Category: Recruiting

Michigan State picks up prediction for four-star receiver Antonio Gates Jr.

Gates Jr. will announce his commitment on October 10.

The Antonio Gates Jr. to Michigan State scuttlebutt is picking up steam.

247Sports national recruiting analyst Allen Trieu has locked in a crystal ball prediction for the talented 2022 WR to commit to Michigan State.ย This comes less than a week after the first recruiting predictions for the Dearborn Fordson prospect went the way of MSU courtesy of two Rivals.com publishers. There are currently four predictions for Gates Jr. between the two sites and all four are for MSU.

Gates Jr. announced last Monday night that he would be making his college choice on October 10.

Michigan State has pursued the junior gates heavily, offering him a scholarship back in April. He is rated as a four-star prospect in the 247Sports composite rankings and is slotted in as the No. 218 player in the class of 2022 and the No. 3 player in a very strong crop of Michigan prospects.

Gates’ dad, NFL Hall-of-Famer Antonio Gates, originally went to Michigan State to play both basketball and football, but then-coach Nick Saban wouldnโ€™t allow for him to play both sports resulting in Gates transferring to Eastern Michigan.

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Nation’s top JUCO CB commits to Georgia football for 2021

No. 1 JUCO cornerback De’Jahn Warren has committed to Georgia for the 2021 recruiting class. Details here

Great start to the week for Georgia football as De’Jahn Warren, JUCO’s No. 1 cornerback for the class of 2021, commits to the Bulldogs.

That makes 14 commitments so far in the Bulldogs 2021 recruiting class and the first from JUCO.

Warren made his commitment in a video posted through his Twitter account Monday morning.

His top schools were Oklahoma, Alabama, Tennessee, Maryland, Penn State, Florida State and Georgia.

Warren plays for Lackawanna Community College where he is rated as the No. 2 JUCO prospect overall, the No. 1 JUCO cornerback and the No. 1 player in Maryland, according to 247Sports composite rankings.

That makes three defensive backs added to the Bulldogs’ 2021 class.

David Daniel, Javon Bullard and now Warren are set to join a Georgia secondary that will soon feature even more new faces as guys like Eric Stokes, Tyson Campbell and Richard Lecounte inevitably move on to the NFL.

 

 

 

Locked On Spartans Podcast: Michigan State lands four-star lineman Geno VanDeMark

Mel Tucker lands his first consensus four-star recruit

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Wil and Matt break down the commitment of four-star offensive lineman Geno VanDeMark and take a temperature check on MSU football recruiting.

You can find the episode on iTunes, Spotify and Google Podcasts.

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What does LSU WR recruit Andre Greene bring to the table?

Class of 2022 wideout recruit Andre Greene will see time on both sides of ball in the upcoming season.

If there’s one thing the coronavirus pandemic hasn’t slowed the roll of for LSU football, it’s dominance in the recruiting game.

One player coach Ed Orgeron and the Tigers are keeping a close eye on is Class of 2022 wide receiver Andre Greene.

The 6-foot-3, 180-pounder out of St. Christopher’s High School in Richmond, Virginia currently holds over 40 offers from Division 1 programs — including LSU.

Greene knows he can bring a lot to a team in the future when he does go on to the college level, and recently told Glen West of Sports Illustrated that he’ll be playing both safety and corner as well moving forward — positions he didn’t have the chance to play in his freshman or sophomore year.

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He’s confident in his abilities as a wideout, and elaborated upon that in his interview with West.

“I would say Iโ€™m a very well rounded receiver that can do many different things,” he said. “Iโ€™m physical, strong, tall, athletic, fast, run goods routes, have strong hands and can jump high to get any ball that is near me. If you give me too much space, I can catch short balls and get a lot of yards after the catch. I have a lot of different favorite wide receivers and try to take a pieces of their game and add it to my game. And one thing my coach always tell me is he loves that I block for our backs or other receivers. During the offseason, I’ve just been working on everything I think I do good to make it even better.”

It will be interesting to see if the Tigers, who have been rich with talent at the receiver position, land Greene when his time to make a decision comes in the future.

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Texas Football Recruiting: Where does the 2021 offensive class sit now?

Three months away from early signing day, blue-chip players are still available. Here is an update on the offensive 2021 recruiting class:

Recruiting is in an unusual place right now, with coaches and scouts having to work overtime to get information on high school athletes. The COVID-19 pandemic has made it tougher for schools to evaluate top players in the country.

Texas has done a decent job keeping up, currently sitting with the No. 15 overall recruiting class according to 247Sports. The Longhorns have commitments from four top 200 players, including five-star athlete Ja’Tavion Sanders.

Looking specifically at the offensive side of the ball, Texas has seven commits, with offensive tackle Hayden Connor being the highest rated. Tom Herman still has some work to do, needing another player or two to solidify the class.

Nearly three months away from the early signing period, blue-chip players such as Camar Wheaton, L.J. Johnson, Savion Byrd, and Ketron Johnson are still up for grabs. If Texas wants to sneak into the top 10 nationally, at least two of those players must land in Austin.

Here is your latest position by position update on the offensive recruiting class:

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4, Page 5

Kaden Martin scores three touchdowns in season opener

Season opener for UT recruiting target Kaden Martin, son of Tee Martin.

KNOXVILLE — Kaden Martin got his junior football season off to a roaring start for Knoxville Catholic High School Friday night. He had his hands in three touchdowns as the Irish routed Chuckey-Doak at home.

A little rain did not slow Martin or KCHS down in a 42-0 victory at Blaine Stadium.

Martin, the son of University of Tennessee assistant head coach and national championship winning quarterback for the Vols, Tee Martin, rushed for 63 yards and two touchdowns on just four carries.

