NCAA Recruiting Scoop

The Auburn Tigers are a team known for developing outstanding running backs. William Andrews, Joe Cribbs, Bo Jackson, Carnelly “Cadillac” Williams. . . You get the point. However, what’s missing on most people is that they also do an outstanding job developing defensive linemen and linebackers.

Enter Jomarcus Savage, a defensive lineman that certainly has a nice upside and is an excellent pickup for Tommy Tuberville and the boys. Betcha new defensive coordinator Paul Rhoads is rather stoked too..

Jomarcus Savage, a 6-foot-2, 260 pound defensive tackle from Huntsville, Alabama (J.O. Johnson High School), has verbally committed to play for the Auburn Tigers and head coach Tommy Tuberville next season. Savage runs the 40 yard dash in 4.6 seconds, benches 325 pounds, squats 510 pounds, and possesses a 30 inch vertical leap.

Said another way, this is a very strong guy with good speed for his size.

What’s more, he’s also been quite productive as a high school player, having posted 79 total tackles and nine sacks as a junior, and 76 tackles- including 24 for a loss- and 12 sacks as a senior.

So Jomarcus Savage is a guy that makes plays in the backfield.

Altogether this has compelled Rivals to consider him the 47th best defensive tackle in the 2008 class. He’s also considered the 28th best prospect coming out of Alabama; and that’s a state with talent, people.

In the end, Savage chose the Auburn Tigers over the Clemson Tigers, Kentucky Wildcats, South Carolina Gamecocks, Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles, and Tennessee Volunteers. The final decision, however, seems to have been between Phil Fulmer’s crew and the Tigers.

Though he’s only considered a three star prospect by Rivals, Savage might be a good guy to bet on in the college game. He possesses the kind of athleticism one needs to compete on the SEC gridiron. Besides, his speed and strength seems awful impressive, no?

Remember all of the shouting about Tennessee Volunteers football coach Phil Fulmer back in the beginning of the season? The reality was that he was looking about as enticing as then Nebraska head coach Bill Callahan. In other words, it looked like he was a goner. But these days Fulmer is looking just a little different. There’s a spring in his step, a smile is always painted on his face. Well, maybe not.

We would be remiss not to mention Marlon Walls.

Marlon Walls, a 6-fot-2, 225 pound outside linebacker from Olive Branch, Mississippi (Olive Branch High School) has verbally committed to play for the Tennessee Volunteers and head coach Phil Fulmer next season. Walls runs the 40 yard dash in 4.55 seconds, so he’s quite quick for the position. In fact, he served as a sprinter in high school.

Beyond that, Walls has been quite productive during his high school career. Said another way, we’re talking about a guy that put up 92 tackles his junior season in high school.

Altogether, this has caused Rivals to consider Walls to be the 22nd best outside linebacker in the entire 2008 recruiting class. He’s also believed to be the sixth best prospect coming out of the entire state of Mississippi.

Not bad, eh?

In the end, Walls chose the Volunteers over the Auburn Tigers, Louisville Cardinals, Michigan State Spartans, Minnesota Golden Gophers, Ole Miss Rebels, and Mississippi State Bulldogs. The interesting thing is that he’s another one that decided to change allegiances. In his case, it was from Ole Miss to Tennessee.

Can’t blame him. First, Ole Miss lost their coach, and that’s always a good reason to change. Second, this is a kid that was always a Tennessee fan. Thus, he’s perfect for the Volunteers.

Now he’ll be rooting for himself.

The USC Trojans had already nabbed four of the top 100 juniors in the land before they convinced Matt Barkley to come their way. Remember what we here at NCAA Recruiting Scoop said about Pete Carroll late in 2007? Just in case you don’t, here it is in a nutshell.

Pete Carroll may be the best college football recruiter in the history of the game. Now those are fighting words.

Matt Barkley, a 6-foot-4, 222 pound pro style quarterback from Santa Ana, California (Mater Dei High School) has verbally committed to be a part of the University of Southern California’s 2009 recruiting class. Barkley is considered to be the best 2009 prospect in the entire country by Rivals.

