By the way, please don't post in these nugget threads. If you have a comment or question, start a new thread and we'll address it there. Thanks for your cooperation in advance.
On to the nuggets: Get used to the following sentence: Scholarships are tight -- really, really tight.
For those of you who still believe Ole Miss is somehow indebted to Ed Orgeron, ignore the following sentence and skip ahead to the rest of these nuggets. There is a human face to the APR hit Ole Miss will absorb in February; actually, there are three faces and those players would have really been able to help this recruiting class.
As Nick Saban so often says, however, “It is what it is,” and so Ole Miss enters the final two months of the recruiting season knowing full well that it will have to turn away some prospects that it otherwise would have been thrilled to sign.
The stretch run in recruiting starts this weekend, when Ole Miss entertains a handful of official visitors, including junior college cornerbacks Mike Harris and Dequan Menzie, junior college tight end Brandon Mosley, junior college defensive tackle Josh Tillman and Hargrave offensive tackle Terrance Hackney.
According to multiple sources, Hackney is the Rebels’ to lose, and while I can’t imagine Ole Miss not accepting his commitment when he eventually offers it (I’d guess that’s coming some time in the next 10 days), there are some interesting scenarios coming into play involving offensive lineman. And remember, scholarships are tight -- really, really tight. More on that in a bit.
Harris is still Alabama’s to lose. The Tide is clearly slow-playing the Miami native. The rumor in recruiting circles is Alabama is waiting to see what happens with Rivals100 cornerback John Fulton before it decides whether or not to take Harris. Alabama offensive coordinator Jim McElwain calls Harris every Wednesday, and if the Tide decides to take Harris, he’s theirs. Before anyone criticizes Alabama for this recruiting strategy, know that everyone does it; the Tide is just great at it.
Menzie’s situation is interesting, as it’s becoming apparent that he’s at least somewhat enamored with Ole Miss. He’s already visited Tennessee, and the Vols appeared to be early leaders along with North Carolina. However, Menzie has two eyes and can read, and he can see Ole Miss’ depth chart at cornerback. If he’s any sort of player at all, he can get on the field in Oxford next fall. It’s hard to imagine Ole Miss not accepting Menzie’s commitment, but there are a couple of scenarios in which that could happen. Again, scholarships are tight -- very, very tight.
Mosley currently lists Auburn as his leader, but the Tigers are recruiting him as an offensive tackle. Ole Miss is recruiting the Georgia native as a tight end, which is the position he wants to play at the college level. Gerald Harris will play his final game on Jan. 2 in Dallas, and E.J. Epperson just might be moving full-time to fullback. However, if Ole Miss were to accept a commitment from Mosley, that would mean reducing the number at another position. And again, scholarships are tight -- very, very tight.
I’ve heard varying things on Tillman, so I’ll wait until there’s something more concrete to go on. For now, it sounds like he’s a bit of a backup plan, but I could be reading that wrong.
In short, there’s a lot happening on the recruiting trail, and it doesn’t appear that Saturday’s loss at Mississippi State is having much of a detrimental impact on the Rebels. It looks like Monticello, Miss., four-star athlete Matthew Wells is probably headed to Mississippi State, but the Rebels will be in-home Wednesday. In short, it’s not over.
Other than Wells, who was wavering long before the Egg Bowl, none of the Rebels’ other targets appear to have been impacted by the loss. The Madison Central defensive tackle duo of Bryon Bennett and Carlton Martin are going to take other visits, but Ole Miss is clearly the leader for both. The Rebels also seem to feel very good about Hollandale defensive end Carlos Thompson and Macon wide receiver Vincent Sanders as well. The Rebels are also pushing for Hattiesburg wide receiver Robert Johnson, and the feeling on multiple fronts is, in the end, if Ole Miss wants him badly enough, the Rebels will land Johnson’s signature. But again, scholarships are tight -- very, very tight.
