Final Elite 11 selections announced

The final selections of the EA Sports Elite 11 were announced earlier this afternoon.

Joining the list of already confirmed players are Tajh Boyd of Hampton (Va.) Phoebus, Raymond Cotton of Fort Meade (Md.) Meade High School, Andrew Maxwell of Midland, Mich., and Bryn Renner of Lorton (Va.) West Springfield.

The list of already announced players include Garrett Gilbert of Austin (Texas) Lake Travis, Richard Brehaut of Rancho Cucamonga (Calif.) Los Osos, Allan Bridgford of Mission Viejo, Calif., AJ McCarron of Mobile (Ala.) St. Paul's, Zach Mettenberger of Watkinsville (Ga.) Oconee County, Aaron Murray of Tampa (Fla.) Plant, Tom Savage of Springfield (Pa.) Cardinal O'Hara and Eugene Smith of Miramar, Fla.

Rivals.com gives high marks to the new additions to the camp.

Boyd is ranked by Rivals.com as the No. 3 dual-threat quarterback in the nation and the No. 124 player in the nation. He began to impress evaluators at the Chapel Hill Nike Camp in May where he earned camp quarterback most valuable player honors. He also threw well at the State College Elite 11 regional camp.

Boyd joins Renner as the seventh Virginia quarterback to make the Elite 11 in its 10 years. It also marks a third consecutive year that two Commonwealth State quarterbacks have been selected to the Elite 11. Boyd committed to West Virginia in March over offers from Boston College, Michigan, Tennessee, Virginia, Virginia Tech and many more.

Cotton is a three-star prospect according to Rivals.com. The 6-foot-4, 216-pounder ranks as the No. 12 dual-threat quarterback in the nation and the third best scrambler. He committed to Auburn in early April, turning down offers from Kentucky, Mississippi State, Purdue and Troy.

"This is a big honor," Cotton said. "Being selected to the Elite 11 has always been one of my biggest goals going into my senior season."

Maxwell ranks among the nation's top pro-style passers at No. 11 overall at the position. The 6-foot-3, 192-pounder also ranks as the No. 229 player overall and the No. 6 player in Michigan.

He jumped out to evaluators at the NIKE Camp and the Elite 11 regional camp in Fort Worth. He earned MVP honors for quarterbacks at the event and really impressed camp coaches like Bob Johnson.

"He says that he likes my arm strength and how accurate I am when I deliver the ball," Maxwell said. "They also say that they like the way I have an idea where I want to go with the ball on every play."

Renner, a North Carolina, was the biggest surprise at the Las Vegas Elite 11 regional camp. The nation's No. 16 dual-threat quarterback was an all-state receiver as a sophomore and last year he threw for 2,749 yards and 32 touchdowns.

However, his resume wasn't as big as others in the nation. That changed after his strong day in Las Vegas. Along with looking great in drill work, Renner, who is a North Carolina commitment, won the EA Sports Golden Gun award for the most accurate passer in the camp.

"I stayed within myself and threw it smooth," Renner said.

"I didn't try to do too much fancy. I just had to get the ball in the targets. I stayed within myself in the drills, did what the coaches asked of me and tried to have the best day that I could."

Rivals.com will have full coverage of the camp, which starts next Monday, July 21 and continues through the 24th at Soka University in Aliso Viejo, Calif. To qualify for this event passers had to attend either a NIKE Camp or an Elite 11 regional camp.

[rl]