In other words, Pete Carroll has scored another big time prospect. But don’t get too into it all yet when it comes to Barkley. After all, all you USC fans will have to wait more than a full season to see what he can do.

Speaking of what Matt Barkley can do. . .

As a freshman in high school, Barkley threw for 1,685 yards and 10 touchdowns with nine interceptions. As a sophomore in high school, Barkley managed a mere 1,349 yards passing with 11 touchdowns and five interceptions (through only 11 games). Then came his junior season in high school.

Whoah Nelly!

In 2007, Barkley accrued 3,560 passing yards and 35 touchdowns. Further, he only tossed nine interceptions. Not too shabby, eh? And he did it all in only 11 contests.

In the end, Barkley chose the Trojans over the Stanford Cardinals, Tennessee Volunteers, University of California at Los Angeles Bruins (UCLA), Washington Huskies, Hawaii Warriors, California Golden Bears, Colorado Buffaloes, Florida State Seminoles, Notre Dame Fighting Irish, and Ohio State Buckeyes.

Jeesh, talk about a list that’s chock full of great choices. Of course, when you’re the number one quarterback and player in the land, well, that’s to be expected.

Who doesn’t enjoy a little fun in the sun? As we near the end of the 2008 recruiting campaign, don’t be surprised if the USC Trojans and Florida Gators start nailing down tons of big time recruits. What’s more, they’re also likely to compel a few from soft verbal commitments to other schools.

Already started, in fact. Anyway, keep reading.

Malik Jackson, a 6-foot-5, 212 pound weakside defensive end from Lake Balboa, California (Birmingham High School) has verbally committed to play for the Southern California University Trojans and head coach Pete Carroll next season.

Anyone surprised that he decided against Fresno State and turned to the Trojans? Not NCAA Recruiting Scoop, either. After all, in the end most westerners seem to want to go to USC. A lot of easterners too.

But we digress.

Anyway, Jackson is considered the 51st best prospect coming out of the state of California in 2008. In Rhode Island, number 51 isn’t all that great. But in California, that really means something. What’s more, Malik Jackson is also considered the 10th best weakside defensive end prospect in the nation.

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Maybe all of those nice rankings had something to do with the 54 tackles and 13 sacks he managed in high school as a junior. This guy is going to be difficult to deal with when it comes to rushing the passer.

In the end, Jackson chose the USC Trojans over the Utah Utes, University of Nevada Las Vegas Rebels, Fresno State Bulldogs, Nevada Wolfpack, Arizona State Sun Devils, and Colorado Buffaloes.

Speaking of those Buffaloes, could they be getting their hands on the nation’s number one rated running back? Maybe. Then again, maybe not.

And that’s the great thing about college football recruiting. You just never know. Unless, that is, you’re the prospect in question.

Omar Hunter had already committed to the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, right? Well, that was eons ago.

Anyway, nowadays this behemoth of a defensive tackle- in a good way of course- is all set to go to Gainesville. In other words, he’s a Gator through and through. Boy that Urban Meyer knows how to recruit. And coach, too! Still, we wanted to give Notre Dame- still number one on the NCAA Recruiting Scoop Top 5- something. Hence, the picture above.

Omar Hunter is a 6-foot-1, 295 pound defensive tackle from Buford, Georgia (Buford High School) that runs the 40 yard dash in 4.7 seconds, benches 425 pounds, and squats 475 pounds. Just in case you were wondering if you heard things right . . .

Omar Hunter almost weighs 300 pounds, benches over 400 pounds, squats nearly 500 pounds, and can still run pretty fast.

Scary, no?

On top of it all, Hunter was also productive in high school to the tune of 85 tackles, including 13 for a loss and six sacks.

Oh wait, that was as a junior in high school. As a senior, Hunter managed a measley 93 tackles and seven sacks.

Thus, it’s no wonder that Omar Hunter is considered the 17th best 2008 high school football player in the nation. He’s also considered the seventh best prospect coming out of the state of Georgia, the third best run stuffer in the 2008 class at defensive tackle, and the second best defensive tackle in the nation, period.

Yikes!

In the end, Hunter chose the Florida Gators after decommitting with the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. The other schools he turned his back on? How about the Tennessee Volunteers, Alabama Crimson Tide, Auburn Tigers, Florida Gators, and Michigan Wolverines?

