Oglesby in Raeshon McNeil out?

[Guest SirJohn]

From the Observor

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Football Recruiting: 16-year old Oglesby at top of junior class

Irish plan to sign six senior O-linemen

By: Observer Sports

Issue date: 1/24/06 Section: Sports

Article Tools: Page 1 of 1

 

Fifteen of the country's top 100 high school juniors were among the players to attend a recruiting Junior Day held by Irish coach Charlie Weis and his staff earlier this month.

 

But according to Mike Frank of Irisheyes.com, the only junior who has a scholarship offer from Notre Dame was a player who did not even attend the Jan. 14 event - offensive lineman Josh Oglesby.

 

The 16-year old Oglesby is a 6-foot-7, 325-pound offensive tackle out of Saint Francis High School in St. Francis, Wis. Despite his age, he is one of the top recruits in the nation with offers already from Notre Dame, Ohio State, Tennessee and Michigan, among several others.

 

The Observer could not reach Oglesby for comment Monday.

 

He was unable to make it to South Bend for the Junior Day (which coincided with the Irish men's basketball team's 92-77 home victory over Providence) but told Irisheyes.com that he has "not eliminated a school" from his list of potential destinations.

 

Oglesby has visited the Notre Dame campus several times, seeing the Irish lose 34-31 to then-No. 1 Southern California on Oct. 15 and watching a 41-21 Notre Dame win over Tennessee on Nov. 5.

 

Notre Dame intends to sign six offensive linemen on Feb. 1 for its upcoming class, but the Irish coaches will be able to be more selective in terms of what linemen they recruit in next year's class.

 

"They can be kind of picky in terms of who they bring in because of how many linemen they are bringing in this year," Frank said in an interview with The Observer Monday.

 

Frank believes Oglesby, if he eventually signs with Notre Dame next year, will be part of a group of three or four lineman that Weis will bring in.

 

 

Notes:

 

u Cornerback recruit Raeshon McNeil, who verbally committed to Notre Dame on Aug. 15, made a recruiting visit to Florida on Jan. 20.

 

He did not return The Observer's calls Monday.

[GwoodND]

Herd that they {UF} didn't offer him a schollie..Thats what alot of posters are saying on the UF board on rivals..I believe McNeil willbe irish.

[Guest]

agreed, and I would think oglsbey ends up on board too, it seems to me that charlie and him have a close relationship and this kid realizes hes going to be abel to play here early, even with the line we just brought in

[Guest bluester2000]

Until I hear something other than "McNeil took a visit" repeated in a bunch of different places using a bunch of different words, I'm going to assume it was a chance to get out of the cold and into the sun. Rumors like this build momentum only because they keep getting repeated, and of course like usual the Observer is only about a week behind.

[Guest]

exactly, I wouldnt worry about McNeil

[Guest SirJohn]

I have found arguing recruiting can get one into a St. Valiantne day massacre situation.

 

Other then publish some Bucknuts, Bucket of Bullets from non other then Rivals.com trashing ND, in main media sources I do not engage in 'chat boards" which are indeed mostly rumors.

 

This was a direct feed from the Observer, which next to Official, ND reports is as close to a source as one can get, the students at ND themselves. It isn't coming from chat boards, media, paid boiler room inside info mags or fan sites.

 

Junior day was indeed the 14th but then these are students running a student newspaper in spare time, if a week behind. If I could have added to Teaser above (DID NOT RETURN OUR TELEPHONE CALL INSTEAD... OF OUT?) I would have, there's no room.

 

It creates a legitimate doubt, because If a recruit received 3 phone calls, one from coaches, one from his future student newspaper, and some shill for a paid mag I'd drop the paid mag and answer the first two.

 

Conversely, there can be any number of reasons he did not return a call.

 

I am more interested in Oglesby and his only being 16, so merely reported what is 'Recruting information from a Student Newspaper on Campus.

[Guest bluester2000]

As a student the Observer is a bit of a joke on campus. They try hard, and are generally well intentioned, but most lack the journalistic chops to make it in the real world of reporting. I presume they dug most of this stuff up from some website or another. They do very little investigative work themselves.

