AJC College Sports Recruiting

Grayson defensive end Robert Nkemdiche, who is the first Georgia high school football player to be ranked as the No. 1 overall prospect in the nation, looked every bit as good as advertised in Grayson’s 25-17 win over Lowndes in the second round of the Class AAAAA playoffs on Friday night. Watch the video above for highlights of it.

Nkemdiche is a 6-foot-5, 270-pound junior who has Alabama, Florida, LSU, USC and Oregon as his top five, while UGA is “in the mix.” After Friday’s game, Nkemdiche told the AJC he was going to try to get over to UGA for an unofficial visit for Saturday’s Kentucky game but later said he ended up not making trip (Grayson is still in the playoffs). Nevertheless, it was still positive news for UGA, which was once considered a longshot to land Nkemdiche, even though Grayson and Athens are only 35 miles apart. Nkemdiche did visit the Bulldogs last weekend for the Auburn game — his only recruiting trip this fall other than to travel to rumored frontrunner …

Continue reading Does UGA have chance for Robert Nkemdiche? (UPDATED) »

If you follow college football recruiting, you may want to check out Friday’s game between Grayson and Lowndes. It will be broadcast live at 7:30 p.m. on WSB-TV’s digital channel 2.2, several local cable channels (Charter channel 126 and Comcast channel 248.) and via in the Internet on this link. A rebroadcast of Lowndes-Grayson also runs Friday at 1:06 AM on WSB-TV, Channel 2.

What’s so special about this game?

It’s the No. 1-ranked junior in the USA vs. the No. 1 senior in Georgia.

Grayson DE Robert Nkemdiche vs. Lowndes S-LB Josh Harvey-Clemons.

It’s unprecedented to see two Georgia recruiting superstars to play against each other in the same game – with the state never producing a national No. 1 overall before Nkemdiche. Now they won’t go head-to-head on Friday, but their paths will cross. Both 5-star recruits play both ways.

Robert Nkdemiche, the boy who would be king (AJC photo)

How good are these guys?

Let’s start with Nkemdiche or “the boy would who be king.” He may …

Continue reading Showdown of No. 1 prospects: Robert Nkemdiche vs. Josh Harvey-Clemons »

Other than to put UGA in position to reach the SEC championship game, maybe the best thing to come out of the team’s current eight-game winning streak is the positive impact it has had on recruiting.

Somehow, some way, UGA was able to weather a storm on the recruiting front after the dreadful 0-2 start and rampant speculation over Mark Richt’s future.

Not only were the Bulldogs able to keep a stranglehold on all 13 of their commitments from over the summer, they added two more during the season — 15 total now, with UGA projected to sign a full class of 25 in February.

“We’ve got some momentum with recruiting, and I think there’s going to be more to come,” Richt told the AJC on Wednesday. “Well, let’s say I hope there’s more to come.”

Mark Richt has weathered a storm on the recruiting front after an 0-2 start (AJC)

The last few months have been a recruiting whirlwind for Richt. The 0-2 start was so intense and worrisome for recruiting that UGA’s top commitment, 5-star offensive …

Continue reading UGA’s Mark Richt on recruiting momentum: “I think there’s more to come” »

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New Georgia Tech basketball coach Brian Gregory has gotten off to a sizzling start with recruiting, landing the Yellow Jackets a top 15 class which is headlined by 5-star forward Robert Carter of Shiloh High School.

And Georgia Tech could add one more recruit, including a much-needed point guard, later this season in April’s late signing period. The early signing period ended on Wednesday.

Gregory had four scholarships to give this year. He’s used three, and still waiting to see what to do about the other one.

“We’re going to recruit a handful of guys and evaluate them to see if they are good enough and if they fill the needs we have for our program,” Gregory said. “If they are a good fit for us, and we are a good fit for them, we may sign some guys late.”

Brian Gregory is hot, hot, hot with recruiting (AJC)

Gregory is looking at the big …

Continue reading Georgia Tech could add 1 more to Top 15 recruiting class (UPDATED) »

Georgia State has landed two football prospects from Gwinnett powerhouse Grayson High School, including DT Sebastian Rice (the defender on the right in the white jersey making the tackle)

Two of Georgia State’s top football recruits will be on display when Grayson plays Lowndes at 7:30 p.m. Friday in the state playoffs.

The game will be broadcast by WSB-TV’s digital channel 2.2 and on www.wsbtv.com

Grayson has two seniors committed to Georgia State – offensive tackle Garrett Gorringe (6-4, 275) and defensive tackle Sebastian Rice (6-5, 275).

“Sebastian grew up thinking he’d be baseball or basketball player; We found him in the halls and told him to be a football player,” Grayson coach Mickey Conn said. “Last year, he decided to give it a try and play on the JV. He has gotten bigger and stronger. We moved him around out there along the defensive line. He’s very physical, and hard for offensive linemen to move.”

