RCS Midseason Report: Five programs that should be pleased
MORE RCS MIDSEASON REPORTS: Ranking the five biggest surprise prospects | Five who have lived up to the hype | Five due for a rankings bump | Five toughest | Five fastest | Five flashiest
The Rivals 3 Stripe Camp Series presented by adidas is at the midway point, and after working all the way from California through Texas, Louisiana and Florida there have been plenty of notable performances. Several programs have had commits or top targets perform at a high level, and today we examine five that should be pleased through the first half.
FLORIDA STATE
Florida State signed the No. 18 recruiting class in 2019, but the Seminoles are working hard to get back into the top 10 next February. The talk of the camp in Tampa was Florida State commit Stephen Dix. He upped his stock and earned an invite to the Rivals100 Five-Star Challenge presented by adidas. Zane Herring is another commit who was strong in the trenches. Numerous other in-state targets have shined in Tampa or Miami, including wide receivers Michael Redding, Marcus Rosemy and Bryce Gowdy, teammates at Oak Leaf Jalen Rivers and Chantz Williams and Penn State commit Derek Wingo. Guys like Marcus Clarke, Kendall Dennis and Jayson McCluster all have Florida State high on their lists as well.
GEORGIA
The camp circuit won’t hit Atlanta until April 19, the first camp under the lights, but Georgia is doing a lot of national recruiting under Kirby Smart, and some of the program's top targets have performed at a very high level. Linebacker Justin Flowe and Kelee Ringo performed like five-stars in Los Angeles and both have the Bulldogs high on their list. Sedrick Van Pran is an elite offensive lineman and he was in Athens last week. Marcus Rosemy, Jalen Rivers, Chants Williams and Demarkus Bowman all have UGA on their lists.
LSU
LSU loves to keep the best at home, and when the camp series hit New Orleans last month, a couple of Tigers were there to compete. Quarterback TJ Finley continues to improve and he was a top five quarterback on the day. CamRon Jackson started off the day at defensive end, but by the end of the day, he had moved to offensive tackle, and that looks to be where he has the most upside. Other Tiger targets have impressed, too. Koy Moore dominated in New Orleans and he is considered a strong LSU lean. Another prospect that could be considered a lean to LSU is Lorando Johnson, who is originally from New Orleans. Jaquelin Roy and Sedrick Van Pran are two others from Louisiana that have the Tigers high on their lists. Another out-of-state prospect to know is McKinnley Jackson. He is out of Mississippi and the five-star was at one time committed to the Tigers.
TEXAS
The Texas Longhorns are coming off a top-five recruiting class in 2019, so how will they close in 2020? They only have five commitments at this point, so there is still a long way to go for Tom Herman and his staff this cycle, but they look to be in play for some of the best in the country. Starting in the Lone Star State, there are three that have shined at camps that are strongly considering the Longhorns. In Houston, Vernon Broughton and Jalen Kimber earned Five-Star Challenge invites. Both have said Texas is recruiting them harder than anyone else. In Dallas, Tommy Brockermeyer, only a sophomore, is a Texas legacy and a major Longhorn target next cycle. Looking out west, Ringo was at one-time considered a Texas lean, and now it is them battling with Georgia. Flowe is more open, but a major Texas target at linebacker.
TEXAS A&M
To this date, One of the top overall camp performers has to be Texas A&M commit Jaylen Jones. The big cornerback was in lock-down mode in Houston and was an easy Five-Star Challenge selection. There are plenty of other in-state prospects the Aggies hope to land that have had strong performances. Wide receiver Troy Omeire is one, and the Aggies are considered the team to beat. Quarterback Malik Hornsby, defensive back Lorando Johnson and defensive lineman Vernon Broughton are three others. Outside the state, Tennessee offensive tackle Chris Morris was in College Station earlier in the week and he is a two time Five-Star Challenge invitee.
