re: Class of 2018 Recruiting MEGATHREAD: So Long Old Friend Edition

quote:

---

Penei Sewell, OT, 4-star

High School; Hometown: Desert Hills; Saint George, UT

Size: 6'5", 349 lbs.

After initially announcing he would commit and sign on Dec. 20, Penei Sewell delayed his decision and released a top four of Alabama, Oregon, Utah and USC. The lineman has taken all five official visits, so the Sewell is plenty familiar with his finalists. Alabama has a great chance, but we're going with Oregon.

Prediction: Oregon

---

Sucks to lose out on JJ, Waddle and Sewell. All three would have been headed to Bama until the coaching changes happened. Likely DWA too. Still this class can be salvaged if Bama can keep their current commitments and land a few others.

1. Brown- Probably a 60% chance he signs, could have signed during the ESP, but did not.

2. Walker- Who knows with this one, 50% chance

3. Jackson- 60%, same deal as Brown

4. Ross- 70%, Clemson going to be tough to beat

5. Petit-Frere- really no clue here, 50%

6. Taylor-Stuart- Got to have him with everyone Bama is losing in the secondary, 50%

7. Langham- 99%, he is Bama's to lose. Not a instant impact player, but if he sticks with Bama, he will be a solid player in a fer years.

Who knows where the 8th and final spot will go, but if Bama lands the players listed above, it will be a QB or little Ruggs. I'm going with Ruggs, who has more upside if he will stick with the program.

8. Ruggs- 99%

If Parker gets a spot in this years class and doesn't grey or blueshirt, things have not gone well in the last month of recruiting.

quote:

---

5-Star CB Tyson Campbell

High School; Hometown: American Heritage; Fort Lauderdale, FL

Size: 6'2.5", 180 lbs.

Tyson Campbell is the No. 3 cornerback in the country and isn't even the highest-rated player at the position on his high school team. No wonder American Heritage won a state title.

Alabama, Georgia, Miami and Ohio State are all working to attract the 5-star corner, but the local school might be the leader. The 'Canes hold a commitment from 4-star Nesta Silvera and are pursuing 4-star Andrew Chatfield—those are two of Campbell's teammates.

Plus, Miami defensive backs coach Mike Rumph, who coached at Heritage before moving to his alma mater, is Campbell's lead recruiter. This would be a massive victory on the trail for Mark Richt and Co., especially if he beats out Georgia.

Prediction: Miami

---

quote:

---

5-Star CB Isaac Taylor-Stuart

High School; Hometown: Helix; San Diego, CA

Size: 6'2", 187 lbs.

The final stretch to signing day will be a busy month for Isaac Taylor-Stuart. As of now, he's slated to visit USC, Georgia and Tennessee. Alabama could receive his fifth official trip.

If that happens, the 5-star could be an immediate contributor for the greatest dynasty of this era. The Crimson Tide have a couple of senior starters and are expected to lose versatile All-American Minkah Fitzpatrick to the NFL, too.

But the draw of nearby USC could keep Taylor-Stuart out of the SEC.

Prediction: USC

---

quote:

---

In other words, were getting nobody. Lol

---

Looks that way.

We'll just have to wrap ourselves up in our national championship blankets and sleep through NSD next month.

quote:

---

Grades: C

---

quote:

---

C+ Grade

Richard Gouraige, OT (Florida): The 4-star wasn't alone in this regard, but Team Highlight defensive ends occasionally overmatched Gouraige. He'll be a key player for Florida soon, though.

Christian Meadows, OT (Florida State): The FSU-bound lineman joined Gouraige with intermittent struggles up front. Meadows was badly beaten on a sack by West Virginia pledge Dante Stills.

Steve Stephens, S (Oregon): Stephens assisted on a tackle but also unsuccessfully tried to undercut a pass in coverage. Instead, it resulted in a 31-yard touchdown for Spotlight.

C Grade

Jalen Preston, WR (Texas A&M): He eventually reeled in a catch for 15 yards, but he also dropped passes on consecutive snaps.

Kalon Gervin, CB (Michigan State): Though the cornerback played tight coverage on a downfield pass once, he also bit hard on a double move. Gervin recovered to make a tackle but allowed a 41-yard gain.

