National recruiting director Mike Farrell and national recruiting analyst Adam Gorney tackle three topics daily and determine whether they believe the statements or not.
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1. Korey Foreman will end up in the SEC.
Farrell’s take: FICTION. I’ll take USC and Oregon VS. the field here as rumors swirled that the No. 1 player in the country is leaning towards the SEC and LSU and Georgia. The SEC lure is strong, but recruiting is going very well at USC now and the pull of Mario Cristobal at Oregon for elite Southern Cal players is strong. I still think he stays closer to home.
Gorney’s take: FICTION. The latest I’ve heard on Foreman is that he plans to visit all the schools on his top list - or at least many of them - before a decision so a commitment is not expected soon. That could give a tremendous advantage to LSU and Georgia most, although I’m still not counting out Clemson especially if he takes another visit there.
But in the end, I still expect this to be a USC/Oregon battle especially if the five-star defensive end doesn’t end up taking all those visits. USC has a lot going for it and Oregon has been relentless in its pursuit of Foreman. Georgia has the best chance of the SEC schools now, but Foreman is open to heading away from home. Still, I wouldn’t be shocked if he signed with the Ducks or Trojans.
2. Alabama getting Terrence Ferguson is bigger than Georgia getting Micah Morris.
Farrell’s take: FACT. Alabama wanted Morris and lost out to in-state Georgia for the services of the No. 41 player in the country. However, they just went back into Georgia and landed Ferguson who is ranked No. 43 overall. There isn’t much difference between the two players as far as talent but Alabama going into Peach County in Georgia and winning this battle makes it a slightly better get. I also feel that Ferguson is further from his ceiling than Morris. It will be fun to watch how these two develop.
Gorney’s take: FICTION. Ferguson is definitely a talented player, but I give the edge to Morris because he is more physical and for someone who’s well over 300 pounds, for him to move that well and block on the second level is pretty impressive.
Georgia could have really loaded up with an amazing offensive line haul if Ferguson picked the Bulldogs - especially with five-star Amarius Mims still out there - but Ferguson picked Alabama and that was a big win for the Crimson Tide. Still, Morris gets the slight edge because he’s bigger and a little more physical with tremendous athleticism.
3. Clemson is in better shape at backup QB than Ohio State.
Farrell’s take: FICTION. Let’s say football gets moved to the spring and sadly we don’t see Trevor Lawrence or Justin Fields for Clemson and Ohio State respectively because of their NFL aspirations. Who’s in better shape with the talent behind them?
Ohio State, but it has more to do with the amazing depth of wide receivers and tight ends that will help bail out a new starter. Gunnar Hoak is listed as the backup to Fields while freshmen CJ Stroud and Jack Miller are very talented incoming freshmen.
Meanwhile at Clemson, DJ Uiagalelei arrives with his five-star status and Taisun Phommachahn has people excited as the current backup. But give me the Ohio State group and those receivers led by Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson. And let’s hope none of this happens and we see Lawrence and Fields on the gridiron this fall.
Gorney’s take: FACT. Ohio State has some talented quarterbacks and great pass catchers, but Uiagalelei is special and he could be one of the next superstar QBs in college football. He’s already about the same size as Ben Roethlisberger but he can also run and he can easily make any throw needed in Clemson’s offense. Uiagalelei was also an early enrollee, so he is already picking up the offense. Lawrence has a positive test in the fall or chooses not to play in the spring if that becomes reality, Clemson’s offense really shouldn’t miss a beat.