One of the younger Martin’s five completions was a 64-yard scoring strike to Luke Davenport. The quarterback amassed 138 yards through the air.

Kaden did this with his brother, Amari Rodgers (now playing for Clemson), and former teammate Bryn Tucker (a freshman lineman for the Tigers) watching from the stands.

Kaden is also a baseball star for Knoxville Catholic. As a freshman in 2019, he was the District 4-AAA Rookie of the Year.

He has multiple baseball, football and two-sport college scholarship offers from the likes of Tennessee, Arkansas, Missouri, Alabama, Southern California, Kentucky and Southern University.

Martin and the Irish will face a huge test this week when they host Trinity Christian-Cedar Hill from the Dallas, Texas Area Saturday.

Trinity is a three-time defending Texas Private and Parochial School state champion and had won 39 of its last 42 games heading into the 2020 campaign.

The team’s offensive coordinator is Super Bowl champion and Pro Football Hall of Famer Deion Sanders. Sanders’ son, Shedeur, is the starting quarterback and is has committed to Florida Atlantic University.

Sheduer Sanders also has offers from Tennessee, Arizona State, Alabama, LSU, Georgia and other top schools.

Kickoff is slated for noon and the game will be nationally televised on the ESPN networks.

UT recruiting target Kendall Jackson has big night against Hardin Valley

Oak Ridge High’s Kendall Jackson opens with big game in Knoxville

KNOXVILLE — A University of Tennessee recruiting target opened his junior season with a big game and a victory Friday night.

Oak Ridge High School running back Kendall Jackson rushed for 121 yards and a touchdown in the Wildcats’ 40-0 victory at Knoxville’s Hardin Valley Academy in the 2020 season opener for both schools.

Jackson, a highly-touted class of 2021 recruit, toted the ball 15 times in the win, which avenged a season-opening loss to the Hawks last year.

His touchdown run at HVA was an 18-yard scamper as he dragged several defenders to the end zone with him en route to giving the Wildcats a 13-0 lead.

Jackson also has scholarship offers from Arizona, Tulane and Eastern Kentucky.

Oklahoma makes top-4 for four-star 2021 DE

Four-star DE Jeremiah Williams narrowed his list of schools down to four on Thursday, cutting Alabama and LSU.

With Sooner Summit commencing over the weekend and four-star DE Kelvin Gilliam committing to Oklahoma on Saturday, the Sooners’ 2021 class is suddenly on a roll.

With the new addition, OU’s class jumped to 14th in the country via 247Sports, notably one spot ahead of Texas. Gilliam marks OU’s 4th defensive end prospect, and it appears that defensive coordinator Alex Grinch already has his sights set on the next one.

Fellow four-star DE Jeremiah Williams narrowed his list of schools down to four on Thursday, cutting Alabama and LSU. The No. 6 weak-side defensive end in the country will now be choosing from Auburn, Florida, Georgia and Oklahoma.

His final destination is yet to be determined, but it’s no coincidence that defensive ends coach Jamar Cain tweeted the following image on the same day, alluding to Williams’ nickname, “Scooby.”

Williams would mark OU’s fourth weak-side defensive end in the class. Currently, three of the top 10 WDE in the country are committed to OU. In Williams, the Sooners are looking to go 4/4.

Williams is a 6-foot-3, 224 lb WDE from Ramsay High School in Birmingham, AL. 247Sports lists him as the No. 103 prospect in the nation, the No. 6 WDE, and the No. 5 player out of Alabama. He would be the No. 5 highest-rated player in OU’s 2021 class.

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Highlights of UGA football’s latest commit: Javon Bullard

Georgia Bulldogs commitment Javon Bullard is a talented cornerback, who plays high school football at Baldwin High School

Georgia Bulldogs commitment Javon Bullard is a talented cornerback, who plays high school football at Baldwin High School. He’s an in-state player, who is a member of the class of 2021. He plays wide receiver in addition to cornerback in high school.

Bulllard gives Georgia football two defensive back commitments in his class. He is the 13th commitment in the class of 2021 for Kirby Smart and the UGA football program.

Bullard committed to Georgia over NC State, South Carolina, Tennessee, and more. On tape, he shows excellent tackling form in both run support and in the open field against wide receivers. Bullard does a good job of staying in position. He flashes ball skills as a wide receiver and as a defensive back.

He lacks elite speed, but makes up for it with his effort and positioning. He’s additionally a factor on special teams. Bullard is disruptive on screen passes and may be better than his three-star rating.

Let’s take a look at highlights of three-star defensive back Javon Bullard:

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Kirby Smart and Georgia’s staff have had a lot of time this offseason to review film. Unfortunately, the lack of all-star camps and combines limits the information available on high school football prospects.

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UGA football player card: QB Carson Beck

Georgia Bulldogs freshman quarterback Carson Beck enrolled early this year at UGA and will compete with Jamie Newman and JT Daniels.

Quarterback Carson Beck (No. 15):

Class: Freshman

Height: 6-4

Weight: 225 pounds

Hometown: Jacksonville, Florida

High School: Mandarin High School

Georgia Bulldogs freshman quarterback Carson Beck enrolled early this year at UGA. Beck was a four-star recruit in the class of 2020. Additionally, before coming to Athens, Beck competed at the 2019 Elite 11 camp.

Beck has an opportunity this season in Athens with the departure of Buffalo Bills quarterback Jake Fromm. He will compete with Jamie Newman, JT Daniels, and more for the starting job.

Georgia’s quarterback position has impressive depth this season. That being said, there may be too many mouths to feed in the quarterback room. Georgia will have several options ready to step up if the starter suffers an injury.

Carson Beck committed to the University of Georgia almost a week after receiving a scholarship offer from Kirby Smart and company. He announced his commitment via his Twitter account:

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