SEC Football

1. Florida signed two players in its 2013 class – running back Kelvin Taylor and Marcell Harris – whose fathers played with the Gators back in the 1990′s. Here’s how some other father-son duos have fared at Florida.

2. Winter Park, Florida defensive end Trent Harris got an offer from the Gators this morning. Georgia, Kentucky, Florida State and Boston College have already offered.  “I was born a Gator fan,” Harris tells the Orlando Sentinel.

3. Arkansas made some inroads in the state of Florida in its 2013 class. That caught the attention of lineman and current Miami commitment Trevor Darling.  ”I would like to visit Arkansas officially. Louisville too.”

4. Allen, Texas linebacker Christian Sam is expected to visit Arkansas this weekend.  Current Razorbacks running back Jonathan Williams is from the same high school. “He said the fans are crazy. He always talks up the fans. I really like that.”

5. Butler High School (North Carolina) quarterback Riley Ferguson committed to Tennessee when Derek Dooley was the coach and stuck to the commitment when signing day rolled around. ”I was committed to Tennessee because of the university. I wasn’t committed just because of the coaching staff. I liked Coach Dooley, but things happen and you have to move forward and make things work with what you’ve got, and that’s how I’ve looked at it.”

6. In addition to Ferguson, the Vols signed Alparetta, Georgia quarterback Josh Dobbs and gave Knoxville quarterback Charlie High a preferred walk-on spot. In the SEC, history shows two-quarterback signing classes often leads to a transfer for one of them.

7. A geographical breakdown of Tennessee’s 2013 signing class and their distance from Neyland Stadium.

8, LSU signed seven defensive linemen in its 2013 class.  Tigers expected to sign four in the class of 2014.

9. Are high school 40-yard dash times bogus?

SEC Basketball

10. Rochester, Michigan basketball coach on Kentucky basketball signee James Young: “I have seen nothing like him since (former Michigan star) Chris Webber, and that’s been about 25 years ago now. Chris is the only guy in Michigan who can dominate games like James has. He’s really phenomenal.”  The 6’6″ is scheduled to play alongside four other UK signees at the McDonald’s All-American Game in Chicago in April.

11. Huntington Prep’s Andrew Wiggins took an official visit to Kentucky this week. Wiggins, considered the No. 1 recruit in the country, says he won’t talk about his college plans until his official visits are complete.  In addition to Kentucky, he’s considering Florida State, North Carolina and Kansas.  His high school coach tells the Lexington Herald-Leader, “He’s not going to give up much. You guys know him well enough.”

Reports of Tim Brewster’s move from Mississippi State to Florida State seem to have been a bit premature.  Today there’s still some back-and-forth going on as FSU tries to hire the tight ends coach and MSU tries to keep him.

At this point we can be sure of just one thing — the ex-Minnesota head coach will be making a lot more money next season… either in Tallahassee or Starkville.  But while money will likely play a pretty big role in Brewster’s ultimate decision, Bulldog fans are taking to Twitter to try and convince him to stay in the Magnolia State.

There’s just one catch, of course.  Do you really think Brewster is hanging out on Twitter as two programs compete for his services?

Brewster has been at State for six months, coaching the schools receivers last year before being assigned tight ends two weeks ago.

Update: The Florida State Rivals Site ($) says the deal with Brewster was finalized today. He will coach tight ends for Jimbo Fisher.

Tuesday Night SEC Basketball
Alabama 61, Auburn 43…Tennessee 64, Florida 58
Ole Miss cornerbacks coach Wesley McGriff has been hired to coach defensive backs for the NFL’s New Orleans Saints
Tennessee running backs coach Jay Graham has been hired as an offensive assistant at Florida State
Reports claim that Mississippi State tight ends coach Tim Brewster has been hired into the same role at Florida State
Arkansas offensive line coach Sam Pittman received a raise from $275,000 per year to $500,000 per year when Alabama approached him earlier this month
Follow SEC football, basketball, and recruiting at MrSEC.com or with a MrSEC iPod, iPad, or Android app

For the third time in two days it appears an SEC school is about to lose an assistant coach on the eve of spring practice.  Multiple internet sites are reporting that current Mississippi State tight ends coach Tim Brewster will be joining Florida State’s staff in the same capacity.