The good news is that when Hunter committed to the Irish he was only considered the 78th best prospect in the nation. Oh wait, that’s not good news unless you’re a Gators fan.

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Speaking of the Florida Gators, their 2008 recruiting class is really starting to pick up steam. Said another way, they’re pretty good at stealing guys, no.

No, they haven’t made the NCAA Recruiting Scoop Top 5 yet. But it’s early.

Boy that Urban Meyer is a sneaky one, no? He just so happened to find a way to lift Ramon Buchanan from Miami and head coach Randy Shannon’s clutches. Seems to be a lot of that going on lately on the college football recruiting trail. Makes you wonder why we have such a thing as verbal commitments in the first place.

Then again, what would sites like NCAA Recruiting Scoop write about if not for all the drama?

Ramon Buchanan is a 6 foot, 181 pound safety from Melbourne, Florida (Palm Bay High School) that runs the 40 yard dash in 4.59 seconds and possesses a vertical leap of 36 inches. Aw heck, we’ll tell you the whole things since you’ve been so good. He also managed four bench press repetitions and a shuttle time of 4.25 seconds.

But, as you well know by now, we don’t put all that much stock in measurables by themselves here at NCAA Recruiting Scoop. After all, Tom Brady doesn’t have the greatest measurables, does he? Nope. When it comes to playing football, well, it’s all about football. Lucky for the Florida Gators, and not so much for the Miami of Florida Hurricanes, Ramon Buchanan appears to be a football player as his 101 tackles and eight sacks as a junior in high school and 98 tackles, six sacks, and three interceptions as a senior in high school would seem to attest to.

All of this together has Rivals thinking that Buchanan is the 61st best player in the entire 2008 recruiting class. He also appears to be the 22nd best prospect in the entire state of Florida and the second best safety in the country.

In the end, Buchanan decommitted from the Miami of Florida Hurricanes after offering them a soft verbal and decided to become a Gator. He chose the Gators over the South Carolina Gamecocks, Tennessee Volunteers, Wake Forest Demon Deacons, University of Central Florida Golden Knights, Auburn Tigers, Clemson Tigers, Florida Gators, Florida State Seminoles, and Georgia Bulldogs.

Good luck to Ramon Buchanan. His decision to leave Miami for other pastures may very well serve to drop Miami from the NCAA Recruiting Scoop Top 5. Then again, maybe not. Looks like you’ll just have to wait for the updated version to come out.

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Thanks for your time and for reading NCAA Recruiting Scoop!

Here’s a fact: The Oregon Ducks looked like the best team in the nation before their uber talented dual threat quarterback Dennis Dixon went down with injury. From there things got a little tough until the bowl game. Well, here’s the good news for head coach Mike Bellotti and the gang:

There are other dual threat quarterbacks to be had out there on the recruiting trail. And recent four star commit Chris Harper is one of them.

Chris Harper, a 6-foot-2, 231 pound athlete from Wichita, Kansas (Northwest High School) has verbally committed to play for the Oregon Ducks in 2008. Harper is a speedster that can run the 40 yard dash in 4.45 seconds. He’s also a member of the Rivals 250 of 2008. To hear more about why, read on.

Chris Harper rushed for 1,000 yards as a junior in 2006. He also passed for 500 yards that season. As a senior through 11 games, Harper managed 600 yards rushing and nine touchdowns to go along with 950 yards passing and 10 scores. What’s more, he completed 73% of his passes during his senior campaign.

So Chris Harper can clearly do it all, which is why he’s considered the second best prospect coming out of the entire state of Kansas this season. He’s also considered the 14th best athlete in the entire 2008 class.

In the end, Harper chose the Oregon Ducks over the California Golden Bears, Illinois Fighting Illini, Kansas Jayhawks, Kansas State Wildcats, Maryland Terrapins, Missouri Tigers, Nebraska Cornhuskers, and Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

Good decision? The reality is that if you’ve ever seen the Oregon Ducks play at home you kind of know that answer already. There are very few places in the country that can rival the noise that place emanates.

Pretty awesome.

