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Recruiting Roundtable

103

Alright, this is what I’ve gathered over the past couple days from every media source possible, reading between the lines, and one semi-decent source on campus.

1. Akuna is a Beaver–85%…I’ve heard “silent verbal” since his visit and everything he’s said has hinted the Beavers are the team to beat.

2. Gio will be a Beaver–51%. Riley’s in home tonight, meeting the parents again, talking Haiti, reminiscing about Yev…it should be enough to close the deal. Then again, it’s pretty much as far as you can travel without leaving the country…

3. Owa–Owa eliminated Oregon tonight. I gotta say, this kid seems like dust in the wind; I guess he commits wherever he happens to be when the breeze subsides?

4. Christian Thomas–Interesting that he canceled his Miami trip. I like this kid; he’s a character…from his comments about the chef to admitting to liking the weather in Oregon. We aren’t a lock, but we’re up there. USC is going to make a late push and we rarely win that battle, so I’m saying 40% on this one.

5. Taula–Arizona holds a soft commit, but since he’s been taking officials and taking them seriously, most acknowledge his word was given simply to secure a scholarship. It’s clearly between Udub, Arizona, and OSU…and I’d put them in that order. The Beavers had his interest early, but lost momentum when others offered and have not been able to regain it. Right now he’s a silent commit to Udub, even though he’s still listed as an Arizona commit. The Beavs chances are under 10%. Washington 65%, Zona the remainder.

Let’s admit it, these are the only 5 recruits we care about at this point. Others are topical, though, so discuss whomever you’d like.

103 COMMENTS

  1. Funny, literally minutes after publishing this a rumor pops up that Owa has eliminated Nebraska, UCLA, and Oregon.

    http://www.wildwestsports.com/wMessage.aspx?board=Football&mess=0&id=934002

    These sources are extremely un-credible. But, still interesting to ponder. A few weeks ago when he had Oregon and OSU in his final 4 I thought it meant he wanted to stay close to home (or his family wanted him close to home). With Oregon eliminated, that leaves OSU. Problem is, I really don’t think he wants to go to OSU. He’s probably fighting his family on this one…it’s Riley’s job to make the school more attractive. I still think UCLA and Nebraska are leaders, but let’s bump OSU up a little.

    • I have heard through a semi-reliable source but undisclosable source that Owa’s family will move with him wherever he decides to go… Take the comment for what you will. Just more rumor mill to throw in.

  2. Well, the news is flying around tonight. Makes me wish I bit my tongue a little longer before authoring this post, but hey.

    Dominic Glover commits to the Beavs per Eggers

    http://www.portlandtribune.com/sports/story.php?story_id=126447527008605900

    I believe Glover was a 4-star Duck commit before going the JC route. He has not been very productive at the JC level and rumors are that he’s out of shape. We need the depth and (potential) talent at DE, though, so it’s a good move to take that chance.

    As you can see, Owa says Nebraska, UCLA, and OSU are all in a dead tie right now.

  3. Didn’t Glover leave UO because of academics… like last year?

    I’ll take that Owa guy. He looks pretty good.

    I’d love to have those Akuna and Bernard kids on the team too.

    I’ve read a lot of blog rumors from Seattle and Arizona, and I think Taula is now as confused as I am. Too bad. I love his play.

    That leaves Thomas from this list. He does sound like a character. I can see the Beavs’ post-games with him in attendance.

    I always liked Vainuku also. He’s a shorter, heavier, stronger version of Mike Bibbee. He looks like a human bowling ball who likes the sounds created by destruction.

    And then you got me thinking about Terron Ward. If he doesn’t have any offers, I say give him a gray shirt offer at the very least. He has the speed to be a return specialist, and he can either work into the two-deeps at RB or fill in the depth. I’m sure now that OSU has looked at him other colleges will be all over him.

    • I forget what Glover’s story is, actually. Thought he didn’t qualify out of HS and went JC, but I don’t follow Duck recruits closely enough to have confidence in that.

    • I remember hearing his name in the local news as leaving the team early last year. I’m not sure why. For all I know it could have been the coaching change.

  4. Who needs Rivals/Scout when I got you guys doing all this work for free?

    Are all these guys likely to wait until Feb. 3rd to let us know their intentions?

    • This is how I understand them:

      Akuna – 2/3 or just before

      Bernard – this week… could be Tuesday… could be Friday

      Owa – 2/3 or just before

      Taula – who knows? maybe he already has

      Thomas – will interrupt the Cirque du Soleil to do a magic trick which involves making several hats disappear

      Vainuku – will probably take a couple weeks beyond 2/3 because the academic period ends at that time, and he needs some good grades

      Ward – if offered a gray shirt he might stay open until the signing period comes to a close in April

  5. I can’t believe we’re sitting here talking about Gio, Owa and Thomas. They were all supposed to be committed by now. I thought for sure that Owa and Thomas both would play for Weasel. Thomas was pushed out at USC because they already have two of the top 5/top 10 TE’s committed.