Florida State — which lost a wave of assistants this past offseason — snagged Tennessee running backs coach Jay Graham yesterday.  (FSU also scooped up ex-Kentucky offensive coordinator Randy Sanders this offseason and it’s believed he will shift from running backs to quarterbacks to make way for Graham.)

Brewster served as Dan Mullen’s receivers coach at MSU last year.  He was shifted to tight ends and given the title of “assistant head coach” when Mullen brought in Billy Gonzales to coach receivers 13 days ago.

Brewster was the head coach at Minnesota from 2007 through 2010.  Hired last August, he spent just six months in Starkville.  The irony in that — if/when Brewster to FSU becomes official — is the fact that Brewster sent out a mid-January tweet suggesting recruiting rival Chris Kiffin at Ole Miss would be leaving the Rebel program.

As of today, Kiffin’s still in Oxford, but it looks like Brewster’s on his way to Tallahassee.

In addition to Brewster and Graham, Ole Miss cornerbacks coach Wesley McGriff was named an assistant coach for the New Orleans Saints last night.

So much for spring football.  It’s still coaching-search season in the SEC.

 SEC Basketball

1. Huntington Prep’s Andrew Wiggins wins the 2013 Naismith Boys High School Player of the Year award. That award is given annually to the best player in high school basketball. Wiggins is taking an official visit to Kentucky Tuesday through Thursday this week.  He’s considering Kentucky, Kansas, Florida State and North Carolina.

2. Andrew and Aaron Harrison are twin guards from Richmond, Texas and headed to Lexington to play basketball for John Calipari at Kentucky this fall.  Their high school coach, Craig Brownson,  is expecting big things from them. ”I’d be surprised if they weren’t starting. They’ll definitely earn their share of playing time, and the NBA is definitely in their future if everything works out.”

SEC Football

3. Baton Rouge, Louisiana athlete Dylan Moses received an offer from Alabama over the weekend.  He’s in the 8th grade.  Here’s what his dad had to say. “Coach Saban said the Alabama staff believes Dylan has a chance to be the best player in the country in the Class of 2017 and they were ready to offer him a scholarship. That’s when the fireworks started going off in our heads.” Moses is already 6’1″ and 215 pounds.  He received an offer from LSU last summer.

4. More than 100 prospects attended Junior Day at Alabama over the weekend.  Included in that crowd was Elizabethtown, Kentucky lineman Matt Elam (not to be confused with the former Florida safety with the same name).  Elam has plans to visit Tennessee but says Kentucky and Alabama top his list.  ”It was great knowing I have an offer from Alabama and then just talking to Nick Saban. Two dreams came true today.”

5. Crimson Tide also in the running for four-star defensive back  Kalvaraz Bessent and his Camden, County (Ga) teammate Chris Williams. Bessent says Alabama and Florida are currently his top two while Williams says Alabama is his favorite: ”Alabama is at the top for me now.” Alabama also in top two for Texas running back Samaje Perine. 

6. Auburn wide receivers coach Dameyune Craig played for the Tigers, but that’s something he’s reluctant to tell recruits: ”Sometimes I don’t even tell guys that I played here. I want to walk in and recruit them and focus on them — not me.”

7. Tyrone, Georgia wide receiver Demarre Kitt was reportedly set to visit Tennessee this weekend but when his transportation plans fell through, he chose to spend time at Auburn instead. KItt says Auburn is “in my top five.”  With Clemson and Ohio State reportedly in the lead, he also plans to visit Oregon and Tennessee.

