Murphy wants to prove himself
Kyle Murphy has had a tremendous senior season and it's not over yet since San Clemente (Calif.) starts the playoffs this weekend. But Wednesday, the four-star offensive tackle received his game jersey for the U.S. Army All-American Bowl and it was a special moment for him.
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"It's definitely pretty cool," Murphy said. "It's the most prestigious event for high school all-star games and it's definitely pretty cool to be a part of it and be able to participate. For them to come to my school and make a big deal out of it, that was pretty neat.
"They had the band there, they had the cheerleaders, a lot of students saw it and people from our district, our principal and our coaches were there. It was pretty neat because they talked about the Army and me a little bit. I thanked everybody and my coach talked so it was a really good experience."
Murphy is rated as the sixth-best offensive tackle in a loaded group this season, especially in the West, and No. 29 overall. There is a good chance he could move up even higher.
His ranking is already impressive and the 6-foot-7, 275-pound prospect said he's excited to get to San Antonio to prove he's worthy of such high recognition.
"I'm definitely looking forward to it," Murphy said. "It should be fun playing guys who are as highly recruited as me. It should be fun to test myself and prepare myself for the next level in college."
Murphy is still uncommitted but said he has pretty much narrowed his list to Stanford, Oregon, Florida, USC and California. He has already taken trips to see the Ducks and Gators, and both places did something to impress him. Both schools are still under strong consideration.
"I thought it was neat down (at Florida)," Murphy said. "I really liked the student body down there, they have good academics and the energy is great. I really liked the game-day atmosphere so overall I thought it was a pretty good trip.
"Oregon definitely has a pretty cool campus and they have tremendous facilities. The game-day atmosphere is crazy up there. I got a real good feel from the kids, the academic support, the coaches were great, so I have a really good feel up there."
The four-star offensive tackle is planning official visits to USC, Stanford and Cal but is still working on setting dates. Since San Clemente is going into the playoffs, Murphy said he'll probably hold off on any more trips until after his senior season.
"I've been talking to those schools about possible dates," Murphy said. "We have the first round of playoffs this weekend so I'm thinking after the season is when I'll probably take official visits. It will probably be sometime in December."
USC and Stanford are believed to be frontrunners for Murphy although he said all five teams are pretty much even. Murphy attended the USC-Stanford thriller a few weeks ago and said he's been definitely impressed with both teams.
"I was at that game and it was a great game," Murphy said. "Both teams battled so that impressed me from both sides. Both schools are great academically and programwise USC has always been up there and Stanford in recent years is getting up there. I'm really impressed by both schools.
"I'd say those five are pretty equal right now. I'll probably take a few more visits, sit down and think long and hard about it."
As for a decision time, Murphy said announcing at the Army game might be best. It's a big decision for the four-star recruit so he wants to take his time but making his commitment during the all-star game looks likely to happen.
"I'm thinking about doing it at the Army game," Murphy said. "That would be pretty cool to do."
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