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By DavidAGerhardt
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After two months on the job, Jon Embree's first recruiting class is now (most likely) in the books. The Recruiting Luncheon was yesterday, so if anyone was there and can comment on how it went and what was said, that would be awesome. This would also be a pretty appropriate place to discuss your thoughts about this recruiting class and (because it never ends) what we will be looking for in the 2012 class. Listed are this years recruits and what I know about them. At some point, I'll get a quick look at roster depth and what we know about everybody on the team (or at least the ones I can remember anything about)
Everything is--as always--after the jump:
Shall we go alphabetically? I think so!
Paulay Asiata: the highest ranked of a trio of Hawaiians the Buffs snagged this year. He's a big boy, coming in at 6'5" and 295 lbs, and he looks like he's going to be an Offensive Guard or Tackle. He played at Guard and is quite a road-grater. He plays mean, finishes his blocks and (as Embree mentioned about all of these prospects) looks to me like he could contribute pretty early on. You've got to love these big Polynesian and Samoan guys. With Cabral and Tuiasosopo on staff together, we should be bringing in a couple guys from the Islands every February.
Brent Burnette: a JC Quarterback that the staff targeted to even out the class numbers at QB (giving us 1 Sr, 1 Jr, 1 Rs-Fr & 1 Fr) and to compete for the starting QB position right away. Embree emphasized that every position is open to competition, and this will be one to watch. He has some Division 1 experience, though not at the BCS Conference level, but having played in College at at the JC level may give him a leg up on the QBs not named Tyler Hansen. I don't know how often the staff will target JC QBs after this, but we will see. He's got some size at 6'3", 205
Jermane Clark: (Spelling according to CU website, though it appears differently on some of the recruiting sites) is a 6'2", 205 lb Athlete they the coaching staff is predicting could be a Safety or bulk up and eventually play Linebacker. He comes to CU with his Cousin, Rashad Hall (who I will get to later), and it looks like they were going to be a packaged deal. While Hall may be the more impressive athlete, Clark looks like a guy who can move very well for his size and should at least be featured on Special Teams units pretty early on. He hits hard and closes pretty quickly, so he should have a chance to contribute.
Malcom Creer: We were his only offer until Washington (and supposedly Nebraska) offered him in the 11th hour. He stuck with CU, and we should be pretty happy about that. A high character guy who also looks pretty darn good at Running Back. He's physical, runs with balance, and doesn't ever let guys hit him straight up, which makes him look a bit like Marshall Faulk in his highlight films. He's a solid 5'11" 200lb, which makes him one of the biggest Running Backs on the roster from the get-go.
Brady Daigh: I know we missed out on Leilon Willingham, but his former teammate is no slouch. He is a 'thumper', at 6'2", 235 lbs and knows how to find the football. He committed early and didn't entertain too many other teams, which likely lowered his ranking by the recruiting services, but his production and instincts speak for themselves. He's a local kid, so he knows what CU has been through, and there was enough love between him and the new coaching staff that he knows he's going to be a part of the rebuilding process. He's definitely someone to watch.
Stevie Joe Dorman: How can you tell he's from Texas? The two first names, dummy! He's a big boy at 6'4", 210, so it might surprise you to know that he's the Nephew of Ty and Koy Detmer and the Grandson of Sonny Detmer, his High School coach. He comes from a QB family, set all kinds of San Antonio area records with some pretty prolific stats, and is a pretty pocket-savvy pro-style QB. He sounds like just the kind of guy that Embree told us he was going to recruit. What is interesting, is that plenty of schools were recruiting guys on his team, yet we were his only offer. Hmmm, we'll have to see if it was an oversight by all of those teams and we get nice and lucky.
Woodson Greer: This guy should be one of the more exciting players in this class. He's definitely bigger than the 6'2", 225 lbs that he's listed at. I wouldn't be surprised if he ended up at Defensive End because of his pass-rushing ability off the edge. He's another California guy (hmmm, could this be us already seeing advantages to ending up in the {Pac-12 South?) and he can move. He absolutely blows guys up in his highlight footage and he has some pretty impressive closing speed. He will be contributing early, I can promise you that.
Rashad Hall: As I already stated, he came here with his Cousin from the same school that they both transferred to for their senior years. It's a Military Academy whose coach said that they went because they wanted to get a larger recruiting profile. Hall reportedly runs a 4.32 40 yard dash, which would make him even speedier than Speedy, plus he's bigger, at 6', 200 lbs. He's a physical guy, in addition to being fast, and his High School coach seems to think he should be ranked WAY higher than he was. Can you say, "Chip-on-his-shoulder"?
