Tennessee RB has three leaders

The first three official visits have been set in place for three-star Memphis (Tenn.) Melrose running back Joseph Doss.

“I have Louisville on Jan. 9, Memphis on Jan. 16 and Kentucky on Jan. 23,” he said. “After that, I’m not sure who I’ll visit, if I go anywhere else. Those are the main three right now.”

He has also picked up offers from Auburn, Arkansas, Ole Miss and Mississippi State.

Doss (5-9, 175, 4.4) was one of several top athletes on a Melrose squad that went 11-2 this season and reached the state semifinals. He rushed for 1,100 yards and 21 touchdowns and added two more scores via receptions.

Now that the season has wrapped up, he’s getting a better picture of what he’s looking for in a college program.

“I’ve met with Memphis and Kentucky coaches, and Louisville just called me again tonight,” he said. “They’re all recruiting me pretty hard.

“Louisville has an offense that was really high ranked this season. I think it was one of the top five in the nation. They talked about using me how I want to be used – carrying the ball a little bit and catching a lot of passes, too. That’s my style. I’m an all-purpose back. I also like the fact that they’ll be getting more exposure in the Big East. They’ve knocked off some pretty good teams in recent years. There’s just a lot of things I admire about their program.

“Memphis has a running back right now named D’Angelo Williams who had a great season. When I look at him, he reminds me a little bit of myself in that he’s a smaller back. I look at how successful he’s been in their offense, and I know I could have that opportunity, too. I love the offense they run. Another advantage is being here at home, and around people I already know.

“Kentucky was recruiting me back in the spring, but there was a while when I didn’t hear too much from them. But they’ve come back on me real hard the last couple of weeks. The main thing I like about them is they’re in the SEC, and I could play against some great competition and get a lot of exposure. They’ve also had some of our Melrose players at their school in the past, and those guys really liked it. One (Anthony Stevenson) is up there right now. It would be good to have someone you know who could help show you around and help you with things. And just like the other two teams, I like their offense. It’s pretty wide-open.”

Doss declined to name a leader at this point. He said he’d know more about his status after the official visits are wrapped up.