LIVE: UA Future 50 registration
ORLANDO, Fla. -- The Future 50 registration day has kicked off and there is plenty of news coming out. Here are all the latest tidbits from the event filled with top 2017 prospects.
DT Marvin Wilson, Houston (Texas) Episcopal
Update: LSU, Alabama, Oklahoma, Florida State, USC, and UCLA are all coming on strong. Wilson does not plan to decide until Signing Day, and he plans to release a top 10 and a top five before he decides. Alabama and LSU are good bets right now to make his top five.
Quote: “I feel like I’m going to go the Texas A&M junior day and the FSU junior day on Feb. 29. I’m starting to get things organized because senior year is coming up and it’s almost decision time in almost a year.”
WR Hezekiah Jones, Stafford, Tex.
Update: Jones is committed to Baylor and he feels strong in his commitment. In addition to Baylor, Oklahoma and Ole Miss continue to pursue him and he may visit both schools in the future.
Quote: “Oh man, (Baylor) is awesome. If you watch the bowl game, you see why they’re the top offense in the nation. They can throw the ball and they can run the ball also at will. That caught my eye a lot. Just the coaches and the environment at Baylor is just tremendous."
CB Chevin Calloway, Dallas (Texas) Bishop Dunne
Update: Alabama and Baylor are the two early favorites for Calloway, but he is also looking at TCU a little bit. He likes Oklahoma more and more, wants to visit some Florida schools and possibly take a trip to California to gauge interest from USC and others. Right now, though, it seems like the Crimson Tide and Bears look the best in his recruitment.
Quote: “Those two are standing out. The only reason I can say those schools is because of the love they’re showing me at this point and those are the schools I’ve visited. Those are the schools that are standing out and catching my eye.”
LB Jarez Parks, Sebastian (Fla.) Sebastian River
Update: Parks says very little about his recruitment, but would like to find a pre-med program. Parks contends that each school on his list is equal, but many believe Florida, Florida State and Alabama are the favorites to land his commitment.
Quote: “Whether I stay in the area or go across the country will come down to a family decision. We’ll sit down with the family and decide that.”
RB Toneil Carter, Houston (Texas) Langham Creek
Update: Texas, Texas A&M, Baylor, Houston, Georgia, and Ohio State are coming on strong. He is not in a hurry to decide. He wants to take official visits before making a commitment. Notre Dame is his most recent offer.
Quote: "Right now I’m just sitting back and relaxing and just letting it all play out. I’m thinking about doing a Georgia visit and an Ohio State visit right now."
OL Cesar Ruiz, Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy
Update: Ruiz picked up a lot of offers early in his career and is working hard to figure out which schools he likes. North Carolina and Michigan were two schools that jumped out to early leads but Alabama, Clemson, Penn State, and a few others have closed the gap.
Quote: "Some coaches that really stick out to me are coach (James) Franklin, coach (Jim) Harbaugh, and coach (Nick) Saban. My best visits have probably been Michigan and North Carolina. Florida, Florida State, Alabama, Ole Miss, Tennessee and Miami are some of the visits I'm going to take."
OL Robert Hainsey, Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy
Update: Hainsey is a Midwest guy who will likely end up at a Big Ten school. Penn State, Michigan, Michigan State, and Ohio State are in good position and so is Notre Dame. Hainsey is having a hard time setting up visits, but he will get some in during the offseason.
Quote: "I still like the Big Ten a lot. I haven't narrowed my list down yet. I want to see everything I can. I like Michigan, Michigan State, Penn State, and Ohio State. I like Notre Dame a lot, but I don't have an offer from them yet. It's the same thing with Clemson."
OL Calvin Ashley, Orlando (Fla.) Dr. Phillips
Update: Ashley remains comitted to Auburn and says things with the Tigers are "pretty good.” That said, he intends to look around. Ashley plans to visit Alabama in January and will give other schools a look as well.