 

There report about McNeil is merely spewing what is already know. As far as him not calling them back, that doesn't bother me in the least. I'm sure he's in regular communication with Charlie and it may very well be a recruiting violation for a school association (like the Observer) to call and pressure a kid regarding his committment (including interviewing him about his visit to another school). That's merely speculation on my part.

 

The story provided some good stuff about Oglesby.

[Guest SirJohn]

No NCAA violation as it is not coming from OFFICIAL ND spokespersons or staff. Student's themselves, like us is permissable.

 

Personally I find student information invaluable. From A Frat site elsewhere here in DD I was able to report Rob Parris, I believe it was him?. was re habbing his hip under observation of Romeo Crannel at request of Coach Weis. It showed Weis great care.

[Guest SirJohn]

I agree with bluester who i admire and is our reigning recruiting guy. I only posted what was wide open. But this would hit a 'rumor board' anyway and best you heard it from an ND fan first. How it plays out? I'll never know till Febuary 1st.

 

With West, Walls Leonard and Brown no real sweat.

 

Now, Oglesby intrigues me.

[Guest bluester2000]

I'm not recruiting guru, that's for sure. There are guys here who seem to have CW's office bugged when it comes to recruits.

 

I feel like what I bring to the table is a nack with numbers, needs, depth charts etc. I can tell you we will have 50 scholarship players on offense vs. 44 on defense. I can tell you that I think losing Fasano won't hurt as much as Beidatsch's graduation (I feel confident in Carlson, Freeman, and Hiben - not to mention Reuland if he plays this season; meanwhile if Landri or Laws goes down our D-line will be in T-R-O-U-B-L-E).

 

I feel good about McNeil, and I think our problem comes from the kind of reporting the Observer does. The story doesn't reference where they heard that he was visiting Florida, so I'm presuming that they've heard this from the same places we've heard it (internet message boards, scout, mike frank, whatever). So I don't think them commenting about it shouldn't worry us.

 

Oglesby would be the first, and best step in next year's recruiting class to reloading the offensive line. While everyone we brought in this year has the ability to make it to the NFL, they have yet to prove they can hang. So it never hurts to have some coverage in the following year's class. In case Stewart can't get down to 330 or so or Webb doesn't pan out or whatever. We have insurance.

[Guest SirJohn]

I love you bluester. Only reported straight Observer story. Rumors are like F***s anyway.

 

Yes...I see we can have futre T R R O U B L E, if we donot recruit those as you say. (Your my guru anyway )

 

I think it will be solved somewhat 2007-08? As I reported at the AFCA (American Football Coaches Association) they sent out a questioner to all coaches about an earlier signing date for recruits. I think it's a 'no brainier' and will be adopted, most likely 2007 then submitted to NCAA.

 

Being realistic, **ALL** the Coaches are P**** O** with kids verbing and then visiting other schools. Charlie, personality wise, has little patience with kids like these as demonstrated many times 2005.

 

I personally feel it will pass and the signing Date will be somewhere in early December. Army Navy Game? Then they can quit shepherding them and really save time, money on the 2007 crop

 

Coach does not appreciate ND being chain jerked by anyone.

[Guest]

"According to Davie County (N.C.) head coach Doug Illing, Raeshon McNeil, a four-star cornerback and a new addition to the Scout.com Hot 100 list, is going to reaffirm his commitment to the Fighting Irish after a visit to Florida last weekend.

 

"He told me today that he is solid with Notre Dame," Illing said. "He and his family had a great visit to Florida, but he is going to stick with his commitment to Notre Dame.""

[Guest]

Here's what McNeil's coach has to say about his visit to Gainesville:

 

"The trip was just an opportunity to get his parents and grandparents involved and to experience the recruiting process," Illing said. "They've never done anything like that and he took his trip so early because he wanted to be at the Notre Dame-USC game and they couldn't go.

 

"But, he's 100-percent Notre Dame."

 

Now, to clear up some controversy about whether or not Florida extended an offer.

