New Jersey is always one of the most underrated states for producing football talent. It is one of the top 10 in the country and Rutgers has recruited its share in recent years--but many top players don't have local allegiance and choose to leave the state.

Every school from USC to Florida recruits in the Garden State. I haven't seen Illinois but virtually everyone else, including Northwestern, is making its presence felt despite the fact that there isn't a single 5-star prospect in the state, not a single top 25 player.

In fact, there is no concensus about the No. 1 player. There are 10 to 12 who are big-time prospects. But who is the best still is to be determined.

Continue reading "Cultivating the Garden State" »

Craig Loston of Houston, Texas, my early choice as the No. 3 player in the nation and the leading free safety in the country, has committed to Clemson.

That's a shocker, a huge catch for Clemson. It is so unusual for any school to go into the Lone Star State and beat Texas, USC, Oklahoma, Notre Dame, Michigan or Florida State for homegrown talent, especially a top 10 prospect.

Talent-wise, New England--New York, Massachussets, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Vermont, Rhode Island and Maine--is the weakest region in the country. It is a highly populated area but there are only suspects, not a lot of blue chippers.

The top three players in the seven-state area are quarterback McCallum Foote of Dedham, Mass., tight end Arthur Fontaine of North Dartmouth, Mass., and wide receiver Josh Adams of Cambridge, Mass., who has transferred to a prep school in Chelsea, Connecticut.

Continue reading "Scouting New England" »

The U.S. Army and ESPN, television sponsor of the Underarmour all-star football game, are going to war over which event will land the most talented senior players for their 2009 showcases.

Underarmour has received a commitment from USC-bound quarterback Matt Barkley of Santa Ana, Calif., the nation's top-rated player.

So Underarmour has two of the nation's top 20. The U.S. Army, which sponsors the All-American Bowl game in San Antonio in January, has 10 of the top 20 to date, including running backs Bryce Brown of Wichita, Kan., and Chris Whaley of Madisonville, Texas, and cornerback Dre Kirkpatrick of Gadsden, Ala.

Continue reading "Playing the Army game" »

The bloggers who touted Melvin Fellows as a great college prospect after he committed to Illinois might be playing a different tune now that the 6-5, 260-pound defensive end from Garfield Heights, Ohio, has changed his mind and decided to commit to Ohio State.

I saw Fellows on film. I didn't think he was so great and said so. Wow, some bloggers jumped all over my case. But Fellows reminded me of Michigan's Shawn Crable...same build, not as quick, not a dominating player.

One scouting service in Ohio rated Fellows as the No. 1 player in the state and a lot of bloggers accepted that information as gospel.

Continue reading "The skinny on Melvin Fellows" »

It isn't as good a year in Alabama as a year ago, when nine of the top 10 players in the state signed with coach Nick Saban and the Crimson Tide. But cornerback Dre Kirkpatrick and linebacker Nico Johnson rank among the leading prospects in the nation at their positions.

Kirkpatrick, a 6-2, 180-pounder from Gadsden, is one of the top three cornerbacks in the country.

Johnson, a 6-3, 230-pounder from Andalusia, has 4.5 speed and rates among the top 10 linebackers in the nation.

Continue reading "What's happening in Alabama?" »

Per capita, Mississippi produces more football talent than any state in the union. Not a lot of people but a lot of blue-chip athletes. I've driven through the state three times to rate the top 40 players and, so far as I can tell, Illinois coach Ron Zook hasn't been here.

Mississippi is a difficult state to evaluate because there is only one large city, Jackson, the state capitol. Brett Favre, Walter Payton, Archie Manning and Jerry Rice all came from small towns.

Another thing about Mississippi...most kids go to SEC schools, almost every one. Of course, a good number go to junior colleges first because of poor grades.

Continue reading "Mississippi leads the talent parade" »

Notre Dame got oral commitments from two outstanding prospects during its spring scrimmage Saturday in South Bend--running back Cierre Wood of Oxnard, Calif., and defensive lineman Tyler Stockton of Princeton, N.J.

Wood, a 6-0, 200-pounder, is a five-star performer who chose Notre Dame over UCLA. Last fall, he rushed for 2,600 yards and 42 touchdowns.

How good is Wood? He is ranked as the No. 3 player in the nation by Rivals.com. In my view, he is the best running back in the West and one of the top three in the nation along with Bryce Brown of Wichita, Kan., and Trent Richardson of Pensacola, Fla. Richardson plays at Escambia, the same high school that produced Emmit Smith. Last season, Wood was acknowledged as the most valuable player in his area, ahead of Colorado-bound Darrell Scott, who was rated as the No. 1 senior running back in the country.

Stockton, a 6-0, 290-pounder, is a four-star player.

In 1978, when I began traveling around the country to evaluate football players, recruiting was in the Dark Ages. It was a cloak-and-dagger operation. There was no USA Today, no ESPN, no Internet.

Major colleges didn't release the names of their recruits until two months after signing day. They didn't want any information to leak out. Instead, they stockpiled more players. They didn't want to mention names so they could continue to recruit.

Joe Montana was one of seven quarterbacks brought in at Notre Dame in 1974. Major Ogilvie was one of several tailbacks recruited by Alabama in 1977. Later, they said they didn't know anything about the others. In those days, it was an acceptable way of doing business.

Continue reading "How Recruiting Has Changed" »

It is an average year for football talent in Missouri, as it is throughout the Midwest, but St. Louis has several good prospects and the best of all is 6-2, 210-pound running back Ronnie Wingo of St. Louis University High.

A four-star player, Wingo has been offered by Illinois, Oklahoma, Tennessee and several other Big 10 and Big 12 schools.

Continue reading "Missouri shows its talent" »