Quote: “I want to see Florida State and Florida. I might go to Ole Miss and visit there. I just want to see the coaches in person. I want to see the facilities and meet the coaches instead of just texting."
OT Austin Deculus, Cypress (Texas) Cy-Fair
Update: Deculus has LSU at the top of his list with Baylor at the No. 2 spot. He plans to attend the Baylor and LSU junior days. Ole Miss, Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama, and Oklahoma are also coming on strong.
Quote: “LSU is my leader right now. I always have to go LSU. Go Tigers. There’s just something about the feeling of home. Just that whole atmosphere of Death Valley on game night. It’s just ridiculous, to be honest with you."
WR D.J. Matthews, Jacksonville (Fla.) Trinity Christian
Update: Matthews, a Florida State commit, continues to survey a number of other programs. Matthews says he hopes to tour Indiana and Notre Dame this offseason.
Quote: “I talk to Florida State every week. I try to keep in touch every week. They’re OK with me looking around and all that.”
WR Jeff Thomas, East St. Louis, Ill.
Update: Thomas said he is likely to take the same approach to his recruitment as his former teammate, class of 2015 Rivals100 defensive tackle Terry Beckner, who waited until National Signing Day to make his college decision. The one game visit he took this past fall was to Illinois with his East St. Louis teammates. The two schools he wants to visit most this off-season are Alabama and Ohio State. Thomas estimated his offer total at 15 schools, and at this time all are chasing the Crimson Tide, which he said is the early team to beat in his recruitment.
Quote: “Alabama is the team I always watched when I was little and wanted to go to.”
DT Tyler Shelvin, Lafayette (La.) Northside
Update: Shelvin is committed to LSU, but Alabama and TCU are coming on strong. He is also hearing from Notre Dame and Florida State. He plans to take visits to UCLA and Oregon at the beginning of the summer.
Quote: “I would say (my commitment) is strong, but I’m still looking. (I like LSU's) atmosphere, the coaching staff, and they show a lot of love.”
LB Anthony Hines, Plano (Texas) Texas East
Update: Hines still has a top list of 19 schools and the next step is start narrowing it down to 10 and then to eventually make a decision, but the four-star linebacker is not rushing. Hines said he has absolutely “no idea” where he wants to go and said he’s not worried about trimming his list this early.
Quote: “It could be tomorrow, it could be the last possible day. I am planning on graduating early, so that could affect things.”
DB Shaun Wade, Jacksonville (Fla.) Trinity Christian
Update: An Ohio State commit, Wade is still considering Florida, among other schools. He wants to visit Notre Dame, Stanford, UCLA and the West Coast schools. Wade last visited Ohio State in the summer.
Quote: “When Notre Dame came, we talked. We talk a lot. We have a good connection. I know it’s a good academic school and they always have players that do big things."
OT Alex Leatherwood, Pensacola (Fla.) Washington
Update: Leatherwood remains happily committed to Alabama and he loves the Crimson Tide, but many others are coming after him and the four-star said he would at least consider some other visits. LSU, Florida, Ole Miss and Miami have been the most aggressive, but Leatherwood seems pretty pleased with his Alabama pledge.
Quote: “I loved the atmosphere, the facilities, the coaching, the whole bit (at Alabama). I feel like it was the perfect fit in the offensive scheme and not only that, they make good offensive linemen.”
LB Justin Foster, Shelby (N.C.) Crest
Update: Clemson and Tennessee have consistently been in Foster's top group, but North Carolina and Oklahoma have been making a lot of progress. Even though it is a long way off, Foster said Oklahoma will definitely get an official visit.
Quote: "I think it will be a good game tonight between Clemson and Oklahoma. I'll probably get down to Alabama and LSU in January or February."
WR Daquon Green, Tampa (Fla.) Tampa Bay Tech
Update: Green is comitted to Florida but still taking looks at other schools. He hopes to visit the campuses of North Carolina, Michigan, Ole Miss, Tennessee and Miami this offseason.