 

"Oh, yeah, the minute he walked out of the locker room at the All-American game," Illing said about whether Florida offered a scholarhship. "Florida and Georgia both."

 

Georgia told Raeshon that he'd have a scholarship waiting for him and if he was interested all he had to do was call. They didn't pursue him. Obviously, McNeil didn't call. He didn't call Florida either, but the Gators persisted and that's what led to the visit.

 

Raeshon McNeil will sign a Letter of Intent next Wednesday to play football at the University of Notre Dame. He'll join teammates, Logan Buchanan (North Carolina) and Jonathan Mayfield (Richmond) in a ceremony in the school's media center

[Guest SirJohn]

SI Stewart Mandrell

 

Some other coaches weigh in on these matters

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Redefining 'commitment'

11th-hour changes becoming common in recruiting

Posted: Tuesday January 24, 2006 3:17PM; Updated: Tuesday January 24, 2006 7:01PM

 

 

Miami's Larry Coker had his quarterback of the future ... until the recruit changed his mind in favor of Penn State.

Bob Rosato/SI

 

 

On the various Web sites that track such things, Pat Devlin had been listed as a Miami commitment for nearly seven months. Just three weeks ago, the Parade All-America from Exton, Pa., told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, "I'm committed to Miami 100 percent."

 

But in the turbulent game of college recruiting, the word "commitment" doesn't always take on the same binding definition as it does in the real world. No one knows that better right now than Hurricanes coach Larry Coker. Last weekend, his 100-percent committed quarterback -- the fourth-best QB prospect in the country, according to Scout.com -- took an official visit to Penn State, where he was reportedly serenaded by students chanting his name while attending the Nittany Lions' basketball game against Ohio State.

 

The son of two PSU alums (his mother was a Nittany Lions cheerleader), it seems Devlin started to have second thoughts about his pending decision after Miami fired its offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, Dan Werner -- the coach who recruited Devlin -- following a 40-3 loss to LSU in the Peach Bowl. On Monday night, he informed coaches from both schools of his new "commitment": Penn State.

 

It was a familiar situation for both schools. Like Devlin, Anthony Morrelli, the Nittany Lions' projected starting quarterback next season, had been committed to another school, Pittsburgh, for several months before taking a last-minute visit to Happy Valley. And just last year, Derek Shaw, a quarterback from California who had committed to Miami the previous summer, also reversed course in mid-January and instead signed with Arizona State. The year before that, Miami pulled off a similar heist of its own, landing Pennsylvania running back Andrew Johnson -- who'd been committed to Pittsburgh since July -- on signing day.

 

Though such 11th-hour reversals are still far from the norm, they've become prevalent enough that coaches are spending nearly as much time re-recruiting their committed prospects as they are chasing the remaining undecided ones in these final, frantic days before national signing day next Wednesday, the first date prospects can sign official letters-of-intent.

 

"As a recruiter you have to be on your toes, because there are always people taking swipes at your guys," said one major-college assistant. "The recruiting process doesn't stop when someone commits. You have to stay on them until they sign."

 

Nearly 80 percent of Scout.com's Hot 100 players have already announced their college commitments, but that doesn't mean they're not still being recruited by other schools. A particularly high-profile switch took place last year when Louisiana quarterback Ryan Perrilloux, one of the nation's top overall prospects, insisted for months he was committed to Texas, only to wind up taking visits to LSU and Mississippi State and eventually signing with the Tigers.

 

There was a time earlier this month when it appeared this year's top-rated quarterback, Arkansas-bound Mitch Mustain, might pull a similar move after briefly reopening his recruitment (Notre Dame was among his suitors), but he re-committed to the Razorbacks. Besides Devlin, however, there are a few other notable prospects causing their prospective coaches to lose sleep these days.

 

• Springdale, Ark., receiver Damian Williams, a high-school teammate of Mustain's, has been committed to Florida since August, but was spotted in Fayetteville last weekend. (The pair's high-school coach, Gus Malzahn, is now Arkansas' offensive coordinator). Asked by Scout.com whether he may switch allegiance to the Razorbacks, Williams said, "I don't know. There's a chance of anything, but I'm still committed to Florida."