C- Grade

Nicholas Petit-Frere, OT (uncommitted): No matter the caliber of the prospect, it's extremely difficult to play offensive line at the Under Armour or Army games. Petit-Frere had a rough time trying to stop a couple of elite defensive ends. He's still an excellent talent—and recovered a fumble.

Jacob Copeland, WR (uncommitted): The playmaking skills are obvious. Copeland ran 15 yards backward and across the field to pick up a couple of extra feet on his first reception. But he'll need to learn when a seven-yard gain is a good play. He also lost a fumble on a punt return.

---

quote:

---

Grades: A

---

quote:

---

A+ Grade

Maurice Washington, RB: We'll have more on Washington shortly, but the game MVP put together a sensational display. He scored three touchdowns to lead Team Highlight.

Eyabi Anoma, DE (Alabama): Anoma made life miserable for Spotlight offensive lineman. The Alabama-bound rusher recorded two sacks and, unofficially, three pressures.

Dorian Thompson-Robinson, QB (UCLA): Though his final line read 7-of-15, that didn't reflect his accuracy. Receivers dropped three on-target balls, and one failed to track a well-thrown downfield pass. Thompson-Robinson snapped a gorgeous strike to Washington on a wheel route for a touchdown.

Coynis Miller, DT (Auburn): Miller tallied six stops and contributed in a variety of ways. He registered one sack, quickly recognized and ended a quarterback draw and made a tackle on special teams.

Merlin Robertson, LB (uncommitted): The 6'3", 241-pound linebacker made his presence felt throughout the contest. He notched a game-high seven tackles, making five solo stops.

A Grade

Brenton Cox Jr., DE (Georgia): The 5-star was nearly perfect, recording three sacks for Team Highlight and unofficially adding another pressure. However, he also jumped offside once.

Rosendo Louis, LB (South Carolina): A late flip to Will Muschamp's team, Louis made South Carolina proud. He accumulated six tackles with one impressive stuff at the line of scrimmage and also forced a fumble.

Evan McPherson, K (Florida): We've got love for specialists, too. McPherson knocked home a pair of extra points and successfully executed an onside kick late in the fourth quarter. He did get hurdled on a kickoff return, but we applaud the tackling effort.

A- Grade

Xavier Williams, WR (Alabama): First of all, shooters shoot. Williams wants to take Demi Lovato to prom. Anyway, the wideout caught a 31-yard touchdown and ended with two receptions for 46 yards.

Brevin Jordan, TE (Miami): A potential Day 1 starter at Miami, Jordan grabbed three passes for a Highlight-best 71 yards. His 48-yard catch-and-run set up Small's decisive field goal. The minor knocks on Jordan were slipping on his first reception and dangerously carrying the ball on his long gain.

Jake Camarda, P (Georgia): The trajectory of his kicks seemed awfully low, but a couple of friendly bounces helped Camarda notch 56- and 47-yard punts.

---

Man I hope we can circle back around to Coynis Miller before NSD.

quote:

---

5-Star OT Nicholas Petit-Frere

Hometown/School: Tampa, Florida/Berkeley Prep

Height, weight: 6'6", 272 pounds

Ranking: No. 17 overall (No. 3 OT)

Nicholas Petit-Frere is the highest-rated uncommitted player in the Under Armour All-America Game and the third-highest unpledged player in the 2018 recruiting class. The still-growing pass protector is uncertain about his destination, as Michigan and Notre Dame are the only schools to land an official visit so far.

The other schools fighting hard to land him are Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Florida State and Miami (Florida). Three of those teams will land a visit from Petit-Frere, but all remain in the hunt.

Prediction: Michigan

Jim Harbaugh is pulling out all the stops to get Petit-Frere, following up official and in-home visits by having the Wolverines conduct their Outback Bowl practices at his high school. Per Josh Henschke of 247Sports, Petit-Frere was able to "see firsthand what his potential position coaches could offer."

---

quote:

---

4-star WR Justyn Ross

Hometown/School: Phenix City, Alabama/Central

Height, weight: 6'4", 201 pounds

Ranking: 59th

Prediction: Clemson

Alabama and Clemson's Sugar Bowl clash on New Year's Day probably didn't influence Ross' decision as much as his official to Clemson did in November. Now everyone else is playing catch up, with Alabama as well as Auburn lining up visits for later this month.

Eighty percent of 247Sports' Crystal Ball predictions have him destined for Clemson.

---