Stoppin’ by for a Visit – January 21st-22nd
There is a significant difference between the group of prospects which took official visits the weekend of January 14th-15th, and the group coming in this weekend … None of those visiting Boulder this weekend have made commitments to other schools.
Last weekend, Colorado hosted players who had already given their verbal commitments to such schools as Michigan, Arizona State, Texas A&M, and Boise State. This weekend, however, only one of those players making their official visit to Boulder has given a verbal commitment, and that is quarterback Stevie Dorman, who committed to Colorado on January 14th.
A list of players checking out the Boulder campus this weekend include:
Running backs
Malcolm Creer
The Stats … Creer is a 5’11”, 200-pound cornerback from Pacific Palisades, California. He runs a 4.61 in the 40, and has a 3.0 GPA. Creer is considered a two-star prospect by Scout.com; the 121st-best running back prospect in the nation. Rivals, meanwhile, has yet to rate Creer. In his senior season, Creer helped turnaround a team which had gone 1-9 in 2009 to a team which reached the semi-finals in 2010. Creer rushed for over 1,300 yards, scoring 19 touchdowns on only 120 carries. Creer also returned three kickoffs for scores, and posted a record 108-yard interception return for a touchdown. Rivals bio Scout bio
The Status … Creer is uncommitted. While he only has offers at this time from Colorado and Idaho State, a number of schools have expressed an interest. Creer had a visit to Nebraska scheduled before Colorado offered, and since Nebraska had yet to tender an offer, Creer cancelled the trip. Creer may also take an offiicial visit to Washington next weekend, but an offer from the Huskies may depend upon whether Washington can lure four-star running back Bishop Sankey away from a soft verbal commit to Washington State. “It’s just a numbers game with them,” Creer told Rivals.com about his Washington offer. “They’re waiting to see if this person commits, to see if they can give me a scholarship. I’m hoping they offer, but right now Colorado is on top.”
The Skinny … Colorado may be able to obtain a commitment from Creer this weekend, unless Washington is prepared to tender Creer an offer. Creer met with Eric Bieniemy earlier this week, and came away impressed. “He said I kind of broke his hand a little bit, like Adrian Peterson,” Creer told BuffaloSportsNews.net about his meeting with Bieniemy. “I didn’t even have words to express how happy I was (to be extended an offer by Bieniemy),” said Creer. “I wasn’t expecting it all from coach. I was just happy and very, very excited.” As for his trip to Boulder, “I just want to see everything. I just want to see what the campus is surrounded by and how the students are. I want to see Ralphie.”
That can probably be arranged …
Rashad Hall
The Stats … Hall is a 6’0″, 195-pound running back from Oak Ridge Military Academy in Oak Ridge, North Carolina. He runs a 4.62 in the 40 yard dash. Hall is considered to be a two-star prospect by Rivals, but is not rated by Scout. This past season, Hall rushed for over 1,000 yards and 12 touchdowns. In 2009, as a junior at Jefferson Forest high in Forest, Virginia, Hall accounted for nearly 1,600 yards of total offense and 13 touchdowns. Rivals bio Scout bio
The Status … Hall is uncommitted. On Friday morning, neither recruiting service was showing any offers for Hall. Later in the day, however, Hall’s status was updated to include offers from from Oregon, California, Nevada, and Washington State. “I still haven’t figured out why Rivals.com has Rashad as a tw0-star prospect, because he is a four-star prospect,” Oak Ridge head coach Otis Yelverton told BuffStampede.com. “I have been doing this long enough to know what a four-star recruit looks like. I have sent five kids to Cal, three to Oregon, one to Washington State, one to Arizona State, one to Penn State … Rashad is a special talent.”