The Grayson-Lowndes matchup will feature Grayson DE Robert …

Continue reading Two Georgia State football commits on display in TV game »

Breaking: Recruiting drama! Georgia’s top basketball prospect changes his mind and signs only hours before midnight deadline (click here)

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They aren’t part of his top five, but UGA still has a spot in the sweepstakes for the No. 1-ranked junior in the country, Robert Ndkemiche of Grayson High School.

The 6-foot-5, 270-pound defensive end made a rare unofficial visit last weekend, traveling to UGA with a couple of teammates to watch the Auburn game. The only other trip that Nkemdiche has made this fall was to rumored frontunner Alabama for the LSU game.

Despite the Atlanta suburb of Grayson being located only 35 miles from UGA, the Bulldogs haven’t been able to crack Nkemdiche’s top five, which consists of Alabama, LSU, Florida, Oregon and Southern Cal.

However, his coach told the AJC on Tuesday night to not count the Bulldogs out.

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“I’d put Georgia in …

Continue reading UGA in the running for the nation’s No-1 ranked football prospect (UPDATED) »

Memphis-bound Shaq Goodwin (AJC photo)

How about a little recruiting drama on the last day of basketball’s early signing period?

Facing a midnight deadline to the period, Southwest DeKalb High School power forward Shaq Goodwin went ahead and signed a letter-of-intent with Memphis.

The 6-foot-8, 240-pound Goodwin, who is ranked among the nation’s top 25 overall prospects, committed to Memphis last week with the intention of signing in April’s late period. On Wednesday, Goodwin decided to go ahead and sign rather than look at his other suitors, which were UCLA, UGA, Florida and Arizona.

“That’s where my heart was,” Goodwin said.

“The recruitment of William Shaquille Goodwin is over; welcome to the Tiger Nation!” his mother told the AJC. “We talked at length again last night and … he really didn’t want to visit anywhere else.”

• Meanwhile, another one of the nation’s top 25 prospects, Miller Grove power forward Tony Parker, will not sign by the end of the day. The 6-9, 280-pound …

Continue reading Recruiting drama! Shaq Goodwin signs hours before midnight deadline »

Buford LB Nathan Staub

Buford, the four-time defending Class AA state champions, has six seniors committed to D1 program after linebacker Nathan Staub picked North Carolina on Tuesday.

The 6-foot-2, 225-pounder picked the Tar Heels over Maryland, East Carolina, Virginia and Harvard.

It was a big pickup for North Carolina, which is under NCAA investigation for nine major violations and fired coach Butch Davis in July.

“I’m really excited for Nathan,” Buford coach Jess Simpson told the AJC. “I know North Carolina’s coaching staff is a little in flux, and maybe there are some question marks moving forward. But they convinced Nathan of their desire for him to be at North Carolina.

“They recruited him as a linebacker all along, which was very important to him. I think Nathan feels very good about the stability there and the education at North Carolina speaks for itself. It seems  like overall it was a very good fit.”

Staub, who has a 3.8 GPA, starts both ways for Buford.

“Nathan is …

Continue reading Buford LB Nathan Staub commits to UNC »

Georgia Tech’s baseball program signed eight high school seniors to national letters of intent, Yellow Jacket head coach Danny Hall.

Tech’s signing class, which addressed needs at every position group, includes four pitchers, two infielders, one outfielder and a catcher. Five of the prospects are from Georgia.

“I am excited about our 2012 recruiting class,” said Hall, who will enter his 19th season on the Flats next spring and is just 13 wins shy of 1,000 career victories. “Our goal was to strengthen our pitching staff and in particular, find some left-handed pitching.”

The Yellow Jackets signed a pair of southpaw pitchers – Sam Clay (Buford, Ga.) and Jonathon King (Murfreesboro, Tenn.). Clay helped lead Buford High School to a state championship in 2011. King can also play in the outfield.

“Sam Clay is the best left-handed pitching prospect in the state and is the quarterback for perennial football power Buford High School,” Hall said. “Jonathon King is an athletic …

Continue reading Georgia Tech signs 8 to baseball scholarships »

Allatoona RB Miles Jones has been waiting for his "dream offer" from Georgia Tech. Will he now get it?

One of the Atlanta area’s top running backs got some good news from Georgia Tech on late Monday night.

Allatoona High School’s Miles Jones said he talked over the phone with Georgia Tech assistant Brian Bohannon. The Yellow Jackets didn’t offer Jones but invited him to make an official visit in early December.

The 5-foot-11, 203-pound Jones sparked serious interest from Georgia Tech after Liberty County High School running back Shadrach Thornton committed to NC State last weekend.

“Coach Bohannon said they really liked me, mentioned that the other recruit committed to NC State, and said they wanted to get things rolling with me and do it the right way,” Jones told the AJC. “They want to get me over there on an official visit for the weekend to sit down with Paul Johnson and the other coaches so they can get to know me better.”

What was Jones’ reaction to the invite? “I’m …

Continue reading Georgia Tech contacts Atlanta RB about official visit »