Stars to come out for Chapel Hill NIKE Camp

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CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - The NIKE Camp to be held on Friday in Chapel Hill, N.C. on the campus of the University of North Carolina will be loaded with talent from both North and South Carolina as well as Virginia and even Maryland and Minnesota. While it's hard to determine which player is the true headliner, Fayetteville (N.C.) Jack Britt offensive tackle Xavier Nixon is on the confirmed list and is looking for his fifth star.

Nixon, a 6-foot-6, 275-pounder, is currently ranked as the No. 27 player in the country and is just three slots away from five-star status. Nixon has offers from nearly every school in the south as well as northern programs like Notre Dame, Michigan and Penn State.

In addition to Nixon, many other Rivals100 and Rivals250 players from the state of North Carolina will also be on hand. Norwood (N.C.) South Stanly cornerback Terry Shankle will attempt to show his shut-down skills in the one-on-ones while big defensive tackle Jared McAdoo from Chapel Hill, N.C. will test his skills against Nixon and others. Rounding out the group is Matthews (N.C.) Butler linebacker Hawatha Bell who will try to shut down a solid group of running backs in coverage drills. Shankle and Bell are not yet committed while McAdoo is a solid pledge to the Tar Heels.

The state of South Carolina will also be well represented led by Rivals100 safety Damario Jeffery from Columbia, S.C. Jeffrey lists South Carolina and Alabama as his leaders and will attempt to use his impressive size to blanket receivers. Defensive end Malliciah Goodman from Florence (S.C.) West Florence will be one of the best looking prospects at the event physically. The Clemson commitment already has a college body.

But perhaps the most impressive group registered for the event hails from the state of Virginia. Chesapeake (Va.) Great Bridge wide receiver Logan Heastie is ranked as the No. 32 player in the county and he'll be joined by Lynchburg (Va.) Brookville School athlete Logan Thomas who checks in at No. 35. Hampton (Va.) Phoebus quarterback Tajh Boyd, who is committed to West Virginia along with Heastie, is also expected on hand. While Heastie and Boyd are done with the recruiting process, Thomas has numerous offers and is still wide open.

2008 NIKE CAMP SCHEDULE

Miami, Fla. – Camp Recap

Gainesville, Fla. – Camp Recap

Los Angeles, Calif. – Camp Recap

Fort Worth, Texas – Camp Recap

Baton Rouge, La. – Camp Recap

Chapel Hill, N.C. – May 2

Tuscaloosa, Ala. – May 3

Columbus, Ohio – May 9

State College, Pa. – May 10

Stanford, Calif. – May 17

Eugene, Ore. – June 7

Provo, Utah - June 14

Maryland/D.C. will be represented by Forestville, Md. defensive end Deonte Arnett and Washington (D.C.) offensive guard Peter White. Arnett won the Defensive MVP Award at the Premiere Classic in New Jersey back in February and White is ranked in the Rivals250. Neither player has committed to a school.

Even the Midwest is represented with Rivals100 wide receiver Bryce McNeal from Minneapolis (Minn.) Breck expected to make the trip. McNeal has offers from programs like Michigan, Auburn, Nebraska, Louisville, Minnesota and others including North Carolina.

The camp is also very deep with numerous additional players outside of the Rivals100 and Rivals250 boasting big offers. Windsor (N.C.) Bertie offensive tackle Travis Bond has offers from Virginia Tech and South Carolina, Richmond (Va.) Hermitage athlete Theron Norman has an offer from Virginia, Norfolk (Va.) Lake Taylor linebacker Mike Privott has offers from Maryland and West Virginia and Glen Allen (Va.) Deep Run athlete Antone Exum has an offer from Penn State.

There will also be plenty of committed players participating in addition to those mentioned above. Bunn, N.C. offensive lineman Ty Howle is committed to Penn State, Hampton (Va.) Phoebus defensive lineman Dominik Davenport is committed to West Virginia and Pageland (S.C.) Central tight end Justice Cunningham is committed to South Carolina.

In addition to Goodman, Clemson boasts commitments from Shelby, N.C. athlete Larry Raper and Sumter, S.C. running back Roderick McDowell while Virginia Tech will be represented by defensive lineman David Wang from Ashburn (Va.) Stone Bridge and NC State has linebacker Ricky Dowdy from High Point (N.C.) High Point Central expected in attendance.

And the host school, UNC, boasts numerous commitments in Smithfield (N.C.) Selma defensive back D.J. Bunn, Lewisville (N.C.) Mt. Tabor running back Hunter Furr, Spartanburg (S.C.) Dorman cornerback Taylor Sowell and Monroe (N.C.) Sun Valley wideout Vincent Davis.

And keep an eye on plenty of 2010 talent led by local offensive lineman Robert Crisp from Chapel Hill. Crisp is a monster who should be one of the top offensive linemen prospects on the east coast next year. He'll be joined by fellow 2010 standouts in quarterback Phillip Sims, defensive tackle Evan Hailes and defensive end/tight end Zack McCray (Virginia), quarterback Gabriel Henderson and linebacker Kendall Moore (North Carolina).

For more on the NIKE Football Training Camps, check out StudentSportsFootball.com.

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