Over the years, the Oklahoma Sooners have become well known for tenacity, toughness, and speed on defense. Unfortunately for them and their head coach, the last few years it seems that their players haven’t looked the same in bowl games as they do during the regular season.

Well, maybe that’s about to change. Just ask Stacey McGee.

Stacey McGee, a 6-foot-5, 255 pound defensive tackle from Muskogee, Oklahoma has verbally committed to play for the Oklahoma Sooners in 2008. Interestingly, he joined his buddy Jameel Owens in committing to the Sooners and head coach Bob Stoops on the same day.

McGee has been unbelievably productive during his high school career. Along with this, he managed to net 91 tackles, two sacks, and two interceptions as a . . .

Oh wait, that was as a sophomore!

As a junior in high school McGee netted 87 tackles on the season. And as a senior, he managed 101 takedowns.

Pretty impressive.

Thus, when you put it altogether Stacey McGee is considered the 86th best overall prospect in the nation according to the 2008 Rivals 100. He’s also considered the fifth best defensive tackle in terms of the pass rush, the third best prospect coming out of all of Oklahoma, and the sixth best defensive tackle in the nation.

In the end, McGee chose the Oklahoma Sooners and head coach Bob Stoops over the Oklahoma State Cowboys, Tennessee Volunteers, Texas Tech Red Raiders, Arkansas Razorbacks, and Kansas State Wildcats.

Interesting. When you look at it, he and teammate Jameel Owens almost had the exact same list of frontrunners when it comes to recruiting. Seems that these two were probably always planning on going to the same school.

Good for Oklahoma fans. Bad for all of the rest of them.

Pittsburgh head coach Dave Wannstedt seems to be onto something. Apparently, you can lose a lot of games during the regular season and beat your hated division rivals that are about to go to the BCS Championship Game and all of those earlier losses are forgiven.

What’s more, the recruits will be knocking down your door. Seriously, though, you’ve got to think that win over West Virginia was the best thing to happen to Panthers recruiting in a long time.

Jarred Holley, a 5-foot-10, 175 pound cornerback from Easton, Pennsylvania (Easton High School) has verbally committed to play for the Pittsburgh Panthers and head coach Dave Wannstedt in 2008.

THE NCAA RECRUITING SCOOP TOP 5

As a junior in high school, Holley managed 54 tackles and nine interceptions. That’s right—we said nine! In addition, he put together the same amount of tackles as a senior.

Thing is, no one threw at him in 2007. Probably a smart idea.

Altogether, this netted the four star cornerback inclusion in the Rivals 250 of 2008. Holley is also considered to have the fifth best ball skills of all cornerbacks in the nation. Further, people are calling him the 10th best player coming out of the entire state of Pennsylvania—which means something when it’s that state we’re talking about—and the 13th best cornerback in the nation, period.

In the end, Holley chose the Pittsburgh Panthers over the Stanford Cardinal, Virginia Cavaliers, Florida Gators, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, Iowa Hawkeyes, Michigan Wolverines, and Penn State Nittany Lions.

Boy that Dave Wannstedt can recruit. First Jonathan Baldwin and now Jarred Holley. He has also proven that he can coach in the Backyard Brawl. But here’s the thing.

Now he’s got to prove that he can take the talent he’s convinced to come to Pittsburgh and win consistently. That’s the key. . . And the question.

First came that loss to the Boise State Broncos last season. Oklahoma and their head coach Bob Stoops will probably never live that one down. Then there was this season’s loss to the West Virginia Mountaineers in the bowl game. Not to mention some tough bowl performances before that.

Said another way, Stoops and the Sooners have dealt with some heartache. Well, my friends, the heartache stops here.

Jameel Owens, a 6-foot-3, 210 pound wide receiver from Muskogee, Oklahoma has verbally committed to play for the Oklahoma Sooners in 2008. He is one of two commits—the other being Stacey McGee—to verbalize their pledge to the Sooners on the same day.

Owens runs the 40 yard dash in 4.41 seconds, so he’s fast. He’s also explosive as his 35 inch vertical leap and 285 pound bench press would seem to indicate. However, the best part is that he’s been consistently productive in high school. Along with this, as a freshman he caught 28 passes for 717 yards and nine touchdowns; as a sophomore he pulled in 41 balls for 609 yards and five touchdowns; as a junior he caught only 18 passes for 329 yards and six touchdowns; and finally as a senior he had his best campaign.

