Category: Rutgers recruiting

Former Rutgers recruiting target Kaymar Mimes enters transfer portal

Former Rutgers football recruiting target Kaymar Mimes is in the transfer portal.

One of the top 25 high school football players out of New Jersey from the class of 2018 is now in the transfer portal. Former Pittsburgh Panther tight end Karmar Mimes officially entered the transfer portal last week.

The Long Branch, New Jersey native is leaving Pitt as a redshirt senior.

A three-star defensive end in the 247Sports Composite, Mimes committed to Pittsburgh in January of his senior high school season. He saw a few other  offers from teams in the northeast part of the country including Boston College, UConn, Temple, Wake Forest, and Rutgers. Mimes originally committed to Rutgers in December of 2017, but decommitted shortly after that before deciding on Pitt. Rivals.com had Mimes rated as a three-star defensive end. They rated him the No. 33 prospect in New Jersey.

 

Mimes appeared in 24 games for the Panthers, mostly on special teams, with one reception for 4 yards. He switched his main position from defensive end to tight end after arriving to Pittsburgh and did see time at both positions.

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Rutgers has been active in the transfer portal, looking for tight ends. Rutgers was among the first to offer Lafayette tight end Steven Stillianos, who ended up committing to Iowa.

Rutgers football: Rodney Lora confirms upcoming official visit

Rutgers football will host three-star defensive lineman Rodney Lora for an official visit.

Three-star defensive lineman Rodney Lora is set for an official visit to Rutgers football. Lora confirmed the news on his social media account on Tuesday night.

The news that Lora will be taking an official visit to Rutgers was broken on Tuesday night by 247Sports national recruiting analyst Brian Dohn.

Lora is a three-star defensive lineman who is ranked the No. 22 player in Virginia according to 247Sports. The class of 2023 recruit at Woodberry Forrest (Woodberry Forrest, VA) is also ranked the No. 87 defensive lineman in the nation.

He holds a number of ‘Power Five’ offers including Boston College, Duke, Michigan, Rutgers, Vanderbilt, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest and West Virginia.

He posted the confirmation of the Rutgers football visit on Tuesday night following the report from 247Sports:

 

The class of 2023 is off to a solid start for Rutgers football. It features two top 10 players from New Jersey (four-star defensive linemen JaSire Peterson and three-star offensive lineman John Stone).

Within the past month, Rutgers has also added three-star Florida running back Christopher Johnson Jr. and three-star wide receiver Yazeed Haynes from Pennsylvania.

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Former Rutgers recruiting target Akok Akok enters transfer portal

Former Rutgers recruiting target and UConn Husky Akok Akok. has entered the transfer portal. Here’s why Rutgers should take another look at him

One of the top 100 recruits overall and the No. 2 recruit in Connecticut from the class of 2018 is a free agent as Akok Akok officially entered the transfer portal last week.

Standing at six-foot-ten with great mobility coming out of high school, it is no surprise that many programs were interested in Akok’s services. He saw offers from Rutgers, Louisville, Seton Hall, Syracuse, Georgetown, and Pittsburgh. UConn head coach Kevin Ollie and Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim both paid Akok a visit prior to him making his final decision.

The Putnam, CT native entered the portal one day after former UConn teammate Corey Floyd Jr. did the same.

A four-star power forward in the 247Sports Composite, Akok was a major player for the Huskies in his freshman season but has had to fight for time since after tearing his Achilles just seven games into his sophomore season.

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He committed to UConn in December of 2018. Akok averaged 5.8 PPG, 5.5 RPG, and 2.2 blocks in what was his true freshman season prior to the injury.

 

The middle is strong for Rutgers, anchored by Cliff Omoruyi. That being said, head coach Steve Pikiell has done so much to get the best out of players and Omoruyi’s strength and transformation is in part a testament to the training staff at Rutgers.

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If Akok wants to rediscover that spark he showed as a freshman without the pressure to lead the way down low, Rutgers might be the best destination for him.

Former Rutgers recruit Corey Floyd Jr. enters transfer portal

Former Rutgers recruiting target and UConn Husky Corey Floyd Jr. has entered the transfer portal. Here’s why Rutgers should take another look at him

One of the top 25 shooting guards and top 100 recruits overall from the class of 2021 has entered the transfer portal. Former UConn Huskies guard Corey Floyd Jr. officially entered the portal last week. He is a native of Roselle, New Jersey.