8. Homewood, Alabama lineman Jordan Sims has offers from both Alabama and Auburn while Prattville running back Kamryn Pettway, a Florida State commitment, admits an offer from Auburn could change his mind.  ”They are close to home. I think that’s important to have my family and friends come see me on the weekend.”

9. LSU got a commitment over the weekend from in-state linebacker Donnie Alexander.  He’s the fifth commitment of LSU’s 2014 class. And the sixth commitment is apparently not far behind.  Texas cornerback Ed Paris is making his announcement tonight. He’s expected to commit to the Tigers.”Everything just feels right at LSU. The coaches, the fans and the football program are all top notch.”

10. Jacksonville, Florida linebacker Kain Daub originally committed to LSU but decided to open up his recruiting back in November.  He now says Alabama and Florida State are his top two.

11. Bentonville, Arkansas tight end Jack Kraus will visit the Razorbacks next week.  He has offers from Arkansas, Illinois and Utah State. Greenwood, Arkansas quarterback Jabe Burgess will visit Arkansas this week.

12. Offensive lineman Jhamahl Bell will visit Arkansas March 9th. Sounds like he’s a Razorbacks commitment should an offer surface.  ”I’ve liked Arkansas since I was a little boy. Arkansas has always been my favorite team. ”

13. Ole Miss reportedly gets a commitment from wide receiver Dayall Harris. That would mark the fifth 2014 commitment for the Rebels – all of them in-state.

Billy Napier is leaving Florida State to become the wide receivers coach at Alabama, according to a report from Noles247.com.

Napier will replace Mike Groh, who’s leaving for the Chicago Bears, according to the Noles247 report.

Napier’s decision to leave Florida State comes less than two months after his arrival in Tallahassee. He was hired as Florida State’s tight ends coach/recruiting coordinator on Jan. 15.

Napier, who served as Colorado State’s quarterbacks coach in 2012, was the offensive quality control coach on Alabama’s 2011 staff. He previously served on Clemson’s staff from 2006-10.

Napier, widely regarded as one of the nation’s top recruiter, will be filling big shoes in that area. Groh was recently named the Rivals’ Recruiter of the Year after he helped Alabama sign such highly-touted prospects as defensive linemen Dee Liner and A’Shawn Robinson and running back Altee Tenpenny.

Napier was twice recognized by Rivals as one of the nation’s top 25 recruiters during his time at Clemson.

1. 6-foot-5, 300-pound lineman Elisha Shaw is considered one of the top defensive tackles in the state of Georgia. The 2014 prospect says his favorites are Alabama and Georgia but he visited Auburn on Monday. ”Auburn really moved up my list a lot after that visit,: Shaw also holds offers from Florida State, Arkansas, Mississippi State and Ohio State.

2. Alabama traditionally recruits well in the state of Georgia.  The biggest haul came in the class of 2012 when seven players from Georgia signed with the Crimson Tide.

3 Auburn’s 2013 class now looks to be complete after wide receiver Derrick Griffin announced Tuesday he would be attending Miami.  Auburn wasn’t the only SEC school after Griffin.  He had previously committed to Texas A&M.  Griffin reportedly plans to play both football and basketball at Miami.

4. With the commitment of defensive lineman Toby Johnson Tuesday, Georgia now has four of Rivals.com’s top 25 junior college players. That’s more than any other program in the country. Georgia coach Mark Richt on the JUCO additions: “It breaks it up a little bit. It’s not all freshmen. There are some guys that are at least two years into their journey through college ball.”

5. Another one of those 2013 Georgia JUCO commitments is Jonathan Rumph. The 6-foot-5 wide receiver has been compared to A.J. Green. ”I feel real confident that I can come in here and help these guys win.”

6. Yet another quarterback named Connor at South Carolina.  Connor Mitch enrolled in January.  His father, brother and sister all played college sports.

7. A rundown of some recent news involving recruiting targets at Arkansas.

8. A basketball game in Louisville that would have featured Kentucky commitment Dakari Johnson and top high school recruit Andrew Wiggins has been canceled. The game’s organizer says they couldn’t find a title sponsor to cover the costs of the event. Wiggins will take his official visit to Kentucky on February 27th.  He’s also considering Florida State, North Carolina and Kansas.