 

• Another player who committed to the Gators, Virginia receiver Damon McDaniel, is scheduled to visit rival Florida State this weekend. The 'Noles, who need to replace recently dismissed receiver Fred Rouse, are also reportedly pursuing a recruit who committed to Michigan, Greg Matthews of Orlando, Fla. Meanwhile, Alcoa, Tenn., tight end Brandon Warren, a longstanding FSU commitment, has been getting the full-court press from Tennessee and will visit the Knoxville campus this weekend. Ole Miss is apparently still hot on the trail of two previously committed LSU prospects.

 

It may sound unethical for rival coaches to continue actively pursuing previously committed prospects, but in today's recruiting climate, anyone is considered fair game until that letter-of-intent gets faxed on Feb. 1.

 

"The reality is that no one is going to give up on players until the very end -- that's just the world we live in today," said the coach. "Once a kid commits, you check in with him from time to time to see how he's doing and if he's having any doubts about his commitment."

 

Many coaches think much of the last-minute chaos for both coaches and prospects could be avoided if the NCAA had an early-signing period for football -- perhaps before the start of the season in September -- like it does for basketball.

 

"That would help," said the coach. "You could lock down guys and not worry about them going elsewhere. They would be signed, sealed and delivered when they committed."

 

In light of Devlin and Shaw's reversals, Miami -- the school which produced Jim Kelly, Bernie Kosar and Vinnie Testaverde -- finds itself in the unusual position of scrambling for quarterbacks. Starter Kyle Wright, a rising junior, and backup Kirby Freeman, entering his sophomore season, were the only scholarship QBs on the roster in 2005, and the 'Canes couldn't afford to go another year without signing one.

 

As a result, Daniel Stegall, a largely unheralded prospect who had committed to Arkansas State, saw his future change practically overnight last weekend. According to the Palm Beach Post, the Greenwood, Ark., native -- who is not ranked among Scout.com's top 100 quarterbacks -- received a call last Friday from new UM quarterbacks coach Todd Berry, who had recruited Stegall in his previous job as offensive coordinator at Louisiana-Monroe. By the next day, Coker was calling with a scholarship offer, which Stegall accepted on Sunday.

 

It's anyone's guess whether the 6-foot-2, 175-pound Stegall, a combination run/pass player who was also recruited by Air Force and Navy, will turn out to be a diamond-in-the-rough or scout-team fodder. Either way, Miami will clearly be under pressure next recruiting season to sign at least one, if not two elite quarterback prospects, which makes Coker's impending offensive coordinator hire that much more important.

[Guest SirJohn]

I wish to clarify a few matters.

 

I do not know nor do I care where rumors originate, from what brain or anus they leak out. All I can say is once in a **publication** then it is 'news.' I get mine from publications no paid sites.

 

I do recall Jay over at Blue Gray Sky, certainly a good ND Fan is he. In print more or less he would not comment on those early Mustain 'rumors,' or bend himself and I suppose BGS to that level.

 

I was quite amused that by some 24 hours when it was all out in mainstream media he did a 360 degree turn and was chomping on the rumor he previously detested like he was an expert on the matter. He never explained why the sudden turnabout to my knowledge. In here at DD then, I said more on less "to bury your head in the sand and pretend' is really silly.

 

These things go on in coaching.

 

I'm 100% behind bluester and his sources, but not to report what is current is silly as Jay was at BGS if not wrong on my part. Ditto broker or anyone else here at DD.

 

Suddenly tonight ......there is OLD ND NATION with "NEWS"....a Report on McNeal "STICKING WITH THE IRISH" Click in and it's Irish Eyes and will cost you $99.95.

 

Everyone calm down here, it out there so look at it.

[Rockne3d]

We have no worries with McNeil and I feel strongly that Oglesby will be Irish and be a phenomenal OT. this kid is going to be something special, very special.

[Guest SirJohn]

If broker says it that's good enough for me. I only printed what was streaming out there.

 

It really floored me to hear Oglesby was 16, he's not done growing yet