    They still have Weasel in their final groupings, but word is that he pissed off Owa in some way. The UCLA blogs are all convinced that Owa was going to commit there at the Army Game, but apparently they weren’t supposed to know it… or something like that.

    I’m to the point where I’ll believe it when they put pen to paper. I know they all would be happy in Corvallis. It just takes a leap of faith sometimes.

  6. dude, you are lame. time after time you show you don’t know anything about recruiting. the only correct recruiting info you offer comes from blitz the day after its posted in the lodge.

  7. Nice to see DE Glover coming in next year to address the DE situation for next year and 2011. I’ve also heard some make the suggestion of swithcing Billbee from MLB to DE, which i guess could be a possiblity.

    Owa’s situation is getting rather annoying for me. If he comes to OSU great beacause of the need at DE anf if not that’s fine too. I;m just going to make the guess that he goes to Nebraska.

    Taula I didn’t follow him much and never really hear anything about OSU having a great shot at him so this isn’t really suprsing to me much.

    Vainuku is going to visit OSU this weekend and then I hear he was going to visit USC after the signing period starts. He reallly wants to go there. He’s listed as a FB on both Rivlas and Scouts, but it sounds like alomst everywhere he’s being recruited is to be at LB.

    Bernard committs this week and would be nice to see OSU get him for depth at RB.

    Ward- It sounds like if he gets an offer it’ll be to greyshirt but he sounds really fast and could also help the RB position even if he has to greyshirt first.

    Akuna it’s nice to hear that he’ll likely go to OSU.

    Has anybody hear anything about how DT Epenesa’s visit went? He could help at DT with his size in the future at 6-2 305 lbs. especially with Iona unlikely to qualify and Molesi leaving after 1 year of playing.

    Thomas- Agian TE isn’t really a position of need and 6-6 Perry is anoth recruit coming to OSU next year, but I guess at 245 lbs. and speed he could covert to DE and of course getting an Army All-American would be cool. Heard something about his grades not being very good, but Riley takes risks with that.

  8. I think Thomas’ grades are fine. I think he had problems with the SAT his first go around… something like no sleep the night before.

    • I think Freddy’s right in his USC lean. If Kiffink offers him on the trip he’ll probably accept.

      Then again, who knows? He could be one of 400 signees at UW, or he could choose to go closer to home with us.

      Arizona State must have some pull since they got Burfict in last year. That guy is good, and I am envious of his talent. Don’t get me wrong… I think Bubba will be as good. But we’re talking about someone who made an impact immediately as opposed to working into it.

      Sheesh!

  9. I also have to laugh at the national prognosticators when picking likely destinations for these guys.

    If OSU is even listed as an interest, then they certainly aren’t mentioned in the ‘favorites’ category… let alone the predicted school.

    We have more top-level talent looking at us this year, and I think at least half or more sign with us. Yet we’re still ignored by the media.

    I wonder if four and five star athletes are allowed to carry chips on their shoulders.

  10. Lost in all the hubbub about Ducks waddling off with laptops or getting curb-stomped…

    Gabe King’s offer was pulled, and the viral rumor is that it’s because UO is playing CYA for some possible NCAA violations.

    I’m actually starting to feel bad for the UO. I may have gone to OSU, but this is getting ridiculous.

    • This has all happened since early Sunday morning. It’s been a bad three days for UO.

      To make things worse, the only alibis being offered for Masoli are by people on blogs. They place him within a block of the alleged crime. Nobody has gathered the security video from the dive bar mentioned in order to post it for the world to see. And trust me… they’re trying. And there was no immediate PR push from Sports Marketing U to get in front of this story with absolute denials and proclamations of innocence. If they had done all that, then the frat boy’s “f%#$ing hoodrats” comment would have supported them.

      With all this goig on, the questions about how this will affect recruiting are answered with “It won’t” and “Look at what Punchgate did to recruiting… LOL.”

      • I think we all know Masoli is behind this, but we all know he’ll be playing QB next year, too. Oregon has rebranded itself yet again…first pugilists, now felons.

        I don’t feel bad for them in the least. The dirty recruiting is finally catching up. It always does.

  11. So what are the chances that Fink and Weasel draw the recruits we want down to LA?

    And what’s their spiel?

    “You know… there’s really a silver lining to all this smog. At least you can see what you’re breathing… unlike OTHER parts of the country.”

