Rivals national recruiting director Adam Gorney has thoughts on Mark Stoops’ NIL comments, five prospects that are making news in the huge Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei-Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco matchup and why so many elite committed receivers are taking visits.
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RECRUITING RUMOR MILL: More chatter from key weekend visits
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1. MARK STOOPS' NIL COMMENTS
Georgia has beaten Kentucky 14 straight times. The average score in those games has been Georgia 34, Kentucky 14. Almost all of those outcomes came before NIL.
So it was curious on Monday when Kentucky coach Mark Stoops said on his weekly radio show, this eyebrow-raising comment:
“I can promise you, Georgia they bought some pretty good players. You’re allowed to these days and we could use some help. That’s what they look like when you have 85 of them.”
Maybe it was a face-saving statement after the Bulldogs pummeled Kentucky 51-13, especially since Stoops prides himself on his defensive acumen. Maybe it was a desperate plea to Kentucky football supporters to pony up more money to compete for players through NIL.
Whatever it was, come on. Before NIL, after NIL, and especially as Georgia is coming off back-to-back national championships and looking for a third, paying players has nothing to do with the Bulldogs whooping on Kentucky this past weekend.
Funny thing is, Georgia coach Kirby Smart said he and Stoops chatted about NIL during the pre-game. Not sure if Stoops told Smart he bought all his players. Smart wasn’t taking the bait this week.
“Much ado about nothing really,” Smart said. “Mark is trying to garner money from his fan base for his collective and we’re all trying to do the same in terms of trying to get money for our collective. Mark and I talked about NIL pre-game and we talk about it in our meetings so I’m not biting on that.”
To be fair, Stoops altered his comments later in the week when he said that he should have said to that caller, “I’ve gotten over a lot of humps. That’s not a hump. That’s Mount Everest.”
Especially in recent years, top prospects are going to Georgia because it can win at the highest level and get developed for the real money in the NFL. Sure, NIL helps but it’s only one factor.
I’m not naive. I know lots of top recruits are getting massive NIL deals to pick one school over another. I do this for a living - I get it.
Georgia is building the next college football dynasty and currently has 45 former players on pro rosters. Kentucky has 17. This doesn’t have to do with NIL. It has to do with NFL.
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2. FIVE PROSPECTS TO WATCH IN THE MATER DEI-BOSCO GAME
The annual showdown between two of the best high school football programs in the country takes place Friday night when Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei visits Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco. Here are five players to watch in the game for different reasons.
The Mater Dei left tackle is massive but also surprisingly light on his feet but he will be tested by an elite Bosco defense and blitzers coming from all over the field.
More than what’s happening on the field, Carter is being closely watched because the Auburn commit recently visited Texas and the Longhorns are trying hard to flip him to join OL mate Brandon Baker in Austin.
We don’t hand out five-star rankings to running backs often anymore at Rivals but Davison has been too good on the biggest stage to ignore. This will be his toughest test yet against an absolutely loaded Bosco linebacker group.
Texas, Georgia, Ohio State, Alabama, Colorado and others are involved.
Some people around the Bosco program say Viliamu-Asa is the best defensive player in a long time, maybe in program history. That’s saying a lot because many elite players have come through Bosco’s defense but from a leadership perspective, from making plays and being accountable, the Notre Dame commit is special. Friday night will provide maybe the biggest test yet.
The Bosco quarterback waited his turn behind Louisville freshman Pierce Clarkson and is now putting together a phenomenal senior season. Sanchez is completing more than 77 percent of his passes for 1,856 yards with 17 touchdowns and four picks.
But his recruitment has not taken off yet. A big performance against Mater Dei could spark some more interest. He’s definitely an FBS-level player.
Five-stars come to play in games like these. Ranked as the last five-star in the 2024 class right now, the Alabama commit who flipped from Georgia has a big opportunity to back up that ranking against an elite Mater Dei offense. From quarterback, to running back, to receivers, to the offensive line, Mater Dei is completely loaded.
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3. THE COMMITTED WIDE RECEIVER VISIT TOUR
Maybe it’s just to get out and have some good times, maybe it’s shopping for NIL deals, maybe it’s because kids will just be kids but it seems like a lot of elite, committed receivers are visiting other schools and making it well-known.
More power to them but it does make recruiting a whole lot more interesting.
Five-star Jeremiah Smith has been committed to Ohio State since December but he’s been to Florida State and Miami and keeps seeing places. A few weeks after five-star Micah Hudson committed to Texas Tech, the Temple (Texas) Lake Belton standout was back at Texas A&M over the weekend.
Aggies commit Cam Coleman is keeping people guessing by a visit to Colorado recently and numerous overtures by Auburn, which finished second in his recruitment. High four-stars Ny Carr and Perry Thompson have already flipped their commitments.
Ohio State pledge Jeremiah McClellan has seen Oregon and Missouri in recent weeks. There are rumors that another top Rivals100 receiver could be backing off his pledge soon. Four-star JJ Harrell has flipped from Tennessee to Mississippi State. Colorado commit Aaron Butler just stopped playing halfway through his senior season at Calabasas, Calif., to prepare to enroll early in Boulder.
Even the 2025 class has been busy as five-star Alabama commit Ryan Williams has been to Auburn and Georgia this season and five-star LSU pledge Dakorien Moore keeps going back to Texas as well.
Every recruiting cycle there seems to be drama around the receiver class. That’s natural. But it seems like extra this year and I’m not sure it’s because of NIL or a one-off situation or that top recruits just want to be seen more.
