Rico Bell schedules second official

Charlotte (N.C.) Vance safety Rico Bell took in the Miami-Clemson thriller last Saturday as an unofficial visit. The 5-foot-10, 181-pounder with 4.4-second speed was very impressed with what he saw out of the Tigers.

"They played hard and just didn't make the plays they should have to win. It was still a good game and both teams played really hard," he said. "The atmosphere there was crazy and even though it went into three overtimes, the crowd was there through it all. I specifically watched the safeties to see how they play zone and man coverage and they did a really good job."

Clemson has still not offered the No. 11 player in North Carolina and didn't mention a potential offer on the unofficial visit.

Bell seems likely to be heading on another unofficial soon, this time to Tennessee when they play Georgia on October 8th.

"I just want to see a good game between the two teams and see how Tennessee actually plays out there."

The three-star prospect already has a November 18th official scheduled to Virginia. He has named a second visit to Tennessee on January 14th.

"They were one of the first schools to offer me and they've been recruiting me hard along with Virginia and Boston College," he said. "They are always a powerhouse football team and go to a bowl every year so that's a big plus for them."

Does Bell know of any other schools for the last three visits?

"Probably North Carolina State will get an official because I like their school and coach Portee," he said. "Other than them, I don't know who else I would go to."

The No. 31 safety in the country has received the most interest and calls from Virginia recently.

"Mike Groh calls me the most of any coach and they are recruiting me the hardest by sending a lot of letters too," he said. "They are probably one of my favorite schools right now because of that. I like their educational programs and the fact that if I don't make it to the pros, I have a good education and background to fall back on."

Bell and Vance are off to a 2-3 season as they most recently lost to a tough Independence team 49-7.

"I think our team has had too many mistakes. It's just all mental errors and we need to stop them," he said. "I think I've been playing alright this season. I've had six interceptions and one reception for a touchdown. They also called back a kick return for a touchdown because of clipping."

This week Vance faces off at home against Berry Tech.