We’re talking 53 catches for 937 yards and 10 touchdowns. By the way, as a junior he also managed to pull in two interceptions.

Altogether, these measurables and stats netted Jameel Owens the number 52 spot on the 2008 Rivals 100. He’s also considered the number one player coming out of the state of Oklahoma this season and the seventh best wide receiver in the country.

In the end, Owens chose the Oklahoma Sooners and head coach Bob Stoops over the Oklahoma State Cowboys, Tennessee Volunteers, Texas Tech Red Raiders, and Kansas State Wildcats. Did he choose well?

Guess that depends on the future. Still, you certainly can’t fault a guy on committing to an almost every year BCS bowl participant like the Oklahoma Sooners. Especially when he’s got a buddy coming along with him.

The Georgia Bulldogs are doing real well on the 2008 recruiting trail. Head coach Mark Richt has reeled in an impressive list of athletes, and that list includes Dwayne Allen. But here’s the thing:

Will Allen stay a Bulldogs commit? That’s the question. For now, though. . .

Dwayne Allen is a 6-foot-4, 243 pound tight end from Fayetteville, North Carolina (Terry Sanford High School) that runs the 40 yard dash in 4.7 seconds.

As a junior in high school Allen managed to nab 25 passes for 551 yards and a touchdown for a whopping 22 yard average. He also caught passes for over 400 yards as a sophomore.

Thus, when you put it altogether Allen is considered the 13th best tight end in the nation according to Rivals. He’s also believed to be the fifth fastest tight end in the country, the fifth best athlete in the country at the tight end position, and falls in at number five on the North Carolina Top 30 of 2008.

Boy, you’ve got to wonder if this guy wears the number 5 on his jersey, no? Maybe he was actually born on 5/5. Perhaps he’s got a five year old dog. Anyway. . .

Here’s the tricky part. Yes, Dwayne Allen is considered a Georgia Bulldogs verbal commit right now. However, he’s considered a soft commitment. For all of you non- recruitniks out there that means that he just might jump ship.

To which school? Well, these are the ones still on his list: The North Carolina Tar Heels, Virginia Tech Hokies, Florida State Seminoles, North Carolina State Wolfpack, South Carolina Gamecocks, Tennessee Volunteers, Miami of Florida Hurricanes, Clemson Tigers, and Florida Gators.

Got to wonder if Butch Davis could get his hand in there. Clemson and Bowden have to be a consideration as well.

And then there’s the other Bowden. Tommy vs. Bobby. Now it’s got to be hard to bad mouth a relative, no? Then again, maybe it’s even easier to bad mouth that way. After all, you have so much ammunition.

“It’s a perfect offense for me to get in the open field,” Philip Pierre-Louis told AuburnSports.com regarding his decision to verbally commit to the Auburn Tigers. He’s certainly right. And that’s the exact kind of thing that new Auburn offensive coordinator Tony Franklin will bring to the Tigers.

Fast athletes.

Philip Pierre Louis, a 5-foot-10, 175 pound athlete from Fort Lauderdale, Florida (St. Thomas Aquinas High School) has verbally committed to play for the Auburn Tigers and head coach Tommy Tuberville next season. Pierre Louis runs the 40 yard dash in 4.4 seconds, so he’s very fast. Further, he’s got a lot of quickness as well, as his 313 kickoff return yards and 538 punt return yards as a senior in high school would seem to attest to.

Oh yeah, and he’s also kind of strong for his size, citing a bench press maximum of 250 pounds and a squat of 315 pounds.

But the best part is the vertical leap. Yeah, the guy isn’t very tall. However, he’s able to jump 37 inches.

Wow, huh?

On top of what’s already been said about him, Pierre Louis managed 148 yards rushing on only 11 carries last season. That translates to a whopping 13.5 yards per carry average. In addition, he managed to catch 30 passes for 586 yards and five touchdowns. Thus, when you put it altogether, it’s kind of surprising that Rivals only considers him a two star prospect.