A four-star combo guard in the 247Sports Composite, Floyd actually enrolled at UConn early and redshirted for the Huskies this past season. He committed to UConn in July of 2021. The freshman has four years of eligibility remaining.

Rutgers was officially the first program to extend Floyd an offer when he was still in high school. The Roselle Catholic alum received offers from some major programs including Auburn, Florida, Miami, Wake Forest, and Villanova.

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As a senior in high school, Floyd averaged 16.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 2.7 assists to lead Roselle to a No. 3 ranking in the N.J.com Top 20. Rutgers was originally part of his final seven schools.

Rutgers has lost some strength at the guard position and will need scoring depth with the departures of Ron Harper Jr. and Geo Baker. If head coach Steve Pikiell can bring Floyd in, Rutgers will be in a great position to build on the groundwork of success laid by Baker and Harper.

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Watch: Tyseer Denmark making offseason gains

Four-star recruit Tyseer Denmark, a Rutgers football target out of Philadelphia, shows his offseason workout regimen.

Four-star wide receiver Tyseer Denmark spent Easter Sunday training, underscoring just why he is such a big-time recruit with dozens of national offers.

The Roman Catholic (Philadelphia) wide receiver, is ranked the No. 126 recruit in the nation according to Rivals and the fourth-best player in Pennsylvania for the class of 2024. His offers include Alabama, Florida State, Georgia, Michigan, Ohio State, Notre Dame and Penn State among others.

Last month, Denmark spoke with ‘Rutgers Wire’ where he was asked where things stood with the Scarlet Knights.

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Denmark, who has spoken positively about Rutgers in the past, said that things haven’t changed much with the program.

”Still the same. They always show love,” Denmark said last month. “All my schools show me love.”

In the workout video with Roman Catholic assistant coach Dion Shaw, Denmark shows tremendous footwork, good hips and quick hands. All reasons why the sophomore has developed into one of the top wide receivers and athletes in his class.

Shaw had a group of players from the area up at Rutgers for a visit last weekend.

 

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Nick Parisi details his recent visit to Rutgers football

Rutgers football got a visit this weekend from Holy Trinity linebacker Nick Parisi.

Nick Parisi checked in at Rutgers this weekend, the class of 2024 linebacker along with several of his teammates were part of a large recruiting weekend for the Scarlet Knights.

Parisi is a linebacker for Holy Trinity (Hicksville, N.Y.). He is generating interest from a number of programs including Rutgers, having also had visits at LSU and Rice.

He will visit Syracuse next week and plans at camping this summer at Pittsburgh, Rutgers and Villanova.

Parisi detailed his visit this past weekend with Rutgers where he got to interact with several members of the coaching staff including assistant coach Scott Vallone.

“This visit was great. I went down with six of my teammates. We had dinner Wednesday evening with the coaching staff – we ate at a Mexican restaurant,” Parisi told ‘Rutgers Wire.’

“Thursday, we arrived at the Hale Center and were met by Tim Silvernail (director of recruiting). He was our host for the day. We got the opportunity to watch the entire practice. I was focusing on the linebackers. Afterward, we ate lunch together with coach Vallone. He is our area recruiter and already offered my teammate, Josiah Brown. From there, we took pictures in the studio and finished up the tour of the facilities. It was a great visit. Me and my teammates had a great day.”

Listed as 6-foot-1 and 210-pounds, Parisi is a fundamentally sound player who has good instincts.

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He is continuing to develop relationships with both local programs but also schools at all levels. A number of ‘Power Five’ programs are on his calendar to visit over the upcoming months.

 

The Rutgers visit this weekend was another good one for Parisi, who has a deep connection via his father, an energetic fan and supporter of the program. This was his fourth visit to the Scarlet Knights as a high school recruit.

“I’ve always loved Rutgers. My father has been taking me to games since I was four years old,” Parisi said.

“The coaches are all focused, friendly and engaging. The facilities were top-notch.”

Parisi also said that he might potentially try to camp this summer at Syracuse, Maryland, Temple, Virginia, Boston College and Buffalo.

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What top recruits visited Rutgers football this week?

Rutgers football hosted dozens of players this week for spring practice.

It was a big weekend for Rutgers football as the Scarlet Knights hosted dozens of top players from their Big Ten footprint as well as their recruiting hotbeds.

Spring practice is always a busy time for recruiting, but Rutgers certainly made this a very busy week.

