Tag: athlete

Wisconsin football offers promising class of 2027 athlete

Wisconsin football offers promising class of 2027 athlete

Wisconsin football extended an offer to fast-rising class of 2027 athlete George Lamons Jr. on Monday.

Lamons Jr. became the fifth 2027 athlete to pocket an offer from UW, joining Darryl Flemister (Detroit, MI), Brayton Feister (Akron, Ohio), Xavier Sabb (Glassboro, NJ) and Tory Pittman III (Omaha, NE).

Despite being a 2027 recruit, the 6-foot-4, 213-pounder has already earned a laundry list of offers. Of his 17 current college opportunities, the most notable include from Georgia, Miami (Florida), Cincinnati, Florida, Florida State, Tennessee, UCF, and now Wisconsin.

Representing Brooks County High School in Quitman, Georgia, Lamons has taken snaps at wide receiver and outside linebacker. Given his age and stage in recruitment, the rising sophomore will have ample time to discover his true position on the gridiron.

Although 247sports has yet to release a crystal ball prediction for where the athlete will land, On3’s recruiting prediction machine projects Florida State to secure Lamons’ commitment at this point in his recruitment.

2025 4-star ATH Zymear Smith decommits from Alabama

2025 four-star athlete Zymear Smith decommitted from Alabama and experts have an idea as to where he’s going.

One Alabama Crimson Tide football commit in the 2025 recruiting class will no longer be heading to Tuscaloosa to continue his football career at the collegiate level. On Wednesday, 2025 four-star athlete Zymear Smith announced that he was decommitting from Alabama.

The expectation is that Smith will ultimately commit to Mike Locksley and the Maryland Terrapins. He has received two crystal ball predictions in favor of him committing to the Terrapins.

Smith was recruited by the Alabama coaching staff to play defensive back. The expectation is that Smith is now looking to play running back at his next stop.

This did not come as much of a surprise given the fact that Alabama has added commitments from two highly-ranked cornerbacks from California. Smith is not expected to be recruited by the Alabama coaching staff moving forward.

Roll Tide Wire will continue to follow the latest regarding the Alabama football program and its efforts on the recruiting trail.

Wisconsin offers promising class of 2026 ATH Brandon Brown Jr.

Wisconsin offers promising class of 2026 ATH Brandon Brown Jr.

The Wisconsin Badgers extended an offer to fast-rising class of 2026 athlete Brandon Brown Jr. on Tuesday.

Brown becomes the latest 2026 weapon to receive an offer from UW, joining wide receivers Kennan and Jarod Pula and athletes Rico Blassingame and Sharroid Whitehead over the past few weeks.

The 5-foot-8, 150-pound athlete represents Shoemaker High School in Killeen, Texas. On3 has Brown Jr. as the nation’s No. 97 wide receiver and No. 80 recruit from Texas for the class of 2026.

Despite being a 2026 recruit, Brown has already received offers from five NCAA Division I programs. Campbell, Colorado State, Oklahoma State, Boston College and Wisconsin round out that list.

247Sports has yet to release a crystal ball prediction, but On3’s recruiting prediction machine projects the athlete to land at Oklahoma State. Still, Brown has ample time to decide on his collegiate commitment.

Excluding Brown, Wisconsin had previously offered 25 wide receivers in the class of 2026. But current focus is on Fickell’s class of 2025, which current sits at No. 13 in the nation with 17 players committed.

Wisconsin offers three-star class of 2026 ATH Sharroid Whitehead

Wisconsin offers three-star class of 2026 ATH Sharroid Whitehead

The Wisconsin Badgers extended an offer to three-star class of 2026 athlete Sharroid Whitehead on Friday

Whitehead becomes the latest 2026 target to receive an offer from UW, joining wide receivers Kennan and Jarod Pula, interior offensive lineman Samuel Simpson and athlete Rico Blassingame over the past few weeks.

The 5-foot-9, 170-pound athlete represents Ocean Springs High School in Pascagoula, Mississippi. On3 has Whitehead as the nation’s No. 43 athlete and No. 14 recruit from Mississippi for the class of 2026.

Despite being a 2026 recruit, Whitehead has already received offers from some of the nation’s post prolific programs. Florida State, Penn State, Tennessee, Texas Tech and Wisconsin are among his nine total NCAA Division I offers thus far.

247Sports has yet to release a crystal ball prediction, but On3’s recruiting prediction machine projects the athlete to land at Tennessee. Still, Whitehead will have ample time to decide on his collegiate commitment.

