2022 Rivals250 RB Tevin White breaks down his top 6 schools
Running back Tevin White has been a known quantity on the recruiting circuit for a long time and offers started rolling in early for the Rivals250 prospect out of Stafford (Va.) North Stafford. Now, on his birthday, White decided to narrow his focus to just six schools and explained why each remain in contention for his commitment.
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CLASS OF 2021 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Position | Team | State
CLASS OF 2022 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Position | Team | State
COVERAGE: Rivals Transfer Tracker | Rivals Camp Series
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IN HIS OWN WORDS...
On why he wanted to release his top schools now: “It being my birthday, I wanted to do it on a special day” White said. “I was going to do it on my dad's birthday, October 3rd, but the list just wasn't completely ready yet. I just felt like I was comfortable with my top schools so that's why I put it out now. There’s real order yet. I'll know more about that whenever I take my official visits whenever the dead period ends.”
Arizona State: “Even though Arizona State wasn't really an early offer they do have a lot to offer,” he said. “I do like the relationship that I have with the coaching staff, especially with coach Aguano. I've been doing Zoom meetings and FaceTiming to build our relationship. ASU has coaches that have been in the NFL like Herm Edwards and Antonio Pierce. They have that NFL experience but they also put players out into the league which is awesome. They have great academics and a great campus that I saw on a virtual tour. I haven’t visited there yet but I do plan to go out there either at the end of this year or for an official visit this spring.”
Duke: “When I went to see a couple of Duke games I saw how they use running backs to not just run the ball,” said White. “They use the versatility of running backs to catch out of the backfield and that's where I feel like I excel in my game, not just running the ball but to be able to catch out of the backfield and be able to play slot receiver.”
Georgia: “Georgia was pretty much my first offer and I was really surprised that they offered me at such a young age,” he said. “That just showed me that they can see early talent. They run a similar offense to what we run at North Stafford. Dell McGee has been my number one coaching relationship. We've been checking in every two or three days with each other. It's not so much to even talk about football. We're just seeing how each other is doing. He checks on my family too.”
Penn State: “Just like Georgia, they offered me really early freshman year,” White said. “The thing about Penn State is all of their coaches love me, they love my family, they treat like me family, and every time I go up there they treat me just like I'm one of them. Especially coach Franklin, even though he's the head coach, he treats me just like family. That kind of relationship really sticks out to me and means a lot.
“I really do like changes on offense,” he said. “I see myself excelling at Penn State because of the way they mostly use running backs. They use running backs like we do at my school. They make use of the versatility of running backs and use them to their full extent, not just running the ball.”
South Carolina: “South Carolina was more of a recent decision to make my top six,” said White. “I’ve been building a relationship with coach Kitchings and with the USC staff. When we took a visit down there me and my parents were blown away by the campus. We did a virtual tour of the facilities. It was crazy. I feel like if I just keep on building this relationship I feel like they can be high on my list. They don't recruit up here that much so I guess that means I'm special to them and that does mean something. Coach Kitchings and I don't even really talk about football related stuff. We're most just checking in with each other and our families.”
Tennessee: “Even though Tennessee didn't get the win over Georgia they still really impressed me,” he said. “My relationship with coach Osovet is like a close friend and a family bond. We can talk about anything and we could talk whenever we want. It's really nice having that kind of close friend coach. I've been watching how they've been recruiting offensive linemen. I was up there this spring right before the pandemic hit.”
On his next moves: “What I feel like I'm going to do is take official and unofficial visits once the dead period is over,” White said. “I might do some unofficial to some schools that weren't in my top six because I haven't been able to get a chance to go to see their campus. We'll see how it play out. I’ll just see how it plays out. There are still a couple other schools in mix outside of my top six. I'm not going to name them.”
RIVALS' REACTION...
It doesn’t appear White is close to making his decision but narrowing his focus should help him get a better idea of what these top schools really think of him. Georgia, Penn State, and Tennessee are his core group at the moment and all three have been building relationships with him and his family for some time. White and his family have also been to each campus at least once. South Carolina, Arizona State, and Duke have clearly made strong impressions and if they continue to consistently heavily recruit White they could move up his list.