The Skinny … Hall went from being a successful junior year, in which he accounted for over 1,600 yards of offense at his old high school, to an unrated, un-offered senior year (at least until Friday morning). By his own statements (“I just wanted more opportunities, and to be able to work more on my academics,” Hall said about his move to the Oak Ridge Military Academy), Hall may be construed as an eligibility risk. Still, according to Rivals, the Oak Ridge Military Academy has a 99 percent college acceptance rate for its graduates since 1991, so we’ll see …
Jermaine Clark
The Stats … Clark is 6’2″, 205-pound athlete from Oak Ridge Military Academy in Oak Ridge, North Carolina. He runs a 4.6 in the 40 yard dash. Clark is considered to be a two-star prospect by Rivals, but is not rated by Scout. Clark is so far off the radar that Scout doesn’t even has his name spelled correctly, and has Clark listed as a RE/DE. Clark is reportedly being recruited by Colorado as an athlete. “Jermaine is about 6’2″, 205 pounds. He is a very versatile player,” Clark’s high school coach, Otis Yelverton, told BuffStampede.com. “He played running back, receiver, a little linebacker, and a little safety for us. He is a good, smart player.” Rivals bio Scout bio
The Status … Clark is uncommitted. Clark transferred to the Oak Ridge Military Academy last spring, coming from R.J. Reynolds high school in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. According to Rivals.com, and Clark’s high school coach, Otis Yelverton, Clark has offers from Colorado, Washington State, Utah, and Wyoming.
The Skinny … A real question mark. While academics may be an issue with Clark as they may be with Hall, Clark does not have the resume Hall has, including the reported interest from a number of BCS schools. While Clark’s size is attractive as a potential fullback, if Clark is extended an offer by Colorado this weekend, there may be legitimate concerns that the Colorado staff is now looking at players which must objectively be considered to be a “reach”.
One other side note … Rashad Clark and Jermaine Clark are not only teammates, they are cousins.
Wide Reciever
Devin Lucien
The Stats … Lucien is a 6’1″, 189-pound wide receiver from Encino, California. He runs a 4.49 in the 40 yard dash. Lucien is considered to be a four-star prospect by both Rivals and Scout. Rivals ranks Lucien as the 22nd-best wide receiver in the nation (and 190th-best player overall), while Scout ranks Lucien as the 44th-best wide receiver in the country. Lucien had 71 receptions for 1,290 yards and 18 touchdowns his senior season, earning first-team all-league honors. Lucient was invited to participate in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl January 8th. Rivals bio Scout bio
The Status … Lucien is uncommitted. The popular wide receiver has taken official visits to UCLA, Arizona State, and Kentucky, and will visit either Miami or Cal next weekend. Lucien has offers from over a dozen BCS schools, including five schools from the Pac-12, along with other BCS schools like Nebraska, Pittsburgh, Texas A&M, and Illinois. While Colorado is facing an uphill climb in the race for Lucien’s services, the Buffs are still in the running. After his official visit to UCLA last weekend, Lucien was interviewed by BruinBlitz.com. Despite the UCLA audience to which he was speaking, Lucien had great things to say about Colorado. “Colorado’s coaching staff is amazing,” Lucien said. “I get along them all very well. They are just great people. Coach Bobby Kennedy, the new receivers coach, is a great guy. Coach Jon Embree is probably one of the coolest coaches that I have met … Colorado is another school (like UCLA) that is trying to go from rock bottom to the top … I’m excited about Colorado.”
The Skinny … With Lake Koa Ka’ai off the visit list (trip cancelled due to illness, and not re-scheduled), Lucien is the biggest prize for the Colorado coaching staff this weekend. Not only is Lucien a four-star player, he fills a position need, and helps to re-establish the all-important Los Angeles pipeline to Boulder. Cal is making a late push for Lucien, who may cancel his trip to Miami next weekend so that he can take an official visit to Berkeley January 28th. Lucien is not expected to make a commitment until January 31st, two days before signing day.