Including Whitehead, Wisconsin has offered 25 athletes for the class of 2026.

Current focus is on Fickell’s class of 2025, which current sits at No. 15 in the nation with 14 commitments.

Wisconsin secures official visit with 2025 CB Jahmare Washington

Wisconsin secures official visit with 2025 CB Jahmare Washington

Wisconsin class of 2025 CB target Jahmare Washington will officially visit the program the weekend of June 7.

He joins a busy official visit weekend for the Badgers, the program’s second this month.

Washington became the eleventh 2025 target to schedule an official visit to the Badgers this coming weekend, and joined Jojo Scott, Grant Dean, Remington Moss and Eugene Hilton Jr. as the fifth such player with experience at either WR or DB in this cycle.

As a cornerback, 247Sports ranks Washington as the No. 22 recruit in Illinois and No. 81 recruit at his position for the class of 2025. On3 also lists Washington as a wide receiver while Rivals has the 2025 prospect as an athlete for his class.

The Badgers offered the three-star recruit on February 4. The 6-foot-2, 170-pound corner is a rising senior representing Morgan Park High School in Chicago, Illinois.

Despite receiving offers from 18 schools, including from Michigan State, UNLV, Western Michigan, Kansas State, Iowa State and Wyoming, Washington has yet to plan another official visit for this summer.

Rivals’ FutureCast projects Washington to land at Illinois, but On3’s recruiting prediction machine has UW as a heavy favorite to land the versatile playmaker.

Wisconsin’s class of 2025 currently ranks No. 16 in the nation with 13 players committed. The Badgers did secure commitments from top class of 2025 cornerback Rukeem Stroud and four-star OT Logan Powell over the weekend. Both Stroud and Powell made their decisions during official visits to Madison beginning May 31.

Wisconsin football offers three-star class of 2026 athlete

Wisconsin football offers three-star class of 2026 athlete

Wisconsin football extended an offer to three-star class of 2026 athlete Amari Sabb on Friday.

Both 247sports’ composite ranking and On3’s industry ranking have Sabb as a three-star recruit. The New Jersey native already holds offers from 10 schools including Penn State, Oregon, Rutgers, Tennessee, Ole Miss, Michigan, Georgia and Alabama.

Per 247sports’ composite rankings, Sabb is the nation’s No. 30 athlete, No. 9 recruit from New Jersey and No. 370 overall recruit in the class of 2026. The Glassboro, New Jersey native stands at 5’9,” 155 pounds and is a rising senior at Glassboro High School.

His first gridiron offer arrived from Penn State in September 2020. Despite only entering his junior season at Glassboro, Sabb has received offers from 2020 through 2024.

Sabb is featured on both offense and defense at Glassboro, specifically at slot wide receiver and defensive back.

The athlete has unofficially visited Penn State, Clemson, Georgia, Michigan, Texas A&M, Rutgers and Penn State. 247Sports has yet to release a crystal ball prediction, but On3’s recruiting prediction machine has Penn State as Sabb’s most likely landing spot.

Alabama Football lands commitment from 2025 4-star ATH Derick Smith

2025 four-star athlete Derick Smith announced his commitment to Alabama on Monday afternoon. Smith chose the Crimson Tide over Auburn.

Alabama’s 2025 recruiting class just got substantially better on Monday afternoon. Four-star athlete Derick Smith announced that he was committed to the Crimson Tide. Smith chose Alabama over in-state rival, Auburn.

Smith hails from Southside-Selma High School in Selma, Alabama. He is listed at 6-foot-1 and 185 pounds. As a junior, he starred on both sides of the ball for the Panthers. Smith had 46 receptions for 1,487 yards and 14 touchdowns. In addition, he also had 65 carries for 1,036 yards and nine touchdowns. Defensively, he tallied 74 tackles, 15 tackles for loss, and 11 sacks.

Clearly, Smith has what it takes to play either side of the ball at the college level. The expectation is that Alabama will allow Smith to choose which position he prefers to play once he enrolls.

Smith’s commitment gives Alabama their fifth commitment in the ’25 recruiting class. Smith joins the likes of fellow commits — running back Anthony Rodgers, defensive back Zymear Smith, linebacker Myles Johnson, and defensive lineman Antonio Coleman.

Roll Tide Wire will continue to follow the Alabama football program and its efforts on the recruiting trail.

Alabama makes top 11 for 2024 ATH Terry Bussey

2024 athlete Terry Bussey released his top 11 schools on Wednesday. Alabama made the cut as a finalist.