    • “You know, Owa, Your mom may only have to drive an hour to get to your games back “home”, but here we get to drive an hour just to get to OUR OWN games.”

  12. I really have nothing against Nebraska. I did live on the Northern Plains once, and I will never subject myself to those winters again. And the view is as flat as looking out over the ocean, except it’s not the ocean. But that’s it.

  13. Not unexpected that Scott Crichton commits to us…
    http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/recruiting/onthetrail

    I’ve still never seen any tape on the kid, and that’s why I don’t say/expect much. I always got the feeling he would go to UW if he was ever offered, but after his visit and all the reports of ‘there’s gonna be more from this visit’ I think we all pretty uch knew he was going to be one of them.

    Congrats to Scott for making an excellent decision.

    • That’s pretty funny.

      There are a lot of weird rumors in town about why Gabe King’s offer was pulled. That on top of Owa dropping UO and another DT prospect leaning toward Florida State have the Duck faithful scratching their heads about the future of their defense. And let’s face it, their defense pretty much sucked this year. They were able to hold their opponents to 30 points when their offense scored more. That’s about it.

      Next year they can probably extend that point total to 40 given the talent they’re bringing to the season. But most of these fans would rather win 50-6 rather than 50-45.

    • I saw that. This has nothing to do with the Duck offer, but I like Crichton more and more as I look into him. Definitely a good B list guy if Owa goes elsewhere.

    • I think Paea, Rosa and Henry were B list prospects. What were Olander, Miller and LaGrone?

      What were Norris and Butler?

      I think that Seumalo is making a name for himself by coaching up DL B prospects… and apparently walk-ons, PF’s, WR’s and TE’s.

      Can you imagine the scary coming at you with an Owa/Thompson/Molesi/Iona/Crichton line? I know I’m looking ahead to a possibly non-existent future. But we didn’t get to dream this big in years past, and I’m going to get my unrealistic expectations in while I can.

      I think OSU is shoring up their weaknesses pretty well so far.

      If only the CB’s would turn around and look for the ball….

      • Seumalo…what can you say about that guy. For all my disdain towards Banker and my frustration with other coaches (*cough Heyward*) at times, I have to say that Seumalo is nothing short of extraordinary.

  14. I guess we can keep Eric Bennett on the board…
    http://www.portlandtribune.com/sports/story.php?story_id=126462775120607200

    So the list is Owa, Gio, Thomas, Akuna, Vainuku, Taula, Epenesa and Bennett.

    That’s a pretty impressive list, but we have 14 already. With Storey and Romaine (and anyone think also Ward?) grey shirting already anyone we add from here on out puts someone else on that list. How many do we figure put themselves there by not qualifying?

    • The headline on Rivals made it seem like Ward was offered to greyshirt but I couldn’t read the article because I am not going to pay those guys.

    • I missed the David Ross info. That means we have one open slot before grey shirts are required. Angry mentioned this back when Burton was hired at PSU, and it made sense since he was the position coach who recruited Ross.

      The Ward speculation is probably an easy take. He has obvious skills, and I’m surprised nobody has offered him. If he waits a season to attend OSU he could work his way into the line-up with said skill or redshirt and develop it further. I think he’s looking at the extreme possibilities of making a name for himself in a place where relative nobodies have become stars. Still, how does he not get an offer from even SJSU? Maybe they don’t have the confidence an OSU has in the O-line development and the RB opportunities created by that development?

  15. It says on that article you just posted that Iona is the only one not expected to qualify, which means Welch is which was unexpected from me.

    • I wonder if the plan it to play Welch as a LB. Seems like he has the speed for DB, although I don’t know if he has the cover skills (not that our safety’s ever do… lol). Can’t wait for signing day (most likely the day after) to hear what Riley’s plan is and where he envisions each guy.

  16. I’m reading up on the latest about Eric Bennett, and I’m wondering why he’s coming in on an official this weekend. I know we were after him and his teammate Calvin Barnett early, but they both committed early to Arkansas and Ok State respectively. Bennett visited Arkansas last weekend with Barnett, and a lot of Razorback fans seem to think they can pull a coup by drawing Barnett into the fold. I think they’re delusional, but stranger things have happened.

    These guys were teammates of Michael Doctor last year, so we may have some pull with that in mind. But I’m not going to think that Barnett or Bennett come here for that. Barnett has us lesser on his horizon than he does Arkansas since he’s going to visit Ok State this weekend anyway. So I don’t even pretend to have that delusion.

