Offensive Skill Position Recruiting so far

I have wanted to get this up for awhile, so once again, I apologize for the delay. Andy Romey of Peegs and Jon Decker have done 2 very good articles this week on QB recruiting, so I won't say too much more. However, there are a couple of names that haven't really been discussed, because they are out of state kids. First is Clayton Moore, 6'2" 205 from Louisville, Misissippi, and the other is Alex Gillett, 6'1" 180 from Clyde, Ohio. Clayton is a long shot to put it mildly, as most of the SEC has offered. As for Alex, I had never heard of him until Peegs mentioned him the other day, but he appears to have a live arm from the video I saw of him. However, I still say that IU will probably land 2 QBs this season and both will be from the State of Indiana.

Here's my own personal rankings of the State of Indiana QBs:
1. Newton
2. Wright-Baker
3. Luallen
4. Kiel/McCarthy tied

Obviously, Newton is the #1 option, and I have been told that right now, it's a 4 team race, with those 4 being (IU, Clemson, South Carolina, and Illinois), but many, many others are trying to get involved, so even if IU were to be the eventual choice, it's going to be interesting to see how this all goes. Next on my list is Wright-Baker. As I've blogged before, I really love this kid. And the tape I've seen of him compared to Newton the only real difference I can find is Newton is 2" taller. On tape, they are mirrors of each other. However, EWB just started coming into his own, where Newton has been very good for a while, but when all is said and done, EWB is going to be a very good QB.

I put Luallen 3rd on my list, only because of production. However, if I'm recruiting at IU and rank the instate kids based on readiness for the spread offense, Luallen isn't my 3rd choice, as that would be Kiel. I'd say Luallen is all but a Yellowjacket at this point, but heck, that type of offense was developed for a QB like Luallen, so you can't blame him for going to a school that fits his skill set.

I'll admit I haven't paid that much attention to Kiel until IU offered, but after rewatching tape on his teammate WR Wilson, I came away pretty impressed. He does remind me of Ben Chappell at the same stage of their careers, and he is a very accurate passer. His feet also seem pretty quick, not that he's real fast, but he fairly nimble. Mechanically, he's the best in the state throwing the ball, but with his blood lines, that shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone at all. The fact that IU is the first real major school to offer is very surprising to me, because I would have figured Ball State or at least another MAC school would have offered by now. Dusty certainly gets attention because of his teammate being a highly sought after WR. Going to be real interesting to see what he does, since he's probably Plan C (behind EWB and Newton) at this point. Not that that's a knock, but those 2, athletically, are a couple steps above, even though Kiel is the best passer of this group.

Finally, McCarthy is still someone that I believe IU will sign. He's 6'6" 200 and Scout clocked him at 4.7, though I don't know how accurate that is. Though that's not greased lightning quick like Newton and EWB (both are low end 4.5s to high end 4.4s) that leaves room for IU to move him if they so desire. His brother signed with Ball State and promptly put on about 50 pounds and became a DL starter, so he has the genes to grow and grow a lot. Though for now, like Kiel, IU has offered at QB.

Okay, I said I wasn't going to say much about QBs, but oh well. Let's see what else IU is up to. I want to give kudos to Coach Springer, because of the job he is doing in the state of Georgia and Florida. IU really won't do a whole lot this recruiting season on the offensive side of the ball, since that was a heavy interest last season, but they still will sign some kids that could go to RB or LB or DB or even WR.

Cory Atkins, 6' 195 from Madison, FL. Cory is extremely athletic and is quite the leaper I'm told. He was offered as a RB, but could switch to DB in the end. Very good looking prospect and his profiles are saying Florida Internation, Florida Atlantic, and IU are his only offers so far.

Mike Gillislee 5'11" 180 from Deland, Fl. Don't know much about this kid other than Rodriquez offered him already for Michigan. His stats say he's probably a RB all the way as he posted 1,200 yards last season. I'm told Coach Springer had very good success at Deland HS in the past at Western Kentucky, so I think that's why we are involved here.

Bud Golden, 6' 190 from Cincinnati, OH. This kid is a pure stud and rated in the Top 250 nationwide. IU has been on him for a couple years now and offered early last season, which I believe was his first. He's being recruited by everyone in the Midwest as well as Stanford, which makes me believe he's a very good student. My guess is he'll hold out for an offer from the O$U before making any kind of decision.

Rolandan Finch 5'10" 205 from St. Xavier in Louisville, KY. He was up for the spring game and though Rivals doesn't mention it, I'm pretty sure he got his offer after the game. Kid is all athlete and could be a DB or RB. Very fast and another very good leaper. We are battling the SEC and of course, hometown Louisville for his services.

Kurt Freytag 6'2" 225 from Carmel, IN. Teammate of Newton and a very versitale prospect that could be a LB, RB, TE, or even one of those hybrid H-backs in the spread. Coach Lynch saw him the other night, when he went to watch Newton practice and he's a kid I hope we offer. Real good kid and a warrior in both heart and spirit. The kind of kid you want on your team. Not sure where IU would put him, but that can all be figured out later.