Wide receiver Terry Bussey of the 2024 released his top schools on Tuesday. Alabama was one of the schools that made the cut.

Bussey plays for Timpson High School in Timpson, Texas. As a junior, Bussey played multiple positions. He passed for over 2,000 yards and managed to rush for over 2,000 yards as well. If that was not impressive enough, he also recorded 115 tackles and five interceptions (four were returned for touchdowns).

He was recognized as the Texas Sportswriters Association’s Class 2A Offensive Player of the Year in 2022.

When asked by On3’s Joe Tipton about why he included Alabama, Bussey said the following:

From the culture, to the fans and coaches, it was all great. I loved everything about Bama, and could see myself there one day.

Roll Tide Wire breaks down Terry Bussey’s recruiting profile.

Lukas Van Ness continues Packers’ trend of elite athletes in first round

Lukas Van Ness continued Brian Gutekunst’s now six-year trend of drafting nothing but elite athletes in the first round.

The Green Bay Packers’ selection of Iowa edge rusher Lukas Van Ness at No. 13 overall on Thursday night continued a now six-year run from general manager Brian Gutekunst of drafting nothing but elite athletes in the first round.

Van Ness is 6-5 and 271 pounds, and his Relative Athletic Score is 9.39 out of 10.0, the seventh-best score among edge rushers in the draft class. He ran the 40-yard dash in 4.58 seconds and aced the agility drills, completing the short shuttle in 4.32 seconds and the three-cone in 7.02 seconds.

Van Ness is in the 88th percentile for height, 98th percentile for straight-line speed and 90th percentile for short-area quickness among edge rushers in draft classes from 1987-2023. He also has long arms (34 1/2″) and huge hands (11″). Overall, Van Ness is the tallest edge rusher and third heaviest edge rusher among Dane Brugler’s top 15 edge rushers in the draft class. His speed score is in the 96th percentile at the position.

Player Profiler ranked Van Ness as the second-most athletic edge rusher and ninth-most athletic player in the draft class overall.

With height, bulk and incredible movement ability, Van Ness looks like a player custom made to play outside linebacker for the Packers.

Getting a disruptive player at edge rusher almost always requires acquiring an elite athlete. The position must consistently beat 300-pound offensive tackles with either power or speed. Van Ness has both, upping the chances of him being a hit. In fact, his athletic profile is usually a hit; among his best RAS comparables are Trey Hendrickson, Jared Allen, Tray Walker, Preston Smith and Ezekiel Ansah.

The Packers once rolled the dice on an elite athlete at edge rusher in the Big Ten, and it worked out beautifully with Rashan Gary, who had a couple of seasons to develop behind veterans before becoming a full-time player. The same pathway is ahead of Van Ness, who packs a big punch as a power player and has the size and athleticism to play all over the defensive front but probably needs time to develop a better pass-rushing and block-beating arsenal.

Including Van Ness, all eight of Gutekunst’s first-round picks since taking over in 2018 have a RAS of 8.0 or better, including six (and four in a row) over 9.0. The average RAS of Gutekunst’s eight first-rounders? 9.28.

Year Player School RAS
2018 Jaire Alexander Louisville 9.54
2019 Rashan Gary Michigan 9.95
2019 Darnell Savage Maryland 8.35
2020 Jordan Love Utah State 8.46
2021 Eric Stokes Georgia 9.38
2022 Quay Walker Georgia 9.63
2022 Devonte Wyatt Georgia 9.56
2023 Lukas Van Ness Iowa 9.39

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Alabama lands in top-seven for 2024 ATH Josiah Brown

2024 athlete Josiah Brown released his top schools on Monday evening. He listed Alabama as one of his finalists.

Alabama extended an offer to 2024 athlete Josiah Brown at the end of March. Several weeks later, Brown listed the Crimson Tide as a finalist in his recruitment.

Brown plays for Holy Trinity Diocesan High School in Hicksville, New York. As a junior, Brown hauled in 21 receptions for 425 yards and seven touchdowns. He also recorded 19 tackles on defense for the Titans.

Brown possesses a great blend of athleticism and speed. His ability to make plays at the line of scrimmage as well as contribute on special teams stands out in his highlight tape.

While Alabama made the cut, Brown is currently trending toward Rutgers. According to On3’s RPM. the Scarlet Knights have the highest likelihood to land Brown at 50.7% likelihood.

Roll Tide Wire breaks down Josiah Brown’s recruiting profile.