Visitors from this current recruiting class all the way to freshmen were on campus on Friday and Saturday for the spring practice. A number of local players from New Jersey programs including Bergen Catholic and DePaul were on hand. Players were also in from Long Island and even Ohio.

The class of 2023 is coming along for Rutgers football and includes four commits. Two top 10 players from New Jersey, four-star defensive lineman [autotag]JaSire Peterson[/autotag] and three-star offensive lineman [autotag]John Stone[/autotag], headline this class. In addition, a pair of three-star skill players, Florida running back [autotag]Christopher Johnson Jr.[/autotag] and wide receiver [autotag]Yazeed Haynes[/autotag] of Pennsylvania, add some intriguing athleticism to the group.

Stay up to date with many of this week’s visitors to practice with ‘Rutgers Wire!’

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Joe Jackson adds a Rutgers football offer this week

Joe Jackson gets another ‘Power Five’ offer, this one from Rutgers football.

Three-star running back Joe Jackson added an offer from Rutgers football this week as the Scarlet Knights continue to send out offers to the class of 2023.

It was the second offer from a ‘Power Five’ program for Jackson, who also has an offer from Kansas State. His other offers include Alcorn State, Arkansas State and South Florida.

He is a 6-foot, 180-pound running back from Ridge Community High School (Davenport, FL). Last season, the class of 2023 running back and 1.011 rushing yards and nine touchdowns on 151 carries.

He also had 15 receptions for 342 receiving yards and five receiving touchdowns. 247Sports ranks him as a three-star.

Ridge went 5-5 last season.

What is impressive about Jackson is his combination of size, strength and some good speed. He has the type of explosiveness that can leave defenders shoeless.

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Jackson tweeted about the offer on Thursday night:

 

Rutgers already has a commitment from a Florida running back. Last month, three-star running back Christopher Johnson Jr.  gave a verbal to the program.

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Rutgers currently has four commitments in their ‘CHOP 23’ class headlined by two top 10 players from New Jersey (four-star defensive lineman JaSire Peterson and three-star offensive lineman John Stone). Tree-star wide receiver Yazeed Haynes from Pennsylvania and the running back Johnson round-out a strong star to the recruiting cycle for the Scarlet Knights.

Maryland three-star defensive end Dominic Nichols gets offered by Rutgers football

Rutgers football offered Maryland three-star defensive end Dominic Nichols.

Rutgers football offered [autotag]Dominic Nichols [/autotag]on Thursday night, getting in early on a player who could and should blow up into a national recruit.

A three-star defensive end out of Ijamsville, MD, Nichols is a class of 2024 recruit who already holds offers from Boston College, Penn State, Toledo and Virginia Tech. Now the Scarlet Knights have jumped into the mix, becoming the fifth program to offer Nicols.

He checks in at 6-foot-5 and 230-pounds. He plays tight end and defensive end as well as basketball.

Nichols tweeted about the offer from Rutgers football on Thursday night. His tweet announcing the offer was quickly retweeted by Rutgers defensive line coach [autotag]Marquise Watson[/autotag], who is earning a reputation as one of the ace recruiters on the staff.

 

Rutgers currently has four commits as part of their 2023 recruiting class including two New Jersey players in four-star defensive lineman JaSire Peterson and three-star offensive lineman John Stone. Both players are consensus top-10 players in the state this year.

In addition, Rutgers has verbal commitments from three-star running back Christopher Johnson Jr. from Florida and Pennsylvania three-star wide receiver Yazeed Haynes.

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Kaden Cooper gets an offer from Rutgers basketball

Rutgers basketball offers three-star forward Kaden Cooper.

Three-star small forward Kaden Cooper got an offer from Rutgers basketball on Wednesday. The Georgia prospect has been seeing an uptick in his recruitment in recent weeks.

A standout at ‘The Skill Factory’ in Atlanta, Cooper’s offer list includes Creighton, Depaul, Kansas State, LSU, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, St. John’s, Texas and Wake Forest among others. Illinois offered  Cooper this week as well, making his offer from Rutgers the second for Cooper from a Big Ten program.

The class of 2023 forward is a good shooter who handles the ball well. He has good length and is strong defensively.

Cooper tweeted about the offer on Tuesday night:

 

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The 2022 recruiting class is a solid one for Rutgers, featuring New Jersey guard Derek Simpson, who had a huge senior season for Lenape and is ranked the No. 258 player in the nation according to 247Sports.  Also in the class is Antone Woolfolk, a three-star power forward who is transitioning from football and has a big upside to his development.

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