Did anyone hear, what were Jenkins' comments yesterday when he signed? Oliver
-----Original Message----- From: Shane Ford <[email protected]> Sent: Thursday, February 05, 2009 7:12 AM To: GatorNEWS <[email protected]> Subject: [gatornews] [SUN]: Today's (2/5) Gainesville Sun FOOTBALL GatorNEWS Articles (8 Articles Included) Jelani Jenkins bio By Edward Aschoff Gainesville Sun Correspondent Published: Wednesday, February 4, 2009 at 1:45 p.m. Last Modified: Wednesday, February 4, 2009 at 1:45 p.m. Jelani Jenkins * LB * 6-2 * 220 Click to enlarge Ranking: No. 1 outside linebacker in the nation by Rivals.com; No. 1 by Scout.com. By the numbers: Jenkins had more than 100 tackles and rushed for more than 600 yards as a senior and registered 60 tackles, four sacks, an interception, a forced fumble and recovered two fumbles as a junior, while rushing for 791 yards and 16 touchdowns. How he fits in: Jenkins is one of the most athletic linebackers in the country (he was also a solid running back) and can play at most of the linebacker positions. He's also only 16 years old. He's faster than current Gator linebacker Brandon Spikes and has just as good field vision. He can drop back into coverage, but is most effective when he hits the hole to get into opposing backfields. Chances of playing early: The Gators are set as far as starting linebackers are concerned, but Jenkins is only going to get better and better once he steps on campus and is too athletic not to see the field. UF will lose three senior linebackers after next season and Jenkins looks as ready to play now as any of UF's current backups. Joshua Evans bio By Edward Aschoff Gainesville Sun Correspondent Published: Wednesday, February 4, 2009 at 1:54 p.m. Last Modified: Wednesday, February 4, 2009 at 1:54 p.m. Joshua Evans * DB * 6-2 * 185 Click to enlarge Ranking: No. 21 athlete in the nation by Rivals.com; No. 21 safety by Scout.com. By the numbers: Evans registered 1,856 yards passing and 18 touchdowns and rushed for 1,403 yards with 14 touchdowns as a senior. As a junior he recorded 27 total touchdowns on offense and had seven interceptions. How he fits in: Evans was a quarterback in high school and racked up a ton of yards and scores in the process. He also played free safety and not only matched both running backs and receivers step-for-step on the field, he controlled the entire back part of the secondary on his own. He's also from New Jersey ... sound familiar? Chances of playing early: UF's secondary is full at the moment and the Gators probably won't use him in its backfield, but he's a guy that could come in and contribute early on special teams. Circus reaches pinnacle on Signing Day By Pat Dooley Gainesville Sun Columnist Published: Wednesday, February 4, 2009 at 6:01 a.m. Last Modified: Thursday, February 5, 2009 at 12:08 a.m. This is all you need to know about college football recruiting. This quote comes from Aubrey Phillips, an offensive linemen from Olive Branch, Miss., earlier this week. "I'm still committed to Tennessee, but on Signing Day there will be a change." Phillips signed with Florida State on Wednesday. Or there is this from senior-to-be Louis Nix of Jacksonville Raines. "I'm committed to Miami, I'm still sticking with it, but if I find a school that benefits me more, if I see a better opportunity, I would change. I'd say I'm 75-percent committed, but that steadily decreases every time I see somewhere else." This is the world of recruiting, a world we have all helped to create. You, me, the coaches and the kids, we all bear some responsibility. The fans for the demand, the media for the supply, the coaches for the pressure they place on the young men, and the young men for buying into all the crap. They have created this circus complete with the colorful hats on the table. You keep wondering if one of these kids is going to put a ball underneath one of the caps and make us guess where it is after he shuffles them around. Me, I find the whole thing amusing. Every year the craziness envelops so many people who are usually clear-thinking. The ledge gets crowded when decommitments start coming in. High school kids beam on Signing Day not knowing what they're in for in the summer when the same coaches who have been on hands and knees to convince them to come to their school are now screaming at them for being knuckleheads. Remember