Craig Loston: An Early Start to All-Star Weekend
January 3rd, 2009 ║ Posted By: MrSEC.com ║ Permalink
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I reported yesterday that Craig Loston would in all likelihood announce his commitment to LSU at the Under Armour All-American Bowl on Sunday evening. I was a little off. He decided to announce his commitment on Friday afternoon, during the Skills Challenge. While the timing of his announcement was a surprise, the substance of that announcement was not. He announced to LSU with his cousin Russell Shepard looking on.
Loston is a great athlete. He can run. He hits hard and tackles well. He has good ball skills. He passes the eye test with flying colors. At the UA All-American Bowl, he is going against other Division 1 athletes and other 4- and 5-star players. Word is that while he has a very high ceiling, he may be a little behind some others in his technique, and therefore may need a bit more coaching at the next level to reach his full potential.
As a football player he is perhaps a little raw, and may need some time before he’s ready to contribute as a safety. I would imagine with his speed and tackling ability he will be an instant contributor at least on special teams.
He still has a little work to do in the classroom to get eligible, but most people believe he is not so far away to be worrisome.
I think he projects as a strong safety, good against the run while also providing help to the corners in the passing game. I don’t think he’s quite good enough of a cover guy to isolate one-on-one against a wide receiver. He definitely separates the receiver from the ball with his hits though. He’s a Ronnie Lott-type safety in that respect.
This is another 5-star committing to the Tigers, and it may not be the last of the weekend. It is going to be a very interesting 4 1/2 weeks to National Signing Day.
At some point, we will have a long post about what Loston’s cousin Russell Shepard has meant to this class. It was Shepard who is primarily responsible for Craig Loston being a Tiger. Shepard may be primarily responsible for a number of other great athletes ultimately being Tigers. Time will tell. This afternoon is when William Campbell announces his commitment. It may or may not be to LSU.
Below is a YouTube of Loston. Personally, I think there are better highlight videos for him out there, but this is the best one that is available to the public. The first half if offense, then defense.