Ole Miss cornerbacks coach Chris Vaughn is in Florida this week. He’ll check in on commitments Eric Mitchell and Cliff Coleman while he’s there, primarily to make sure their academics are in order. Ole Miss can’t afford an academic casualty, and they sure can’t have one at cornerback. According to sources, a handful of names have re-emerged as possible targets. Cape Coral, Fla., cornerback Spencer Boyd, a Notre Dame commitment, has been in contact with the Rebels. So has Hollywood, Fla., cornerback Tony Grimes, who has been considered a strong Michigan lean for months. Dunnellon, Fla., cornerback Terrence Brooks, a Florida State commitment, is also believed to be exploring options given the shake-up in Tallahassee. He might be one to watch.
Speaking of Florida prospects, Ole Miss will likely bring in a handful next weekend. Miami linebacker Ralph Williams, a Tennessee commitment, will visit next weekend, as will Lakeland, Fla., linebacker Quayshawn Nealy, a long-time Rebel lean. Delray Beach, Fla., athlete Quadarias Mireles, who tried to commit to Ole Miss last month a day after suffering an ankle injury, will also visit next weekend. It appears Mireles is viewed as simply too talented to pass on, and I expect Ole Miss will sign him.
It appears Ole Miss has lost some ground with Miami defensive end Delvin Jones, a Tennessee commitment. He’s scheduled to visit Ole Miss on Dec. 11, but he’d have to be considered a long shot at this point.
Ole Miss safeties coach Kim Dameron will be in Hahnville, La., on Thursday to visit coveted running back Alfred Blue. Ole Miss’ chances with Blue were enhanced earlier this week when Memphis hired LSU running backs coach Larry Porter to replace Tommy West. Ole Miss seems to feel good about their chances with Blue, but I still think he’s LSU’s to lose.
Finally, all signs point toward Ole Miss landing coveted four-star junior college defensive end Wayne Dorsey. Dorsey plans to bring his mother to Oxford in the next couple of weeks, and that can only be viewed as a very positive sign. New Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher has made Dorsey a priority, but Ole Miss seems to be more concerned with North Carolina than with the Seminoles. Dorsey, a December graduate, would provide an immediate impact player at a position where Ole Miss loses three very good players after the Cotton Bowl.
There are a few other names that appear to be popping up, but we’ll wait until we have more concrete information to write about them.
This post was edited on 12/1 8:20 PM by Neal McCready
This post was edited on 12/1 8:52 PM by Colreb
On to the nuggets: Get used to the following sentence: Scholarships are tight -- really, really tight.
For those of you who still believe Ole Miss is somehow indebted to Ed Orgeron, ignore the following sentence and skip ahead to the rest of these nuggets. There is a human face to the APR hit Ole Miss will absorb in February; actually, there are three faces and those players would have really been able to help this recruiting class.
As Nick Saban so often says, however, “It is what it is,” and so Ole Miss enters the final two months of the recruiting season knowing full well that it will have to turn away some prospects that it otherwise would have been thrilled to sign.
The stretch run in recruiting starts this weekend, when Ole Miss entertains a handful of official visitors, including junior college cornerbacks Mike Harris and Dequan Menzie, junior college tight end Brandon Mosley, junior college defensive tackle Josh Tillman and Hargrave offensive tackle Terrance Hackney.
According to multiple sources, Hackney is the Rebels’ to lose, and while I can’t imagine Ole Miss not accepting his commitment when he eventually offers it (I’d guess that’s coming some time in the next 10 days), there are some interesting scenarios coming into play involving offensive lineman. And remember, scholarships are tight -- really, really tight. More on that in a bit.
Harris is still Alabama’s to lose. The Tide is clearly slow-playing the Miami native. The rumor in recruiting circles is Alabama is waiting to see what happens with Rivals100 cornerback John Fulton before it decides whether or not to take Harris. Alabama offensive coordinator Jim McElwain calls Harris every Wednesday, and if the Tide decides to take Harris, he’s theirs. Before anyone criticizes Alabama for this recruiting strategy, know that everyone does it; the Tide is just great at it.
Menzie’s situation is interesting, as it’s becoming apparent that he’s at least somewhat enamored with Ole Miss. He’s already visited Tennessee, and the Vols appeared to be early leaders along with North Carolina. However, Menzie has two eyes and can read, and he can see Ole Miss’ depth chart at cornerback. If he’s any sort of player at all, he can get on the field in Oxford next fall. It’s hard to imagine Ole Miss not accepting Menzie’s commitment, but there are a couple of scenarios in which that could happen. Again, scholarships are tight -- very, very tight.