Defensive End
Juda Parker
The Stats … Parker is a 6’2″, 245-pound defensive end from Honolulu, Hawai’i. Parker is considered to be a three-star prospect by both Rivals and Scout. Rivals ranks Parker as the 28th-best defensive end prospect in the nation, the Hawai’i Defensive Player of the Year, and the 2nd-best player overall coming out of Hawai’i this season. Scout lists Parker as the 36th-best defensive end in the country. Like Lucien, Parker was invited to participate in the U.S. Army All-American bowl, where he impressed the scouts. Rivals reported that Parker “may have been the hardest worker in the camp over all three days … Parker was almost unstoppable coming off the edge during lineman one-on-ones.” Rivals bio Scout bio
The Status … Parker is uncommitted, though he was a Tennessee commit last summer. “I actually have family in Tennessee, so it wouldn’t be too far away from home,” Parker told VolQuest.com last July. “I have always given the SEC some thought, because the SEC is the most dominant conference.” After the season, though, Tennessee stopped recruiting Parker (“They stopped calling me, so I guess we have parted ways,” Parker said January 2nd). Now, Parker has his own final four – Oregon State, Hawai’i, Baylor, and Colorado. Parker has taken official visits to Hawai’i and Oregon State, and may take an official visit to Washington next weekend. “It was really good for me to see Corvallis myself,” Parker said of his visit last weekend. “I walked away impressed.”
The Skinny … Parker’s commitment may come down to a battle of teammates – St. Louis high teammates, that is. Fellow Hawaiians Brandon Hardin and Devon Kell acted as Parker’s hosts while visiting Oregon State, and St. Louis high school teammate Na’alii Robins (a two-star defensive end) has already committed to play for Oregon State. “I always knew that there was a connection to Hawai’i at Oregon State,” Parker told BeaverBlitz.com, “and it makes me feel like a home away from home.” Meanwhile, Colorado, with Hawaiian connections of its own, has Paulay Asiata on its list of players taking official visits this weekend. If Buff fans are hoping for another Hawaiian commit to go along with K.T. Tuumalo, it may take a double dose of St. Louis high players to get it done. “Paulay and I are real close,” Parker was quoted as saying last month. “We have come a long way together. We have grown up going to church together and playing football together.”
Offensive line
Paulay Asiata
The Stats … Asiata is a 6’5″, 290-pound offensive lineman from Honolulu, Hawai’i. Asiata is considered to be a four-star prospect by Scout; a three-star prospect by Rivals. Scout lists Asiata as the 21st-best offensive tackle prospect in the nation, while Rivals lists him as the best overall prospect coming out of the state of Hawai’i this year. Asiata played both guard positions this past season, and was a first-team All-conference player. Rivals bio Scout bio
The Status … Asiata is uncommitted, though he does seem to favor Washington. Asiata has offers from at least seven Pac-12 schools, including USC, Oregon, and UCLA, but it is the Huskies which seem to be the Buffs’ greatest competition. “I’d give it a 10,” Asiata told Dawgman.com after his December trip to Seattle. “It felt like home.” Asiata also told BuffStampede.com, “I think Washington is my number one school right now … I haven’t committed to them yet, but I think I am going to go there … I made a commitment to go visit Colorado, but I still think I am going to go to Washington.” Asiata took one other official visit, to Arizona, but did not come away impressed.
The Skinny … There were stories earlier this week that the Colorado coaching staff had to fight with the Academic committee just to be able to allow Asiata to take his official visit. If such is the case, and the University is particularly wary right now about taking players which are on the margin academically, then it might be true that the coaching staff fought to get Asiata to Boulder just to make sure that Juda Parker, the true target this weekend, would also make the trip.
Asiata would be a nice “get”, and picking up the No. 1 player from Hawai’i would bode well for future recruitments, but the fact is that Colorado already has two offensive line commitments from this class (Marc Mustoe and Alex Kelley – not to mention grey-shirt Alex Lewis), so taking a flyer on an academic risk might be too high a price to pay for the new coaching staff.
Defensive Back
Gregory Henderson
The Stats … Henderson is 5’10”, 180-pound cornerback from Norco, California, who has been timed at 4.49 in the 40 yard dash. Henderson is considered to be a two-star prospect by Scout, and is not rated by Rivals. This past season, Henderson had seven interceptions, and returned two punts for touchdowns. Brandon Huffman, the West recruiting coordinator for Scout.com, reported that Henderson is “a smidge undersized, but he’s got a good nose for the ball, plays the ball well, and will come up and hit you. He’s good in run support, and strong in pass defense. Good, smooth backpedal and sees the field well.” Rivals bio Scout bio
The Status … Henderson is uncommitted. Henderson holds scholarship offers from New Mexico and Air Force, but Washington has also expressed an interest. Henderson did not hear from Colorado coaches until Monday, January 17th, and received a scholarship offer the next day. On Thursday, Henderson met with Colorado offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy, and Friday was on a plane to Boulder. “It was a great meeting, and I can’t wait to take my visit this weekend,” Henderson told BuffaloSportsNews.net. “I can already feel the love from the family of Buffaloes, and right now, I am very interested in Colorado.” This weekend is Henderson’s first official visit, and it may be his last. “I just want to see how the coaches and the players vibe with each other,” said Henderson. “I want to see about the education there, and how the campus looks. I’ve never been to Colorado before. So it’s going to be something new to me.”