Quote: “I’m real interested in Ole Miss, Tennessee and North Carolina. With those schools, they’re all systems I can fit in with and I like what the coaches tell me about the schools.”
WR James Robinson, Lakeland, Fla.
Update: The No. 1 junior wide receiver in the country, Robinson says that he would sign with Clemson if today was Signing Day 2017. Teams such as Florida, Miami and Baylor are clustered together in second place.
Quote: “I want to visit USC, Cal and TCU for sure. I just want to get out and see what they’re all about.”
DE Ryan Johnson, Mobile (Ala.) St. Paul’s
Update: Johnson has been to Mississippi State and admits he has a lot of interest in the Bulldogs, and he likes the campus. Stanford, Duke, Tennessee, Auburn and Florida are others that have caught Johnson’s early attention. He said location will play no factor in his decision and that he wants to commit way before Signing Day.
Quote: “There is a family atmosphere at (Mississippi State), they have a good football program and they have a need in my class for defensive linemen. They’re going to be losing a lot of people.”
S Jeffrey Okudah Grand Prairie (Texas) South Grand Prairie
Update: Okudah named Ohio State his leader during the season and the Buckeyes continue to hold an edge. Oklahoma, Michigan, Florida State, and Florida are also coming on strong. He plans to name a top 10 after the Under Armour All-America Game and he plans to graduate early and enroll at his school of choice.
Quote: “(Chris Ash leaving Ohio State for Rutgers will have an impact) because me and coach Ash were so close. We talked every day. He evaluated my game film after my games. Him departing just showed me it was a business world.”
DE Robert Beal, Norcross, Ga.
Update: Beal has family that still lives in South Bend and that was one big factor on why his Notre Dame commitment is so strong. There are many others. The four-star has already developed a good relationship with Notre Dame defensive coordinator Brian VanGorder and that will play a factor as things continue. Beal’s cousin is Kahlil McKenzie at Tennessee, so the Vols will continue coming after him, but the Irish look really strong.
Quote: “I’ve been (to Notre Dame) so many times, Notre Dame just kind of grew on me. I grew up there.”
WR Jerry Jeudy, Deerfield Beach, Fla.
Update: Jeudy recently released a top 10 that consists of mostly schools in the Southeast. USC adds a west coast tint to his list, but Florida, Miami, Florida State, Tennessee, Georgia, South Carolina and Clemson seem like more likely landing spots.
Quote: “I’d say teams that throw the ball and that can let me play early have an advantage.”
LB Markail Benton, Phenix City (Ala.) Central
Update: Alabama, Auburun and Florida State are the three favorites for the four-star linebacker with Georgia and Mississippi State in his top five as well. Benton’s teammate, four-star DB John Broussard, is going to Auburn and they spend a lot of time on campus, but the two other top teams will definitely be seriously considered, too.
Quote: “I have a teammate going there and we go up there a lot and we hang out. I get along with coach (Rhett) Lashlee well and we communicate. Having a teammate going there can mean something, but it doesn’t really matter.”
QB Jake Bentley, Opelika, Ala.
Update: Stanford and Georgia are the two favorites for the four-star quarterback and then South Carolina and Miami round out his top four. Bentley’s father, Bobby, is a coach on the Gamecocks’ staff, but that won’t absolutely steer him to Columbia. The four-star is also taking a hard look at Miami because of Mark Richt’s draw with the Hurricanes. But Stanford and Georgia are definitely out in front at this point with no timeline to make a choice.
Quote: “(My father) wants what’s best for me. He’s not going to persuade me to go either way. Coach (Will) Muschamp has talked to him and he said he’s going to personally recruit me and he’s not going to use my dad. (Muschamp) said he’s going to be the main one I talk to.”