the guy who made a recruiting list and it turns out he was made up? Ah, here it comes. The annual disclaimer that all of us brainy columnists pull out of the freezer each year. What about Steve Shipp? Scott Joslyn? Bobby Sabelhaus? Recruiting is overrated. Remember that player who was made up and made the recruiting lists? Or how about Kevin Hart last year, the kid who faked his own recruitment? Nah, I'm not falling into that trap again. Recruiting is rated just about right. Sure, there are busts. I mentioned in a column just a couple of weeks ago that Florida's best class under Meyer in 2006 was littered with busts. But recruiting is important. It's necessary. It doesn't guarantee success and being rated in the second 20 consistently doesn't mean you can't beat a team ranked in the top 10 annually. Ask Georgia Tech and Georgia. The least important thing is where the classes are rated because the signing of these players is one part of the equation. They have to get into school, stay out of trouble, be developed, be utilized correctly and be winners. Wednesday's Signing Day, while trumpeted by those who have turned it into a cottage industry as a Super Bowl of sorts, was another example of dot.coms and coaches falling for head fakes. Which again amuses me. The whole silent commitment, soft commitment and hard lean have all become a part of the recruitnik's vernacular. So has negative recruiting, which Urban Meyer faced a lot of this year. Oh, it wasn't that Florida is the wrong place to go because of academics. Or coaches. Or tradition. Or winning. It was the simply the No. 1 reason why so many of these kids choose a school - playing time. That's why you got the sense on Wednesday that Meyer was thrilled with his smallish class. A guy like Jelani Jenkins, who is willing to come to a Florida linebacking corps that is full. So on this day of foolishness when the comic relief finally comes to an end, what you really want to know is - how did the Gators do? I'll leave it to your coach. "We're where we want to be," he said. "Everybody's comparing themselves to you. You hear things and sit back and say, 'Wow.' But that's a good place to be. You just can't let them catch you." Florida is atop the college football world. Nothing happened on Signing Day to change that. That's all you need to know. Go enjoy the rest of basketball season. Contact Pat Dooley at 352-374-5053 or [email protected]. Top 10 recruiting classes Gainesville Sun Staff report Published: Wednesday, February 4, 2009 at 6:01 a.m. Last Modified: Thursday, February 5, 2009 at 12:04 a.m. Rivals.com 1. Alabama 2. LSU 3. Ohio State 4. USC 5. Texas 6. Florida State 7. Michigan 8. North Carolina 9. Georgia 10. Florida Scout.com 1. Ohio State 2. LSU 3. Alabama 4. USC 5. North Carolina 6. Texas 7. UCLA 8. Georgia 9. Oklahoma 10. Penn State 21. Florida Espn.com 1. LSU 2. Alabama 3. Texas 4. USC 5. Florida 6. Georgia 7. Miami (FL) 8. Florida State 9. Ohio State 10. Michigan Q & A with Jordan Reed By Edward Aschoff Gainesville Sun Correspondent Published: Wednesday, February 4, 2009 at 6:01 a.m. Last Modified: Thursday, February 5, 2009 at 12:23 a.m. Five questions with quarterback Jordan Reed, New London (Conn.) What is your favorite football movie? "Friday Night Lights" because it was the most realistic football movie I've seen. What is your pregame routine? Mine is just to find a spot by myself and listen to some music and say a prayer and focus on running every play through my head. If you didn't pick Florida, where would you have gone and why? If I didn't pick Florida, maybe UConn, Oregon or Boston College. Maybe Utah because my brother is there, and I'd want to get a chance to play with him one more year. What was your first experience in The Swamp? It was Friday Night Lights (UF's summer camp), and I had a lot of fun. I got to see the kind of speed that I would be with, and I got to see who I'd be throwing to (once he got to UF). Who is your all-time favorite Gator? Emmitt Smith. Q & A with John Halapio By Edward Aschoff Gainesville Sun Correspondent Published: Wednesday, February 4, 2009 at 6:01 a.m. Last Modified: Thursday, February 5, 2009 at 12:20 a.m. Five questions with offensive guard Jon Halapio, St. Petersburg Catholic What is your favorite football movie? "Remember the Titans" because I like how it's inspirational and