Rivals Camp Series Dallas: Stars come out
The Rivals Camp Series presented by Under Armour is a new series of elite regional camps for selected participants who are considered among the best in the country at their respective positions.
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It hits Houston on Saturday and then heads to Dallas on Sunday. Rivals.com West recruiting analyst Rob Cassidy tells us what we can expect on Day 2 of the Lone Star weekend.
Quarterbacks aplenty
The top position at the Dallas portion of the Rivals Camp Series presented by Under Armour will be quarterback. At least it appears that way on paper.
A look down the registration ledger reads like an elite QB camp. Dual-threat option Jerrod Heard, a Texas commit, is one of the headliners at the camp. Heard is the No. 73 overall player in the country and reeled in offers from Ohio State, LSU, Nebraska and others before he chose the Longhorns last August.
Heard will certainly have plenty of competition in Dallas. Four-star signal-caller Justice Hansen, another Rivals250 member, will make the trip South from Oklahoma to push Heard. Arkansas-based Jabe Burgess will also be in attendance, as will Louisiana's Brandon Harris and rising junior Nathan Elliott.
Possibly the most interesting name in the group is Bowman Sells, a 2016 prospect from Lucas, Texas. Sells is considered to be one of the most promising quarterbacks in his class and will have every opportunity to break out this weekend.
Look to the future
There's plenty to like about the group of juniors who will turn out in Dallas. Those players will eat up most of the headlines and consume a bulk of the sideline chatter. The sophomores set to make up the event's periphery will also be intriguing.
A group led by 300-pound defensive tackle Daylon Mack, who already holds six scholarship offers, will try to make a name for itself by competing with top players from the 2014 class. Defensive end James Lockhart has a Baylor offer in his pocket and is receiving interest from Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas and Texas A&M, among others. Tevin Boone is another celebrated 2015 defensive lineman set to compete.
Wide receiver Larry Pryor, who competed in last year's Rivals Underclassmen Challenge, will also be on hand.
Jockeying for position
The Dallas roster could nearly field an entire team of Rivals250 prospects. Seventeen of the top 250 juniors in America will share a field when things get started, and everyone will be watching.
Such a deep talent pool is conducive to competitive fire, as players will have plenty of chances to boost their ranking. Safety Jamal Adams, No. 33 overall, will enter Sunday as the king of the camp. However, there will be plenty of already-ranked prospects looking to knock him from his perch.
The No. 44-ranked player in the class, Texas A&M commit Nick Harvey, is waiting in the wings. Defensive end Deondre Clark, an Oklahoma City-based player who enters at No. 48 nationally, will also be looking for a bump.
Guard Demetrius Knox is another top-100 prospect scheduled to join the fray. Four-star safety Steven Parker, the No. 114-ranked player in the nation, will also make the trip to the heart of Texas in search of some recognition.
Listing all seventeen Rivals250 members headed for Dallas is a pointless exercise, as the cream will rise to the top. Those who preform will get their pub after all is said and done.
Making a name
You can keep your eyes on the familiar names, but eventually, your attention will be pulled away. As is always the case in elite-camp settings, somebody will steal the show. Projecting such a thing is, of course, an inexact science. Still, there are some less-than-household names to watch.
Colony, Texas, defensive end Grant Blankenship holds 10 scholarship offers, but he is without a star rating or a national ranking. Linebacker Christian Sam (11 offers) is in the same boat.
There are question marks everywhere. Abilene, Texas, linebacker Cordell Dorsey is building some buzz and promised people would "see perfection" when he arrives in Dallas. It's just as likely that the player to parlay the Sunday camp into a boon of recruiting attention won't be listed here, though.
Hook 'em Tide?
Fort Worth (Texas) All Saints Episcopal fullback Daniel Gresham has been committed to Texas since August. For months, the marriage between the Longhorns and the 236-pound back sailed along. However, Alabama came in and offered.
Guessing what happened next isn't tough. Such a thing always seems to cause a stir, and Gresham's case is no exception. He remains committed to Texas, but his recent words haven't exactly put Bevo's posse at ease.
"Honestly, it's a dream come true," Gresham told TideSports.com last week. "Alabama has always been my childhood favorite. My coach always joked with me that when Alabama offered, I was going to start crying. I actually did tear up a little bit."
Texas has a policy prohibiting committed players from visiting other schools, but Gresham's mother is in favor of her son taking a visit to Tuscaloosa.
Gresham may have some formulated thoughts to share when he shows up in Dallas. And how he feels at that point may set the tone for the next few months of his recruitment.
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