Mosley currently lists Auburn as his leader, but the Tigers are recruiting him as an offensive tackle. Ole Miss is recruiting the Georgia native as a tight end, which is the position he wants to play at the college level. Gerald Harris will play his final game on Jan. 2 in Dallas, and E.J. Epperson just might be moving full-time to fullback. However, if Ole Miss were to accept a commitment from Mosley, that would mean reducing the number at another position. And again, scholarships are tight -- very, very tight.
I’ve heard varying things on Tillman, so I’ll wait until there’s something more concrete to go on. For now, it sounds like he’s a bit of a backup plan, but I could be reading that wrong.
In short, there’s a lot happening on the recruiting trail, and it doesn’t appear that Saturday’s loss at Mississippi State is having much of a detrimental impact on the Rebels. It looks like Monticello, Miss., four-star athlete Matthew Wells is probably headed to Mississippi State, but the Rebels will be in-home Wednesday. In short, it’s not over.
Other than Wells, who was wavering long before the Egg Bowl, none of the Rebels’ other targets appear to have been impacted by the loss. The Madison Central defensive tackle duo of Bryon Bennett and Carlton Martin are going to take other visits, but Ole Miss is clearly the leader for both. The Rebels also seem to feel very good about Hollandale defensive end Carlos Thompson and Macon wide receiver Vincent Sanders as well. The Rebels are also pushing for Hattiesburg wide receiver Robert Johnson, and the feeling on multiple fronts is, in the end, if Ole Miss wants him badly enough, the Rebels will land Johnson’s signature. But again, scholarships are tight -- very, very tight.
Ole Miss cornerbacks coach Chris Vaughn is in Florida this week. He’ll check in on commitments Eric Mitchell and Cliff Coleman while he’s there, primarily to make sure their academics are in order. Ole Miss can’t afford an academic casualty, and they sure can’t have one at cornerback. According to sources, a handful of names have re-emerged as possible targets. Cape Coral, Fla., cornerback Spencer Boyd, a Notre Dame commitment, has been in contact with the Rebels. So has Hollywood, Fla., cornerback Tony Grimes, who has been considered a strong Michigan lean for months. Dunnellon, Fla., cornerback Terrence Brooks, a Florida State commitment, is also believed to be exploring options given the shake-up in Tallahassee. He might be one to watch.
Speaking of Florida prospects, Ole Miss will likely bring in a handful next weekend. Miami linebacker Ralph Williams, a Tennessee commitment, will visit next weekend, as will Lakeland, Fla., linebacker Quayshawn Nealy, a long-time Rebel lean. Delray Beach, Fla., athlete Quadarias Mireles, who tried to commit to Ole Miss last month a day after suffering an ankle injury, will also visit next weekend. It appears Mireles is viewed as simply too talented to pass on, and I expect Ole Miss will sign him.
It appears Ole Miss has lost some ground with Miami defensive end Delvin Jones, a Tennessee commitment. He’s scheduled to visit Ole Miss on Dec. 11, but he’d have to be considered a long shot at this point.
Ole Miss safeties coach Kim Dameron will be in Hahnville, La., on Thursday to visit coveted running back Alfred Blue. Ole Miss’ chances with Blue were enhanced earlier this week when Memphis hired LSU running backs coach Larry Porter to replace Tommy West. Ole Miss seems to feel good about their chances with Blue, but I still think he’s LSU’s to lose.
Finally, all signs point toward Ole Miss landing coveted four-star junior college defensive end Wayne Dorsey. Dorsey plans to bring his mother to Oxford in the next couple of weeks, and that can only be viewed as a very positive sign. New Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher has made Dorsey a priority, but Ole Miss seems to be more concerned with North Carolina than with the Seminoles. Dorsey, a December graduate, would provide an immediate impact player at a position where Ole Miss loses three very good players after the Cotton Bowl.
There are a few other names that appear to be popping up, but we’ll wait until we have more concrete information to write about them.
This post was edited on 12/1 8:20 PM by Neal McCready
This post was edited on 12/1 8:52 PM by Colreb
