INDIANAPOLIS – The sixth stop of the Rivals Camp Series is in the books and many top uncommitted prospects were in attendance.
Today, Rivals national recruiting analysts Adam Friedman, Clint Cosgrove, Ryan Wright, and Eric Lammers address five players who attended the camp and make their predictions about where the prospects could end up.
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RIVALS CAMP SERIES: Info for 2022 series
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Friedman: "Elzy's recruitment still has a lot to play out and more schools could join the race for his commitment as the offseason progresses. Illinois is doing a great job recruiting him, but for now I'm picking Notre Dame as his landing spot. Penn State, Michigan and Tennessee are all in the mix and it will be interesting to see which teams turn up the heat on him."
Prediction: Notre Dame
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Wright: "Big receiving targets with Elzy’s abilities are hard to come by, making his recruiting process very interesting. Elzy is a national recruit, but the Big Ten seems to have his full attention. Tennessee has made some headway getting him on campus in March, but his focus remains in the Midwest. Cincinnati has him locked in for an official, as does Illinois. Notre Dame seems like a likely OV as well. The Fighting Irish may be hard for Elzy to resist, but playing at home with the Illini might be too hard to beat."
Prediction: Illinois
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Cosgrove: "When it comes to Elzy's recruitment there is still a lot up in the air. Although he has been a high-level recruit for a few years now, he is one of those prospects that continues to develop at a high rate and I would not be shocked to see new elite-level teams trying to get in the mix for his commitment. As things stand right now I see it being a tight race between Notre Dame and Illinois at the top, with Ole Miss and Michigan still right there in his recruitment. Notre Dame seems like the easy pick here, but I am going to go out on a limb and predict Elzy to Illinois."
Prediction: Illinois
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Lammers: "The belief is that Elzy is wide open and more schools will continue to enter the race for the four-star receiver out of Chicago. However, I am going to go with Notre Dame due to three factors: location, timeline and the Marcus Freeman effect. Location may or may not be a legit factor for prospects, but it's hard to deny the convenience of South Bend being less than 100 miles down the road. The fact that Elzy wants to commit by the end of the summer also leaves Notre Dame in a comfortable spot, in my opinion. Lastly, the Marcus Freeman effect is real. The new head coach has a vibe that prospects can connect with and want to play for, and landing Elzy will be just another indication of that."
Prediction: Notre Dame
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Friedman: "Gilbert's recruitment isn't overly difficult to read right now. LSU has done a really good job with him lately and the Tigers are the only official visit he has set at the moment. Notre Dame remains a serious player for him, and watch out for Kentucky and Iowa as well. If none of these other teams step up their efforts in the next few weeks it could be an easy decision for Gilbert to choose LSU."
Prediction: LSU
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Wright: "It seems that Notre Dame and Big Ten teams may miss out on one of the best strongside defensive ends in the 2023 class. Tracking Gilbert’s recruiting of late, Vanderbilt, Tennessee and LSU have gotten the four-star on campus. LSU offered Gilbert in mid-February and the relationship has grown to an unofficial in April with a set official in the coming weeks. Ohio State and Illinois are pushing for him, and don’t think Notre Dame and Indiana will give up on the local talent without a fight."
Prediction: LSU
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Cosgrove: "When Notre Dame offered Gilbert at its camp this past summer I thought it was a foregone conclusion that he would end up with the Irish. Gilbert is an Indiana kid, Notre Dame was his first powerhouse offer and his high school even wears similar uniforms. A lot has changed since then, though. Brian Kelly left Notre Dame for LSU and assistant coach Mike Elston, who extended Gilbert his original Notre Dame offer, is now at Michigan. Those moves appear to have altered the course of Gilbert's entire recruitment and Kelly has continued to pursue the four-star defensive lineman. Gilbert only has one official visit planned as of right now and that is to LSU, where I predict he will commit and sign."
Prediction: LSU
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Lammers: "Gilbert has one official visit locked in and it's down to the Bayou in early June and here I don't think location is as much of a factor. The LSU staff will have the red carpet rolled out for Gilbert when he arrives on campus as it believes the Rivals250 defensive lineman is really just scratching his potential. The first and only official visit on the docket, plus the mutual respect both parties have for each other, this one just feels destined to happen this summer."
Prediction: LSU
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Friedman: "McVay's recruitment isn't close to over, so there will be plenty of movement among his leaders. He seems to really like Alabama right now, but there is stiff competition for his commitment from Illinois, Oklahoma, Michigan State, Oregon and a few others. The team to watch for McVay is Missouri. The in-state school and head coach Eli Drinkwitz have prioritized McVay since day one and I'm betting their persistence will pay off."
Prediction: Missouri
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Wright: "McVay showed out on Sunday at the RCS in Indianapolis taking home O-line MVP honors. The four-star dropped his top 12 on April 13 with six SEC teams on the list. Until official visits start happening for McVay, anything can happen. New year visits have been taken to Alabama, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Oregon and the home state squad Missouri. The Tigers want to keep him home and Alabama has a tradition of winning that can’t be beat. The other four teams feel like wild cards."