entertaining. Actually, that's the first football movie I've ever seen. What is your pregame routine? Usually, I just like to eat. I like to eat and watch a DVD, like a funny DVD. Most of the time I like to listen to Bob Marley music. If you didn't pick Florida, where would you have gone and why? If I didn't pick Florida, probably something that's close to Florida, which isn't another school. There's nothing close to Florida. I really can't answer that question because I don't even know. What was your first experience in The Swamp? It was the Hawaii game and it was crazy, it was intense. It felt like I was in the game. Who is your all-time favorite Gator? The Pouncey twins because they're just beasts. Area athletes make commitments official Erica Brough/Staff photographer Gainesville football coach Ryan Smith looks on as seven of his players sign national letters of intent, including Otis Brown (Ball State), far left, at Gainesville High School on Wednesday. By John Patton Gainesville Sun Staff writer Published: Wednesday, February 4, 2009 at 6:01 a.m. Last Modified: Thursday, February 5, 2009 at 12:12 a.m. It was an eventful National Signing Day locally, as 18 area football players inked letters of intent to colleges. The day was highlighted in part by the expected signings of Lafayette defensive back/receiver Jamal Reid to Miami, Dixie County running back Rodney Scott to Mississippi and Buchholz offensive lineman Jordan Weingart to West Virginia. Each had been committed to their respective schools for more than a month (with Reid and Weingart being set since the fall). Gainesville High School had the most signings of any local school with seven. Defensive lineman Kevin Lowery (Arkansas) and receiver Otis Brown (Ball State) each made official their choices, as did quarterback Trevor Wooden (Missouri State), offensive/defensive lineman Kendall Kelly (Navarro Junior College in Texas) and a trio headed to the College of DuPage in Illinois (receiver Reshard Ross and linebackers Leroy Williams and Michael Duggan). City and District 6-4A champion Eastside, saw cornerback Terrell Bradley (Florida Atlantic) and running back John Little (Charleston Southern) sign letters of intent around lunchtime. Weingart had two teammates sign, as linebacker Kyle Oehlbeck (Georgia Southern) and quarterback Kevin Prindle (Hamilton) made their decisions official. Three of Reid's teammates - running back/linebacker Shyler Morgan (Bethune-Cookman), tight end/linebacker Casey Brewer (Army) and running back/receiver/defensive back Sergio Perez - signed along with the future Hurricane. And speedy Williston tailback Travis Evans signed with Georgia State after a brilliant senior season that saw him rush for nearly 1,700 yards. Bama-LSU rivalry heats up on signing day By RALPH D. RUSSO AP College Football Writer Published: Wednesday, February 4, 2009 at 10:02 p.m. Last Modified: Wednesday, February 4, 2009 at 10:02 p.m. These days, the Alabama-LSU rivalry is revved-up year round. The Tigers and Tide tussled for the top spot in the recruiting rankings Wednesday, with Nick Saban and 'Bama closing strong and even getting one Louisiana star to switch from purple and gold to crimson and white on signing day. As if LSU fans needed another reason to seethe about Saban, the former Tigers coach who needed just two seasons in Tuscaloosa to wrest the SEC West away from Les Miles' team. Alabama went 11-2 last season and played for the Southeastern Conference championship, while LSU disappointed and finished 8-5 the season after winning the national championship in 2007. On signing day, LSU and Alabama went at it again. Rivals.com and Allen Wallace of Scout.com and SuperPrep Magazine gave Alabama their top spots, both just ahead of LSU. LSU was No. 1 in the Scouts, Inc./ESPN rankings, with Alabama second. Tom Lemming of CBS College Sports also had LSU on top, with 'Bama fifth. Few coaches are as relentless as Saban and Miles when it comes to recruiting. "They both have similar styles in that it's fight to the whistle," Bobby Burton of Rivals.com said. "Both of them really take it seriously from start to finish. "They both need to keep each other at bay." The next meeting on the field between the burgeoning rivals is Nov. 7 in Tuscaloosa. The other schools vying for the top spot were mostly the usual suspects: Southern California, Texas and Ohio