In the end, Tuberville and friends managed to convince Pierre Louis to leav the Colorado Buffaloes, Mississippi State Bulldogs, Syracuse Orangemen, Central Michigan Chippewas, Florida International Golden Panthers, and Western Michigan Broncos behind. Can you blame him?

After all, new offensive coordinator Tony Franklin’s system is sure to be a fun one to play in. It values speed, and that’s something that Philip Pierre Louis certainly has a lot of.

Oftentimes when you’ve got a three or four star prospect, the military academies aren’t even on their radar. Even when they are, the decision is usually to go somewhere else. You can’t blame anyone. After all, the commitment after graduation makes it tough on people hoping to become professional athletes.

But every now and then you come across someone different.

Kebin Umodu, a 6-foot-2, 244 pound defensive tackle from West Covina, California (South Hills High School) has verbally committed to play for the Air Force Falcons next season.

Umodu runs the 40 yard dash in 5 seconds. In addition, he’s strong with a 310 pound bench press and 400 pound squat. Beyond that, Umodu possesses a 26 inch vertical leap, a shuttle time of 5.03 seconds, and a 3.0 Grade Point Average.

What’s more, he’s been productive throughout his high school career. Along with this, he managed 87 tackles and two sacks as a junior in high school last season.

Altogether, this managed to net Umodu four star status.

In the end, Umodu chose the Falcons over the California Golden Bears, Oregon Ducks, Southern California Trojans, UCLA Bruins, Utah Utes, and Texas El- Paso Miners.

Got to say that we’re surprised over here at NCAA Recruiting Scoop. After all, most kids don’t choose one of the military academies over Division I-A schools like California, Oregon, and Southern California. That said, it’s refreshing. After all, many times we annoint football players to hero status. That’s great. However, the real heros are the men and women of our armed forces that fight for our freedom everyday.

It looks like Kebin Umodu wants to be one of these heros. He has agreed to sacrifice when he didn’t have to.

Congratulations to an excellent young man on his decision. He would’ve been a good player and person no matter where he had chosen to attend. However, this decision deserves a little more notoriety than most.

For some reason the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and head coach Charlie Weis have been shielded from the normal fallout of a 3-9 season on the 2008 recruiting trail. Maybe it’s because prospects realize that Weis didn’t have a ton to work with last season. Maybe it’s because they simply believe in the coach.

Or maybe it’s just because we’re talking about Notre Dame, here. Anyway, enter Jonas Gray.

Jonas Gray is a 5-foot-10, 213 pound running back from Detroit, Michigan (Country Day High School). Interestingly, early on Gray verbally committed to play for the Nebrasksa Cornhuskers. But then a few things happened. First, Nebraska started playing terribly. Second, Bill Callahan found himself on the proverbial hot seat. Third, Bill Callahan found himself canned.

Then- and who can blame him?- Jonas Gray followed suit with a host of other recruits in spurning the Huskers for what they deemed greener pastures. In Gray’s case, very green pastures if you know what we mean.

But we digress.

Jonas Gray runs the 40 yard dash in 4.44 seconds, so he’s awful fast. He also benches 295 pounds, squats 430 pounds, and rushed for 1,252 yards and 19 touchdowns last season in high school as a junior. Not bad, huh? Then came his Gray’s senior season.

We’re talking 2,485 yards rushing and 31 touchdowns. Nope, it’s not a misprint. Along with this, the word on Gray is that he’s extremely tough to bring down.

Duh.

All of this together has Gray sitting pretty at number 59 on the Rivals 100 of 2008. He’s also considered the best prospect in the entire state of Michigan, the fourth best 2008 prospect in the land, the third best inside runner in the nation, and the second best downhill runner in the country.

In the end, Jonas Gray has decided to attend Notre Dame. The schools he chose them over? The Nebraska Cornhuskers, Ohio State Buckeyes, Wisconsin Badgers, Florida Gators, Louisville Cardinals, Michigan Wolverines, Michigan State Spartans, and Minnesota Golden Gophers.

The Irish sure did get a good one in Jonas Gray. On the other hand, the Nebraska Cornhuskers sure did have a good one.

Have being the keyword.