opportunity to RS
Coleman – another player having a massive season for a team playing for the state title; I think he is the team’s “big back” and will have a role on this team for maybe 4 years
Here’s the board as of now, with my thoughts on each player:
QB – I think either of the first three would be homeruns. I would take Bubba last of the three because no matter what he tells the coaches once MLB starts waving that $$$ around all bets are off
B. Thompson
Hooker
K. Thompson
Ulrich – I don’t think he’s that good and would be just a body. JMO of course
OL
Trey Smith – everyone knows the player and the stakes. I like that we have the Jones visit today and then the last OV. Goes without saying that he’d be a massive get from both an on-field perspective as well as for program perception
Moore – per Paul will OV here 1/20. Many people think he’s a Vol lean, but @Volstorian thinks he’s going to UL and that he’s not a take in the end. I would take him depending on how things go at other positions and definitely if something goes wrong and we don’t get Trey
Charles – was going to OV here for the UK game but schedule screwed that up. If we can get him back that timing could play in our favor. He’s a stud, but I haven’t seen if he’s going to reschedule or not
Filiaga – not sure we’re a player here anymore…
RB
Akers – not much to say. G is keeping us in this battle and I think we’re a dark horse. Obviously have to get an OV, but if we do it would be one of his last I think we’d have as good a shot as anyone
Etienne – I would be thrilled to land him if we don’t get Akers. Outstanding size/speed combo (6’, ~200lb, 4.4) who has had another huge season after standing out in camps. Per Paul likely down to us and TAMU – formerly committed to them so he clearly likes them a lot, grew up a Vol fan. Anyone who wouldn’t be super pumped about adding him to the RB stable is crazy
Felix – seems to be falling down the list from what I can tell. IMO he’s the #3 in this group from a size/speed combo perspective (he’s fast but looks small to me). Has already OV’d here, still has UNC
WR
Harris – coaches clearly like him enough to keep working him, between the Z inhome and scheduling an OV. I personally like him a lot and would go for it. He’s huge and athletic – worst case they move him to a Croom-style TE, best case he is a damn good WR with size. I really like Murphy and Jones and adding Harris would take this WR class to another level. He’s OSU’s if they decide they want him, but if not we’ll be fighting PSU and MSU
Brown – JUCO slot WR who we don’t see to be in on a ton. I’ll be watching to see if we visit him and try and get an OV
CB
Corker- IMO Paul has pretty much hinted we’re getting him and he’s tied into that recruitment. Announcing on 12/26 and will take an OV here after per Paul. I’m on record as saying that he can play CB here in 2017 given his size/speed, and that he’d have more of an instant impact than Wade because Wade is a NB here and we’re set there for a while with Gaulden and Osborne. Muschamp wants him badly…enough said
Speed – HUGE (6’3) true CB with great offers. Reading Paul’s tea leaves he likes us a lot, and he will OV here. If we could add him and Corker I think the DB class would be outstanding, as we’d have a great combo of true CBs and guys who can play all of CB/NB/S
Wade – we seem to have faded a bit with PSU surging. I’ll be interested to see how much time the staff spends with him since time is a scarce resource – IMO that will give a sense of how much of a shot the staff thinks we have
Nixon – good sized JUCO CB, an EE. Picking up new offers (UGA today) and like Corker has an offer from Muschamp (has already OV’d) which is meaningful to me. Paul thinks we don’t have a good shot
LB
Reid – just picked up an LSU offer and is OV’ing there this weekend and will announce next week. Per TOS we lead right now over ISU (so maybe he isn’t a take for Mich?) but his girlfriend is a commit in another sport to LSU and we might have only taken him if Henderson was really shaky
Phillips - per Brent he is listening. Wouldn't shock me to see us make a MAJOR push
DL
Butler – per Paul we still lead. Still hasn’t OV’d here. Staff loves him. I think he could be a guy who we aren’t super excited about getting but ends up being a really productive player either at DE or DT
Sterling – not sure where we are here. The UV for the Mizzou game was seemingly a good sign but I haven’t heard anything about him since. I know Paul loves him
Johnson – DE who is an EE and given our depth concerns could therefore perhaps get into the rotation immediately. Offer list doesn’t blow you away, not 100% sure he would be a take when we have to make a decision
Ray – absolute stud for whom we are the darkhorse. Really likes UT, has been here a bunch, might have a staff tie as well (can’t remember 100%). But it’s us vs. Bama for an AL kid, so it would be a massive upset. But we will throw the kitchen sink at this one because he’d be a class-changer
Herring – haven’t heard a ton on him lately, but he’s been on campus a bunch including at least one game this season and maybe two (UF and Bama?). Presumably a UGA lean but if we can get an OV I’d say we have a fighting chance. Like Ray he’d be a class-changer
Kinlaw – stud JUCO who decommitted from SoCar and has mentioned us among others (including Bama) but I don’t know where we are right now. An OV would obviously go a long way, and he could be an instant contributor in 2017
Garvin – I honestly don’t know anything about him other than that he took a mid-season OV here and then went dark. He continues to be mentioned as a possibility…
Reitmeir – Per Paul just minutes ago we have backed off in the last month, so might as well scratch him.