The Skinny … Gregory Henderson may just be one of those “under the radar” players that the Colorado coaching staff will take a flyer on this recruiting cycle. If this were 2012, the recruitment of Henderson would be seen as a disappointment, as the Buff Nation will be looking for Colorado to be in the running for more high profile recruits. That being said, Henderson has decent size and speed, and he has experience as a return man. Colorado needs defensive back depth, and needs help in kick returns. Assuming that Henderson is not an academic risk, this could be a good pickup for the Buffs.
One official visitor no longer needs an introduction. Stevie Dorman is taking an official visit to Boulder this weekend, but his bio has already been posted under “CU 2011 Verbal Commitments” …
Stevie Dorman – QB
Just the facts … Committed January 14th … Dorman is a quarterback prospect from Somerset, Texas. He is 6’4, 215-pounds, and runs a 4.8 in the 40. Rivals bio Scout bio
What others say about Dorman … Here’s where it gets interesting. Dorman, despite being in the top ten in Texas high school history in most passing categories (more on that later), was not rated by either Scout or Rivals. Dorman’s coach at Somerset High was his grandfather, Sonny Detmer (who is, of course, also the father of Ty and Koy Detmer). Detmer told the Denver Post that the reason Dorman does not have a rating because he, Detmer, does not give out information to the rating services. “I’d rather have 10,000 yards than four stars anyday,” said Detmer. For it’s part, Scout.com evaluated Dorman this way: “A polished recruit who looks the part of an NFL quarterback … Does a good job on play fake, also drawing the defensive backs in … Great upside, he could start for quite a few teams as a freshman if needed”.
The numbers alone seem to back up the assesement of Scout and Sonny Detmer. This past season Dorman threw for 3,291 yards and 40 touchdowns in leading Somerset to a 10-3 record. In his three seasons as a starting quarterback, Dorman put up some gaudy numbers. He finished his career with 94 touchdown passes, good enough for sixth on the all-time list in Texas prep history (and two more than what Chase Daniel, who went on to star for Missouri, posted). Dorman had 9,352 career passing yards, fifth on the all-time list (and just eight yards ahead of one Colt McCoy). Dorman’s 597 completions also put him in fifth place on the all-time Texas prep list, just ahead of McCoy and uncle Koy Detmer.
Dorman had other offers from … no one? Neither recruiting services notes any other offers being made to Dorman. Smaller schools, like UNLV and North Texas reportedly had interest, but there is nothing about any offers from any BCS conference schools other than Colorado. When Colorado head coach said earlier this month that he was looking at a couple of “under the radar” quarterbacks to sign, he wasn’t kidding. Dorman and Burnette (below) are far below the two quarterbacks the Buffs had earlier commitments from, Nick Sherry and Brock Berglund, but we are going to give Embree and his coaches the benefit of the doubt on this one.
In his own words … “I had a blast during my senior season,” Dorman told BuffStampede.com last week. “We went to the quarterfinals for the first time in school history … Somerset had never gone that far before, and I became the all-time leading passer for the San Antonio area.” As to his strengths, “I think my strongest point … is that I knew the offense really, really well”, said the three-year starter. “I often called audibles.”
Dorman is excited about becoming a Buff. “I like coach Embree and coach Bieniemy, and I felt like the West Coast offense there would be the best fit,” said Dorman. “From what I’ve heard, I hear the two offenses (what he ran at Somerset, and what the Buffs will run in Boulder) is almost an exact match. I just have to get the terminology down and I should be fine.”