Prediction: Alabama
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Cosgrove: "McVay has his choice of just about any school in the country, but recently narrowed his list to a top 12. Although the list is still extensive, the race for McVay's pledge looks to really be between Missouri, Alabama, Oregon, Michigan State, Oklahoma and Illinois. Missouri has done a great job with its recent recruiting efforts in the St Louis area and most notably signed five-star receiver Luther Burden, who was a teammate of McVay's in high school. While I believe the six teams that currently stand out in McVay's top 12 all have a legit chance of landing his commitment, Missouri has too much going in their favor and I believe McVay ends up with the Tigers."
Prediction: Missouri
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Lammers: "This is a recruitment that feels like it could have a few twist and turns to endure over the next few months. Ultimately, though, I am going to go with my guy Eliah Drinkwitz - though he is not my literal guy. Nonetheless, I believe in the Missouri staff's ability to keep the state locked down after landing Burden in 2022 and if you remember that one endured some twist and turns as well."
Prediction: Missouri
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Friedman: "After watching Patterson work out on Sunday I'm shocked he doesn't have more offers. Predicting where he'll end up is a bit of a crapshoot since he is bound to pick up more offers. Right now, the easy choice would be Missouri, but it hasn't offered yet. Patterson will surely take advantage of the recruiting process and take his visits but when - not if - Missouri offers, the Tigers will likely be the favorite to land his commitment."
Prediction: Missouri
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Wright: "Teammates with Miles McVay, might the two end up being on the same roster in college? There are no overlapping contenders from McVay to Patterson on the offer front for now, but Patterson should continue to add more offers. If Mizzou drops an offer, might that change things for Patterson and McVay? Too soon for an accurate handle, but the tarot cards say Mizzou."
Prediction: Missouri
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Cosgrove: "Patterson is a hard one to predict because his level of recruitment does not match the caliber of player that he is. I expect that to change once coaches see him in camps this summer, and with new offers I believe the direction of his recruitment will get a little cloudier. It is highly unlikely, but if new teams do not enter the mix for Patterson I believe his decision will come down to Nebraska, Iowa State and Tennessee. I have a hunch that Patterson ends up with offers from both Missouri and Illinois in the end, and if that were to happen I see him pairing up with McVay at Missouri."
Prediction: Missouri
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Lammers: "Well, if I went with one East St. Louis prospect to head west to Columbia, then I should definitely go with a second one here in Patterson. However, the Missouri staff hasn't yet offered Patterson, which could present a couple problems, but to that I say to my guy Drinkwitz, after seeing Patterson on Sunday: "What are you waiting for? Don't be silly, offer this man yesterday." Both McVay and Patterson are monster offensive lineman, and both should be playing their college ball in Columbia next year. Come on coach Drinkwitz, don't let me down."
Prediction: Missouri
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Friedman: "Snowden is a very difficult prospect to read because he hasn't made much progress sifting through his options. Colleges pursuing him (and pro scouts) are very aware of how serious Snowden is about baseball, so that's another wrinkle in his recruitment that could make things a little unpredictable. Nonetheless, college coaches are really hoping to add him to their secondary. Penn State is a big player for Snowden, but a trio of Midwest teams also have his ear. Cincinnati, Iowa and Notre Dame are very serious options for Snowden. He mentioned that Ole Miss is a possible official visit destination and the Rebels have a lot of experience with dual-sport standouts like Snowden. I'll roll the dice here and say Snowden ends up in Oxford if he does end up visiting the SEC campus.
Prediction: Ole Miss
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Wright: "Of all the 2023 recruits across the nation, what Snowden decides to do is perhaps the most interesting storyline. He is not only gifted on the gridiron but also on the diamond. Major League Baseball could steal Snowden away from the college game in both sports. If Snowden wanted to be a two-sport athlete in college, it would be hard to pass up an opportunity to play in the warmer weather that most SEC schools provide. Being a Michigan native, it is easy to guess a coin flip to the Spartans or Wolverines for Snowden."
Prediction: Michigan
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Cosgrove: "Snowden is extremely hard to get a read on when it comes to his recruitment and one of the many reasons for this is that he will consider any school that is willing to put the effort into recruiting him. Then you throw in the high probability of him also playing baseball in college and it makes things even harder to read. Snowden has not released a top list of teams and also does a good job of not showing favoritism toward any team in particular. Although I know him well I still have no clue where he leans in his recruitment. In the end I believe his choice will come down to Notre Dame, Cincinnati and Penn State. Should Snowden choose not to play baseball in college Wisconsin will be in the mix as well. I am going to go with Notre Dame as the landing spot for Snowden. He is a great fit for that program and it has a history of players having success on both the football field and the baseball diamond."
Prediction: Notre Dame
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Lammers: "Baseball is going to play a factor in Snowden's recruitment. That's just a fact. Snowden is long, is a left-handed pitcher and hits bombs as a left-handed batter. However, his length and athleticism also really help him out at defensive back, so the possibility of playing both at the next level is something that he really wants to do, which makes sense. Snowden is a busy young man who is just trying to perfect both of his crafts and because of that recruiting has become a bit secondary on his mind, despite taking visits recently. This one really could go any direction at this point. However, I am going with Iowa. The Hawkeyes have a solid baseball program and this just feels like a kid out of Michigan that Iowa specializes going after and turning into an all Big Ten-type player."
Prediction: Iowa