QB Kellen Mond, Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy
Update: Mond recently transferred from San Antonio (Texas) Reagan to IMG Academy, but he’s not planning to switch his college commitment. The four-star said his pledge to Baylor is 100 percent solid and schools like Notre Dame, Mississippi State, TCU and others that were chasing him have backed off.
Quote: “I’m 100 percent Baylor. Other schools haven’t been talking to me lately and I’m fine with that. The new facilities are really amazing, the stadium, the locker rooms, that’s some of the things that lured me to Baylor.”
LB Baron Browning, Kennedale (Texas) Kennedale
Update: Browning is committed to Baylor but he has been in touch with Oklahoma, TCU, Ole Miss, Alabama, Ohio State and Michigan. He has plans to attend Oklahoma State's junior day on Jan. 24.
Quote: "I was real impressed how they were hands on with their players, and just how they were able to make players bigger and faster. I know the staff and just talking to some players and getting their viewpoints on some things about the program so I felt at the time I had seen everything I needed to see and was ready to make a decision."
OC Jack Anderson, Frisco (Texas) Frisco
Update: Anderson is committed to Texas Tech and he is 100-percent solid with his decision.
Quote: "Just the way they recruited me. They offered me first and recruited me the hardest of anyone. Plus it was just meant to be. I couldn't see myself going anywhere else. I grew up a fan. My dad went there and my sister is going there right now. I thought it was just a perfect fit."
WR Tylan Wallace, Fort Worth (Texas) South Hills
Update: Oklahoma is showing Wallace a lot of interest right now, and he would like to visit Michigan and Oklahoma State. He does not have a timetable for a decision.
Quote: "I would say OU is coming on pretty strong, but like I said I haven't decided yet. I just have to look more into it."
DE Chris Allen, Baton Rouge (La.) Southern Lab
Update: Allen has not trimmed his list but LSU, Auburn, Mississippi State, Ole Miss and Georgia have made a strong impression. He would like to visit Georgia, Mississippi State, and Ole Miss, and Georgia and Mississippi State have shown the most interest.
Quote: "LSU has definitely caught my attention. Auburn, Mississippi State, Ole Miss, and Georgia definitely, definitely."
WR Donovan Peoples-Jones, Detroit (Mich.) Cass Tech
Update: With more than 20 offers, Peoples-Jones is set to trim his list to ten schools within the month. The Rivals100 prospect did not have any schools that were sure to make the list, but did note that visits to LSU and Texas A&M were priorities for him this off-season. Regional programs Michigan, Michigan State and Ohio State were the three he listed with which he has the closest relationships. He has also made visits to programs like Florida, Tennessee and USC in the past.
Quote: "Coaching staffs change a lot, so you have to be comfortable with the school and comfortable with the things outside of the coaches."
DB Stanford Samuels III, Pembroke Pines (Fla.) Flanagan.
Update: Samuels says Florida State, Maryland, Georgia, Clemson and Michigan make up his top five. Samuels hopes to visit each school this offseason but is in nor rush ot make a decision.
Quote: "The top five is just about the relationships I have with the coaches and even the new coaches I've met after the coaching changes. I'm gonna wait and commit until my senior year and make a decision at an All-American game."
ATH Daniel Wright, Ft. Lauderdale (Fla.) Cardinal Gibbons
Update: Wright says Florida State leads his recruitment. He hopes to visit FSU, Clemson, Ohio State and Alabama this offseason. Wright says he will wait until after his senior season to make a verbal commitment.
Quote: "With Florida State, it's mostly the way that the defense they run is similar to our defense. That's big for me. That and I've visited up there a lot."
WR Trevon Grimes, Ft. Lauderdale (Fla.) St. Thomas Aquinas
Update: Ohio State still holds a lead for Grimes. Florida and Florida State are also in the mix and will need to topple Florida State as the favorite if they hope to land the five-star wide receiver's commitment.
Quote: "My quarterback, Jake Allen, the Florida commit, has been talking to me a lot about Florida and putting it in my head. I've personally been thinking a lot about Florida, too."