Kind of goes without saying but it’s important to note that staff changes are likely going to play a large part in how this class ends up shaking out in the end and that the board above doesn’t include every kid who is going to end up with a serious offer from the Vols. Look at what Larry Scott did for us last year, and he replaced a guy (Elder) who I think was a decent recruiter. What happens if we replace a guy like Mahoney with a stud recruiter? Same for Martinez or Thig? Or if Debord does move on and we land a big name OC? The carousel will cause a lot of turbulence all over the recruiting landscape. We are likely to play a bowl game in Nashville, which can’t be anything but good for midstate recruiting (did you know Jacoby Stevens wants to OV here? Can we get Jacob Phillips to a practice and then convince him to take a January UV? ).
There are still more than two months left before NSD, and CBJ has shown IF NOTHING ELSE that he is a good closer. I don’t pretend to know what’s going to happen, and if you want to either freak out or stoke bad feelings on here that’s your right. Clearly Trey’s decision will be a signpost in terms of how we finish. But I am (as usual) optimistic when it comes to Jones and recruiting and am going to see what things look like on NSD.
Would love any input from @P_Fortenberry @Brent_Hubbs
So the commitment list looks like this right now:
CB Labruzza
CB Jackson
CB Bailey
CB Shamburger
DE Bembry
DE Lawson
DE/DT Bennett
DE/TE Bumphus
DT Crosby
LB Burnam
LB Page
LB Henderson
LB Ignot
LB/S Gray
K Cimaglia
OL Locklear
OL Calbert
RB Chandler
RB Coleman
TE Brown
WR Murphy
WR Jones
WR Fant
I think it is likely that we move on from Burnam, which would leave us with 22 and likely 6-7 spots depending on any further attrition, how we can close, and any greyshirts (Cimaglia?).
Admittedly I am more bullish on the class as a whole than some on here. I would rate the class as a whole a solid B, with TE being the only position where I don’t’ feel confident we have some number of future starters. IMO we have the opportunity to move that grade up depending on the caliber of player we add.
I think the following are instant impact players on Team 121 either at their respective positions or on STs:
Labruzza
Jackson
Bailey
Shamburger
Bennett
Bumphus
Crosby
Page
Henderson
Ignot
Gray
Chandler
Coleman
Muprhy
Jones
I am of the opinion that the following players are very underrated by the rankings and/or the GQ:
Gray – sounds crazy, but I think his potential impact on the roster is being overlooked because I think he’s a future stud LB and not a S
Labruzza – LSU wants him, enough said for a DB
Jackson – great athlete with size/speed who played out of position for his HS
Bembry – potential pass-rushing specialist with (IMO) a Corey Vereen floor
Page – fits system, coaches love him, having a monster season for a team playing for the state title
Henderson – fits system, I like that Dantonio wants him
Locklear/Calbert – two potential building blocks on OL that will have the opportunity to RS
Coleman – another player having a massive season for a team playing for the state title; I think he is the team’s “big back” and will have a role on this team for maybe 4 years
Here’s the board as of now, with my thoughts on each player:
QB – I think either of the first three would be homeruns. I would take Bubba last of the three because no matter what he tells the coaches once MLB starts waving that $$$ around all bets are off
B. Thompson
Hooker
K. Thompson
Ulrich – I don’t think he’s that good and would be just a body. JMO of course
OL
Trey Smith – everyone knows the player and the stakes. I like that we have the Jones visit today and then the last OV. Goes without saying that he’d be a massive get from both an on-field perspective as well as for program perception
Moore – per Paul will OV here 1/20. Many people think he’s a Vol lean, but @Volstorian thinks he’s going to UL and that he’s not a take in the end. I would take him depending on how things go at other positions and definitely if something goes wrong and we don’t get Trey
Charles – was going to OV here for the UK game but schedule screwed that up. If we can get him back that timing could play in our favor. He’s a stud, but I haven’t seen if he’s going to reschedule or not
Filiaga – not sure we’re a player here anymore…
RB
Akers – not much to say. G is keeping us in this battle and I think we’re a dark horse. Obviously have to get an OV, but if we do it would be one of his last I think we’d have as good a shot as anyone
Etienne – I would be thrilled to land him if we don’t get Akers. Outstanding size/speed combo (6’, ~200lb, 4.4) who has had another huge season after standing out in camps. Per Paul likely down to us and TAMU – formerly committed to them so he clearly likes them a lot, grew up a Vol fan. Anyone who wouldn’t be super pumped about adding him to the RB stable is crazy
Felix – seems to be falling down the list from what I can tell. IMO he’s the #3 in this group from a size/speed combo perspective (he’s fast but looks small to me). Has already OV’d here, still has UNC
