The oral commitment decision for those who follow the future of college football is as important as it is before wearing these college colors.
Over the weekend, big calls were made from every method in the sport, as high school recruits, junior college talent and potential transfer portals put an end to their individual recruitment processes.
The moment around the wave of decisions should not be a big surprise either, considering that this was the first official visit of the weekend since June. This is the time of year when college coaches routinely embrace great talent on campus, through visits and college camps – so naturally many freshmen are given the green light to commit and commit.
Working from the most experienced prospects to talent in preparation for another year in high school football to be played, key broadcasters have chosen to exit the NCAA transfer portal at Charlie Jones and Koy Moore. The duo made the moves to play in the same conference while playing in the same position. Everyone is sprayed at previous stops.
Jones, who entered the portal just two weeks ago, made a national mark as a comeback last fall in Iowa, where he was selected by All Big-Ten. Also a stable receiver with 323 yards on 21 receptions in 2021, he will now refine the hue of black and gold and will dress for Purdue, according to a report.
Before deciding on the weekend, Moore was one of the longest-running prospects for a portal. The former LSU winner, who shone like a true freshman when the Tigers were rebuilt in 2020, entered the portal in October, not after the sign was on the wall for Ed Orjeron’s staff at Baton Rouge. There was not much fuss about Moore’s name regarding his new destination until he scheduled a visit to Auburn. The weekend trip ended with the public announcement of the Louisiana native’s decision at the SEC, reuniting with former LSU teammate and AU quarterback TJ Finley.
Other decisions on the portal over the weekend included broad-based South Carolina successor Rico Powers, who is hiring Deion Sanders and Jackson, Illinois quarterback Matt Robinson, who is hiring to return to his native California to play for Fresno. Alabama player Dane Shore, who announced plans to reunite with Jim Mora at UConn. Several players also entered the portal over the weekend as a seemingly endless cycle of color-changing college players continued.
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One of the most sought-after prospects for junior college came off the board on Saturday in Roman Rashada. The distinguished defender of Diablo Valley College considered Miami, Virginia Tech and Ole Miss before choosing the rebels. He took an official visit to Oxford this week, along with his brother and top-class quarterback of 2023 Jaden Rashada, finishing his hiring shortly thereafter. Missouri and Tennessee added junior college commitments this week.
The main path to gaining talent in college football is still being pulled out of the preparatory ranks. This weekend was a sharp reminder with the volume. About 16 Power 5 programs have added at least one rookie to the public since the first official weekend visit of the month began. Pete, Arizona, Illinois and Virginia have added many newcomers, with the Panthers making six new promises on board after coming in over the weekend with just a pair.
The upcoming P5 program made the most headlines for recruitment over the weekend, at least in terms of decision-making. Cincinnati, which will, of course, head to the Big 12 in 2023, added a staggering eight verbal engagements over the weekend. Bearcats had built one of the bigger classes before that point, so doubling the total in a few days gives Luke Fickel’s program the third biggest promise so far in the ’23 cycle with 16 (Texas Tech has 20, Notre Dame has 17).
Many of the Bearcats’ engagements naturally had options for playing in Power 5 conferences, but one of the promises was a previous bet in those ranks at Daeh McCullough. Indiana’s previous commitment and local prospects returned to the recruitment market on May 19, and the trip to Cincinnati was arranged shortly thereafter. The closure of the defender, who has revived interest from Penn State, Miami and others, is the latest example of the program’s ability to compete for the best talent. This is the type of recruitment win, à la SI99 pass rusher Mario Eugenio in ’22, who supported the UC king among Group 5 programs on the field.
Although the oral commitments move the most, it should be noted that the first weekend of the month’s visit was well played in the blue blood programs in sports. Arch Manning topped the weekend in Georgia with his first official visit, while UGA unveiled all-white uniforms through rookie photo shoots. Clemson hosted perhaps the largest group of official visitors of all time, as about 30 recruits spent the weekend in the city with money from the ACC. Alabama, Texas A&M, Auburn, Nebraska and Wisconsin are likely to host talents who will be added to the to-do list later.
Expect more traffic in June and July before the initial one Sports Illustrated Debut in the team recruiting rankings in August.
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