With National Signing Day (Feb. 4) almost here, the last two weeks have been as eventful as ever in the Georgia recruiting world. In state, Georgia Tech has used the last couple weekends to secure themselves a strong class, picking up two verbals along the way. The Jackets landed South Carolina defensive back Lance Richardson before picking up a commitment from Carl Mile, a defensive back from Florida, only days later. For Miles, Tech outlasted Kansas State, Tennessee, and Vanderbilt among others while the Jackets out-dueled Oregon, Marshall, and Toledo for Richardson’s services.
Though over the last few weeks no Georgia recruit has committed to an in-state school, plenty of prospects from the state still made their decisions known. Lithia Christian tight end Kevin Steed gave his pledge to Louisiana Monroe after receiving interest from The Citadel and Western Carolina. Joining Steed in the out-of-state exodus will be Harrison offensive tackle Jordan Miller. Miller chose Memphis over offers from Marshall, Western Carolina and Boston College and is a two-star recruit according to Rivals.com. At 6-foot-8, 270 pounds, Miller has the potential to play a major role on the college level.
Dallas Walker, a tight end from Georgia Military College, also settled on his college destination recently, and the 6-5, 225-pound athlete decided to bring his game to Western Michigan. Walker is also a two-star recruit according to Rivals.com.
Around the same time Walker announced his declaration, two other local products went public with their commitments. First, Jadareius Hamlin, an offensive guard from Mary Persons, let the coaches at Middle Tennessee know he would be there next fall while also disappointing the staffs at Troy, Western Kentucky, UCF, UAB, and East Carolina. Brent Brock for Middle Tennessee recruited the 6-2, 245-pound Hamlin. Two days after Hamlin made his decision known, Tucker dual-threat quarterback Chris Beck committed to Army. The 5-11, 185-pound signal caller is the 30th athlete to commit to the program for the class of 2009.
RECRUITING AVALANCHE
The last week has seen a barrage of Georgia athletes giving their verbals and it all started when Tucker linebacker Jonathan Davis finally settled on the University of Central Florida. Davis, a longtime South Carolina commitment who recently had his scholarship offer retracted, chose the Knights over offers from UAB, Georgia Tech, Louisville, Miami, Oklahoma State and Penn State. A three-star recruit according to Rivals.com, the 5-9, 205-pound Davis uses great speed and tenacity to make up for his lack of size.
As if taking his cue from Davis, Cedar Grove running back William Pratcher chose to attend Middle Tennessee the very same day Davis made his decision known. At 5-9, 175 pounds, Pratcher is a speedy back with solid quickness.
The recruiting momentum intensified even more last Friday, as three in-state products announced out-of-state destinations for college. Mill Creek defensive end Ryan Robinson chose the Cowboys of Oklahoma State over an impressive offer list that included South Carolina and Kentucky. At 6-4, 245 pounds, the two-star Robinson plays with good strength and aggressiveness.
DeDe Lattimore of Cedar Shoals and East Paulding’s Edward Cazenave were the next Georgians to follow Robinson’s lead. Lattimore, a 6-foot, 226-pound inside linebacker, gave the Bulls of South Florida his pledge over offers from UAB, Auburn, Kentucky, Louisville, and Oklahoma Sate, among others. As a junior, Lattimore recorded 115 tackles and is currently listed as a three-star recruit according to Rivals.com.
As for Cazenave, the 6-1, 180-pound wideout declared Kent State his college destination after receiving interest from Louisiana Tech as well. Cazenave committed to the Golden Flashes only days after visiting the Ohio-based campus.
LAST BUT NOT LEAST
Finally, three recruits used last weekend to close out the action, beginning with Dearco Nolan of Westlake High School. Nolan, a 6-2, 227-pound defensive end, chose the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders after receiving offers from Iowa State, Ole Miss, South Carolina and Marshall.
On Sunday, two of the last remaining Georgia talents decided to leave the state for greener pastures. Cairo athlete Angelo Pease settled on Kansas State over Troy while Dunwoody defensive end Malcolm Mitchell committed to Louisville for the years to come. The 6-2, 220-pound Mitchell chose the Cardinals over South Carolina, West Virginia, UCF, East Carolina and Indiana, among others. As a junior, from the quarterback position, the 5-10, 188-pound Pease rushed for 1,043 yards in addition to throwing for 1,197 yards.
Janovitz can be reached at sjanovitz@scoreatl.com.
Loading ...