WR
Harris – coaches clearly like him enough to keep working him, between the Z inhome and scheduling an OV. I personally like him a lot and would go for it. He’s huge and athletic – worst case they move him to a Croom-style TE, best case he is a damn good WR with size. I really like Murphy and Jones and adding Harris would take this WR class to another level. He’s OSU’s if they decide they want him, but if not we’ll be fighting PSU and MSU
Brown – JUCO slot WR who we don’t see to be in on a ton. I’ll be watching to see if we visit him and try and get an OV
CB
Corker- IMO Paul has pretty much hinted we’re getting him and he’s tied into that recruitment. Announcing on 12/26 and will take an OV here after per Paul. I’m on record as saying that he can play CB here in 2017 given his size/speed, and that he’d have more of an instant impact than Wade because Wade is a NB here and we’re set there for a while with Gaulden and Osborne. Muschamp wants him badly…enough said
Speed – HUGE (6’3) true CB with great offers. Reading Paul’s tea leaves he likes us a lot, and he will OV here. If we could add him and Corker I think the DB class would be outstanding, as we’d have a great combo of true CBs and guys who can play all of CB/NB/S
Wade – we seem to have faded a bit with PSU surging. I’ll be interested to see how much time the staff spends with him since time is a scarce resource – IMO that will give a sense of how much of a shot the staff thinks we have
Nixon – good sized JUCO CB, an EE. Picking up new offers (UGA today) and like Corker has an offer from Muschamp (has already OV’d) which is meaningful to me. Paul thinks we don’t have a good shot
LB
Reid – just picked up an LSU offer and is OV’ing there this weekend and will announce next week. Per TOS we lead right now over ISU (so maybe he isn’t a take for Mich?) but his girlfriend is a commit in another sport to LSU and we might have only taken him if Henderson was really shaky
Phillips - per Brent he is listening. Wouldn't shock me to see us make a MAJOR push
DL
Butler – per Paul we still lead. Still hasn’t OV’d here. Staff loves him. I think he could be a guy who we aren’t super excited about getting but ends up being a really productive player either at DE or DT
Sterling – not sure where we are here. The UV for the Mizzou game was seemingly a good sign but I haven’t heard anything about him since. I know Paul loves him
Johnson – DE who is an EE and given our depth concerns could therefore perhaps get into the rotation immediately. Offer list doesn’t blow you away, not 100% sure he would be a take when we have to make a decision
Ray – absolute stud for whom we are the darkhorse. Really likes UT, has been here a bunch, might have a staff tie as well (can’t remember 100%). But it’s us vs. Bama for an AL kid, so it would be a massive upset. But we will throw the kitchen sink at this one because he’d be a class-changer
Herring – haven’t heard a ton on him lately, but he’s been on campus a bunch including at least one game this season and maybe two (UF and Bama?). Presumably a UGA lean but if we can get an OV I’d say we have a fighting chance. Like Ray he’d be a class-changer
Kinlaw – stud JUCO who decommitted from SoCar and has mentioned us among others (including Bama) but I don’t know where we are right now. An OV would obviously go a long way, and he could be an instant contributor in 2017
Garvin – I honestly don’t know anything about him other than that he took a mid-season OV here and then went dark. He continues to be mentioned as a possibility…
Reitmeir – Per Paul just minutes ago we have backed off in the last month, so might as well scratch him.
Kind of goes without saying but it’s important to note that staff changes are likely going to play a large part in how this class ends up shaking out in the end and that the board above doesn’t include every kid who is going to end up with a serious offer from the Vols. Look at what Larry Scott did for us last year, and he replaced a guy (Elder) who I think was a decent recruiter. What happens if we replace a guy like Mahoney with a stud recruiter? Same for Martinez or Thig? Or if Debord does move on and we land a big name OC? The carousel will cause a lot of turbulence all over the recruiting landscape. We are likely to play a bowl game in Nashville, which can’t be anything but good for midstate recruiting (did you know Jacoby Stevens wants to OV here? Can we get Jacob Phillips to a practice and then convince him to take a January UV? ).
There are still more than two months left before NSD, and CBJ has shown IF NOTHING ELSE that he is a good closer. I don’t pretend to know what’s going to happen, and if you want to either freak out or stoke bad feelings on here that’s your right. Clearly Trey’s decision will be a signpost in terms of how we finish. But I am (as usual) optimistic when it comes to Jones and recruiting and am going to see what things look like on NSD.
Would love any input from @P_Fortenberry @Brent_Hubbs
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