The story of Arkansas running back signee Alex Collins dominated headlines last week.

Collins, who attends South Plantation High School in Plantation, Fla., had committed to the Razorbacks two days before signing day and was set to sign with Arkansas on Feb. 6. But Collins’s mother refused to sign his national letter of intent, leading Collins to seek out his father’s help to get the letter signed.

A similar situation could have occurred with Florida State linebacker signee Matthew Thomas from Booker T. Washington High School in Miami.

Thomas told Noles247.com he wanted to sign with Southern California but his mother refused to sign his letter of intent. Unlike Collins, Thomas chose not to battle his mother on the subject.

“We couldn’t agree, but it’s my mom, I just did what I had to do,” Thomas told Noles247.

Thomas insisted he’s not upset about his mother’s refusal to sign a letter to USC.

“I think everything works out how it’s supposed to,” Thomas said. “I’m going to make the best of my situation. It’s not like I’m unhappy, I really like Florida State. It’s not a problem, I’m happy with my decision.”

How many prospects would be happy with a situation similar to the one involving Thomas? Obviously Collins wasn’t; he still signed with Arkansas instead of staying close to home as his mother insisted.

But there are many prospects who would react the same way Thomas did, simply saying, “It’s my mom.”

Last week, standout defensive end Chris Jones from Houston, Miss., signed with Mississippi State instead of rival Ole Miss. One major reason: his mother wanted him in Starkville. At least that’s what Ole Miss co-defensive coordinator Wes McGriff told SI.com.

Ole Miss couldn’t sway Jones’s mother, but it was able to do so with other recruits. The Rebels staff made connections with the people closest to its top targets. With defensive end Robert Nkemdiche, it was his brother, who plays at Ole Miss, and mother, who made it clear Ole Miss was her top pick. With wide receiver Laquon Treadwell, Ole Miss’s recruiting started with his friend and former high school teammate (who signed with Ole Miss last February) and ended with his mother.

So with the 2014 recruiting period already underway, it should be obvious who coaches should target. It starts with the prospects, but with many, it will end with mom.

Hold off on those visits

The 2013 class featured many prospects who committed to one school (or two) but signed with another last week.

Read the rest of this entry »

Florida added 30 players from 7 different states on Wednesday and Thursday.  A breakdown of the Gators’ “target zone” is below:

Florida = 18 recruits

Georgia = 6

Mississippi = 2

Michigan = 1

Pennsylvania = 1

Tennessee = 1

Virginia = 1

In-State Signees = 60.0%

Out-Of-State Signees = 40.0%

Observation:

The Gators had a consensus top five signing class and it ranked #1 in the SEC according to our system.  If there’s a nit to be picked — and that’s all it would be with a class this good — it’s that UF landed only two of the top 10 prospects in the Sunshine State.  In addition to in-state rival Florida State, Ole Miss, Notre Dame, Southern Cal, Alabama, Clemson, and Ohio State (with ol’ pal Urban Meyer) all came into Florida and lured top local talent away.  But again, that’s pure nitpicking.  Nothing more than something to keep an eye on moving forward.

On Monday, five-star running back Alex Collins committed to Arkansas.  Today, he was supposed to announce his decision and sign his papers in his hometown of Fort Lauderdale, Florida.  But this afternoon, he’s canceled that ceremony in order to take more time to think about his future.

But this is where it gets even more interesting (horrible, if you’re a Razorback fan).  ESPNU reported that Collins’ mom actually “confiscated” her son’s letter of intent and left the school with it.  Reportedly, she wants Collins to say closer to home and attend Florida, Florida State or Miami.

You can bet a whole lot of fans — and coaches — are sweating this one from the Ozarks to the Keys.

“Dog eat your homework?”  “Nope, Mom stole my letter of intent.”