State. Florida coach Urban Meyer didn't have many scholarships to hand out - most of his national championship team will be back next season - but what his class lacked in quantity it made up in quality. One newcomer to the top-10: North Carolina, with coach Butch Davis. The Tar Heels haven't had this type of recruiting success since Mack Brown was in Chapel Hill in the late 1990s. Coach Rich Rodriguez's first season at Michigan was a 3-9 debacle, but his first recruiting class drew top-10 rankings. And one of the best running back prospects in the country decided NOT to sign a letter of intent on Wednesday. Bryce Brown of Wichita, Kan., who has given a verbal commitment to Miami, plans to mull his decision over for a few more weeks. Oregon and Kansas State are apparently still in the running. LSU appeared to be on its way to being crowned the recruiting champion for 2009 early Wednesday, but several talented players who entered the day uncommitted picked Alabama and the Tide rose up the charts. "We were able to attract maybe a half-dozen other players that weren't committed to us that were outstanding national recruits," Saban said. "During the thick of it, at the end with a bunch of national recruits, you're going to get your share. We felt like we got our share today." The most notable was Dre Kirkpatrick, rated the No. 1 cornerback in the country by Rivals, who decided to stay close to his Gadsden, Ala., home and play for Saban. Five-star prospects D.J. Fluker, an offensive lineman, and Nico Johnson, a linebacker, also stayed in state and honored their verbal commitments to the Tide. Saban again landed most of Alabama's top prospects, which surely won't sit well at Auburn. Prized running back Trent Richardson from Pensacola, Fla., picked the Tide over Florida and LSU. "If he had gone (to LSU) I might have switched LSU to No. 1 instead of Alabama," Wallace said. "That's how close it is at the top." Alabama also persuaded four-star wide receiver Kenny Bell, from Rayville, La., to make a signing day switch and abandon his verbal commitment to LSU. The Tigers got bad news on Bell, but good news on Rueben Randle, Rivals' No. 1 receiver prospect in the country. Randle, from Bastrop, La., hadn't made a verbal commitment and had Alabama among his final choices. He's headed to Baton Rouge, along with most of the best players in Louisiana. Miles also reached into Texas for a couple of stars. Safety Craig Loston from Aldine and dual-threat quarterback Russell Shepard from Houston were rated among the best in the country at their positions. "Potentially, this is the style of class that competes for championships year after year," Miles said. Of course both Alabama and LSU will have to contend with Florida just to win an SEC championship in the coming years. The Gators handed out 16 scholarships and lost out on some players late. But Florida's class includes receiver Andre Debose of Sanford, Fla., Rivals' No. 2 receiver in the country, and Jelani Jenkins, a top-rated linebacker from Olney, Md., who made up his mind Wednesday morning. Meyer said Debose could replace Percy Harvin, the talented and multidimensional receiver who is entering the NFL draft as a junior. "Watching (Debose) on film, for what we do, our style of offense, for what we need right now with the departure of Percy Harvin, that's a critical element because we're not going to change our offense," Meyer said. It was another successful signing day for Pete Carroll and USC. The Trojans' latest heralded recruiting class features the consensus No. 1 quarterback in the country. Matt Barkley is from Mater Dei High School, the same southern California school that produced Heisman Trophy winner Matt Leinart. --- AP Sports Writers Tim Reynolds in Coral Gables, Fla., John Zenor in Tuscaloosa, Ala., Mark Long in Gainesville, Fla.; and Brett Martel in New Orleans contributed to this report. --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ GATORS: ONE VOICE ON SATURDAY - NO VOICE ON SUNDAY! 1996 National Football Champions | 2006 National Basketball Champions 2006 National Football Champions | 2007 National Basketball Champions 2008 National Football Champions | Three Heisman Trophy winners: Steve Spurrier (1966), Danny Wuerffel (1996), Tim Tebow (2007) - Visit our website at www.gatornet.us -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