    But Bennett is an interesting prospect. He played QB and wants to stay on the offensive side, but he projects to CB on the D-I level. I have to think that we’re looking at him as a possible successor to Wheaton and telling him so. He does have a lot of skill in the open field, and he would likely thrive on the fly-sweep. And it sounds like Bobby “my word is garbage” Petrino is ‘promising’ him a 50/50 shot at making it at WR.

    So I wonder if we are going to bring him in as a WR given the depth chart. If he shows the skill he doesn’t worry about the depth. And it sounds like he has a lot of confidence in his skill.

    And we have good enough depth at S to work someone like Poyer or Dilbeck (or both) over to CB.

  17. News from Hawaii… specifically Makakilo…

    Shaydon Akuna did not trip to Florida State because they just ditched him. I’m sure they must have made a call last night sometime, but they ignored him all week up to then.

    It makes it hard to set an itinerary for 12 hours of flying (w/o lay-overs) if you’re not even contacted with the proper information apparently.

    • By ditched do you mean they puller their offer? I think this makes it pretty final that he’s going to OSU unless he pulls a shocker and chooses oregon or hawaii. Also going back to the CBs and Safeties. I remember Dilbeck did switch to CB during fall camp did he ever go back to FS? Poyer isn’t going to do baseball this year so I think during spring practice the coaches will likely switch him to CB.

      So in 2010 the CB could be something like
      Hardin, Dockery, Poyer, Martin, Reynolds, Dilbeck, Parker

      Then S

      Collins, Mitchell, Watkins, Tuimuanei, LaGrone, Sanders

    • I probably should have said ‘stood up’. He just hadn’t heard from them regarding his itinerary.

      Oregon was never in the picture. They called him and he said no. Duck bloggers probably read the recruiting sites, claimed to talk to ‘insiders’ then wrote him in as favoring UO because he was visiting so late.

      He never visited. He went to Arizona last week… for the first time, and it was fine. But how does he feel about them now that a Stoops has treated him the way Mark did?

      Hawai’i is always in the back of the minds of kids from the rock. Family is a big deal, and leaving them is just as big. That’s why OSU is a comfortable place for Poly’s.

      Besides, every quote from this kid ends with something like ‘That’s how I know I’ll succeed at/what I love about [OSU]’. I can’t blame FSU for reading between those lines. Well… this is FSU we’re talking about. I can’t blame them for comprehending the subtext as it’s read to them.

      But to not even call a kid to say ‘no thanks’?

  18. There’s a report on an Arkansas blog that Bennett had an in-home with two OSU asst coaches on Wednesday.

    Tulsa is Langsdorf territory, and Langsdorf was in Miami on Monday… with MR.

    Do we think MR was the second ‘asst coach’ and convinced this kid to come take a look?

  19. Anyone else pissed the Ducks landed Lache Seastrunk?

    More nervous than pissed, actually. The “next Reggie Bush”…ugh. There’s going to be a lot of Duck gushing in the next few years.

    • I hear how highly rated he is. RB seems like one of the most difficult positions to predict how well a player will do. I heard he does great in space and that’s what oregon does so sounds like a good system for him. oregon will always try to hype their players to be the greatest that have played the game at their position so I just ignore it.

      • I think he’s the #1 or #2 back in Texas and 5 stars on every service. Seems legit, not just Duck hype. I’m nervous. We better get some fast defense players if we want to win one of the next 4 Civil Wars.

        • Again RB is one of the harder positions to predict. Scott at CU and Brown at UT were also the #1 RBs in their class and neither have done anything so far. Recruiting sites in general are also hype machines every fan base falls for it, but oregon fans seems to really fall for it once they get some highly rated recruit.

        • Yeah, Scott and Brown. Neither were compared to Bush, but point taken. Still makes me nervous…especially a guy like that in the spread.

    • Michael Dyer and Dillon Baxter might be the next Reggie Bush. Seastrunk is LaMichael James II. What more can you say about a kid who’s afraid to run between the tackles… in high school. This is not to say that I’m not envious. I think he would be an awesome successor to James at the WR for us. If you watch his tape he looks like the older Rodgers bro without the Walter Payton drive into the defender.

      I think it’s a great thing for us because it keeps Texas recruits looking at Oregon as the state to go to for their future success.

  20. I’m seeing things this way…

    Akuna – OSU – him Bubba, Wilson, Uani, Doctor, Welch, Bibbee, Storey… We’re set for years… and more will want to come.

    Owa – 35/35/30 – OSU/NU/UCLA – With the DT’s coming in to replace the DT’s we have now… and playing in front of the LB’s we have… Watch out!

    Thomas – 45/35/20 – OSU/USC/Miami – Who knows? He loves OSU… wants to maybe stay close to home… knows the history of Miami TE’s. Read the OU blogs and he’s 90/10 OU/USC.

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