Rashard Wynes 6' 205 from Warner Robbins, GA. He came to IU for spring practice and has IU leading with Troy running neck and neck, at least that what I was told. He's being recruited by several of the SEC schools as well, but no offers yet. Very good athlete and another one that could move to the other side of the ball when all is said and done.

Toney Williams 6'1" 230 from Alpharetta, GA. This is another big surprise when I had heard he came to spring practice. A real bruising back that obviously could end up at LB in IU's offense, or he could still be a RB, especially with 4.6 speed. IU and KY lead at this point, but the homestate schools haven't offered yet, with an emphasis on yet. Was again told that Coach Springer has had a lot of success at Alpharett HS, so that's why we are sitting in the cat bird's seat at this point and time.

Eric Williams 5'11" 200 from Indy. He is a kid I think will garner a lot of attention once he gets going this season. He plays at Warren Central and IU is aware of him and they are recruiting him, though they won't offer until they see what he does with increased playing time. He's sat behind some really good backs at WC the past 2 seasons, and he's itching to play. The bad thing is, WC will switch to a spread attack from the wing T that they've ran for several season, however, for IU, this a great thing because they'll get to see what he can do in an offense similar to theirs. Eric could end up at RB, WR, or even DB when all is said and done.

Now for WRs, again, like RBs, IU tends to recruit kids that could end up at WR, DB, or even LB, like Issac Price. IU signed a very good group last season, but they'll sign at least 1 or 2 more WRs this year too. Leading the group that IU covets appears to be Duwyce Wilson, 6'4" 190 from Columbus, IN. He's just a very good WR and he's quick as well. Could he be a package deal with HS teammate Dusty Kiel?? Could be, and I certainly wouldn't be disappointed at all. Iowa, Wisconsin, Illinois, and Cincinnati have all offered and many more will follow I'm sure. IU has hosted him a few times, so we are right there. Let's hope he desires to stay close to Cbus and play for the Hoosiers!!

Here are the other WRs we've offered so far:

Fritz Rock, 6'1" 200, from Plymouth, Minnesota. Love the name if nothing else, but this kid has some real skills and we are in for a large battle for him. IU and Minny ha ha are the only offers, but he's camping at Notre Dame and he loves Louisville. Miami Fla wants him at CB, so I think he's pretty much a long shot for us, but he's worth a flier for sure.

Patrick White, 5'11' 175 from Pickering, OH. A mega-athlete that could be a WR or CB, but will definitely return kicks whereever he ends up. We offered early, but O$U, Penn State, and Pittsburgh are really getting involved now.

Jammone Chester, 6'2" 190 from Redford, MI. A suburban Detroit kid that has only MAC offers, but IU has just recently offered and the favored Michigan State Spartans appear they will offer very soon as well.

Marlon Anthony, 6'5" 190, from Marietta, GA. Once again, thank you Coach Springer for eyeing this talented kid. The kid will commit to Auburn if they offer, but so far, only IU has. My guess is Auburn will soon enough. Though he needs muscle, the kid is a major talent.

The state of Indiana has several other Division 1 prospects here and I want to quickly mention those. While none have IU or any Big Ten offers, these kids could very well play their way into an offer with a strong senior season.

1. Bobby James, 6'3" 220, from Hobart, IN. This kid is a prospect at WR, TE, and LB. Good quickness
2. Wes Winkle 6'3"170, Yorktown, IN. Probably Ball State bound
3. Demory Lawshe 6'3, 190, from Indianapolis. This kid could very well play his way into an offer. Very good speed/size ratio
4. Luke Swift, 6'1" 175 from Greenwood. A real burner, but he's playing in the wing-T, so his catches are few and far between. However, he could be a DB or a returner.

Finally TE recruiting. Though a forgotten position under Coach Hep, it's seen a bit of a revival with the addition of Max Dedmon, the hybrid H-back, and I think we'll see this position utilized more and more under Coach Lynch who is a little more a traditionalist when it comes to using the TE to actually catch passes.

The best TE in the state is a toss up between Will Saddler, who committed to Cincinnati already and Tyler Eifert from Fort Wayne. Tyler is 6'5" 220 and is being recruited by many. Purdue may lead due to his dad playing bball at Purdue in the 80's. However, if IU can use the TE more this season, we'll still have a shot, but Tyler has to like what Purdue did with Dustin Keller. Tyler reminds me of Todd Yoder who played at New Palestine HS, then Vanderbuilt, and has had a very successful NFL career with several teams.

A couple of other TE prospects in the state of Indiana are Ed Hazlett and Patrick Bade. Mr. Hazlett of Warren Central HS may be listed at TE, but at 6'8" 275, he's going to move to OT or DL when all is said and done. The real scary thing about Ed is he's quick and he ran a 4.8 last year at IU's camp, so he's got quickness. He may very well be the second coming of Ed "Too Tall" Jones, for those that remember him.

Also Patrick Bade is a 6'8" 230 football/basketball player. He's got skills to be very good at each sport, but from what I've read, I think he'll be bball all the way.

Okay, next time I'll dig into recruiting along the offensive and defensive lines.

Take care and God Bless!