Recruiting picks up for ATH Rose

Recruiting is picking up for one defensive back in Virginia. The 6-foot-3, 193-pounder still hasn't pulled his first scholarship to date, but is getting looks from across the country and plans to make a visit to one school soon.

"He's starting to get a lot of mail now," Amherst, Va. head coach Cecil Phillips said of athlete Anthony Rose. "Virginia Tech calls and checks in on him regularly. They are really interested in getting him down to camp as well as their spring game.

"Wake Forest wanted him to come down for a junior day, but he had a conflict and missed out. I have gotten calls from a few other schools including LSU, Notre Dame, Kentucky, Louisville, Michigan State, Michigan and Illinois. They all requested tape on him."

A couple of the schools will likely receive a visit from Rose soon.

"I'll be taking him down to Virginia Tech for spring practice possibly on the 11th," he said. "Then we may get him down to Wake Forest for one day too."

Phillips went on about Rose as a person and player.

"Anthony is just a tremendous competitor," he said. "He provides a great deal of leadership on the field. He's one of these kids when I first got hired, stepped to the forefront. He's very well respected by his teammates and obviously has held up his end of the deal and set a good example. He's a yes sir, no sir type of kid that is very appreciative of things. We have no issues with him, he understands what's in front of him.

"On the field, he plays extremely hard. He's developed into a go to guy for us on the offensive side of the ball. I honestly see him on the offensive side, but he's a very gifted athlete and can make people miss. He's very elusive. He could be a good rover type position too."

Rose may not be the only player to watch from Amherst.

"Our defensive tackle Timmy Johnson is getting looks from Wake Forest," he said. "He's 6-foot-2, 257-pounds and he played some solid football from the middle part of the year until the end. He has potential next year.

"We also have a 5-foot-9, 175-pound running back Mario Vaughn. He led the team with 14 touchdowns and is a very explosive kick returner.

"Then we have wide receiver, safety Chris McDaniel. He's undersized at 5-foot-9, 155-pounds, but led the team with six or seven interceptions. He's a good return man too."