Cheadle names top three

Bakersfield, Calif., defensive tackle Justin Cheadle is one of the top two-sport stars in California in both football and in basketball, but at this point it definitely looks like he's heading toward the gridiron and not following his hoop dreams.

"I'm hearing from all of the Pac 10 right now, Nebraska, Colorado State and Nevada," Cheadle, a powerful 6-foot-2, 266-pound lineman, said. "I have offers from pretty much all of them right now. Oregon State, Colorado State, UNLV, Washington State, San Diego State, Fresno State, Arizona State, Arizona, Cal, Stanford and Nebraska.

"I went to the SC and Stanford junior days and I liked those two schools a lot. They both seemed like great places to be a part of."

Early on, though, Cheadle does have three teams that stand out to him.

"Cal, Stanford and Arizona State are tops right now," he said. "They're top programs, and I know Cal and Stanford are both great academic schools. Those two probably have the advantage since they're close to home and they're such good schools, but I love the coaching staff down at Arizona State."

Cheadle will have a tough decision to make when the time does come, but the good thing is that he already has his priorities in line.

"It's going to come down to location, academics, and maybe what position I'll play," he said. "I'll play whatever position I need to help the team, but if I had a choice I'd want to play defensive tackle.

"I'm camping at a two day camp at SC next week and then there are a few other camps we're doing with my team, but it's nothing big."