Will Harlos: Childhood friend of Stevie Joe, this guy will be interesting to follow. He won All-Area honors at Defensive End, but projects to Safety early on at 6'4", 200 lbs. He may eventually bulk up enough to play Linebacker, but he's going to start out as a Defensive Back. He's fast and can blitz, so if he can cover, we may have ourselves a pretty talented back-seven player. Also, Embree and J.D. Brookhart flipped his commitment from Wake Forest.
Sherrard Harrington: Here's a guy to root for. Embree said that Harrington will be a team captain someday, and the more I read about him, the more I agree. He is a pretty amazing person, and a pretty amazing athlete. He's very fast and should be yet another big corner for Greg Brown at 6'1", 175 lbs. He is also a model (don't laugh, he uses the money he makes from modeling and acting to help pay his Mom's rent so that she could move to a better part of town after his Father passed away last year. Like I said: amazing person), which means we now have two models on the team in Harrington and Brian Lockridge. I will definitely be cheering for Harrington for the next 4/5 years.
Alex Kelley: A 'Baby Buff' as Embree called him, his father played for the Buffs back in the late '70s along the Offensive Line, which means pedigree and history. He's a true Center, who's already 6'3", 295 lbs. He's another one of the Hawkins-commitment holdovers. He looks pretty solidly built but I don't think his frame is topped out quite yet. We were cycling guys in and out of the backup Center position, so he has a chance to come right in and become the # 2 guy.
Marc Mustoe: Kid is huge. He's a legitimate 6'7", 280 lbs. He's got pretty good feet, but he's another one of those tall Offensive Tackles who has got to be careful about overextending. It will be interesting to see what side they want him on. He's played RT in High School, but he also has a huge reach and might make sense on the left side. I wonder if they'll decide purely based upon numbers or if they have a specific profile for Right and Left Tackles. That'll be interesting to watch.
Stephan Nembot: They talk about 'Boom-Bust' prospects when referring, and this guy is the High School equivalent. He is from Cameroon and only began playing football a couple of years ago. He came over to play Basketball, but found that he was better at Football, and he is quoted as saying something like 'he likes to hit people too much to play BBall.' He is listed as a Defensive End...a 6'8", 280 lb Defensive End. He's enormous, can probably put on a bunch more weight, and is fast and quick with good feet. He has all the potential in the world. I'm excited to see what Tui and McGhee can do with him.
Will Oliver: Isn't in nice to hear a Head Coach be pratical? Embree said in the Signing Day presser that while we rebuild, we will probably have plenty of close games. We already have two scholarships allotted to a Kicker and a Punter, so many people are wondering why we are bringing in yet another one? Well, it's because Embree doesn't know what he has in Castor and Grossnickle, so why not bring in someone that you like to compete with them. May the best foot win.
Juda Parker: He's the second of the three Hawaiian, and he might be the most talented. He was named MVP of the Army All American Game, which is one of the premier exhibitions for High School recruits. He's a Defensive End that can stand up, but he can also probably put on enough weight to play anywhere along the Defensive Line. He is a guy that will keep working and makes plays all over the field. His name is one you won't have to remember, because they'll be calling it plenty on Saturdays for the next 4 or 5 Falls. He's 6'2", 245 lbs...for now.
Nelson Spruce: He is big, fast, has great hands and runs great routes. What more could you want in a Wide Receiver? He's got long arms to compliment his 6'2", 190 lb frame, so he's able to make tough catches and shield Defenders from the ball with his body. While we didn't bring in quite as many Receivers as I'm sure Coach Embree wanted, this guy should make a name for himself.
K.T. Tu'umalo: The last of the Hawaiians, K.T. is fast and flies to the ball. He is a Linebacker that is just as comfortable in coverage as he is in Blitzing and stuffing the run. He is only 6'2", 200 lbs right now, but he should pack on at least a few lbs going into his first fall. After a season or two, he could easily be working his way into CU Linebacker lore. His highlight tape is fun to watch because he makes plays all over the field.
Kyle Washington: He is being brought in as a Defensive Back to start, and he's a very solid one at 6'1", 200 lbs. He is fast and moves very well. He may get his shot on the other side of the ball as well, depending on how the numbers play out. He is another example of the high quality athlete that Embree is trying to add to the team.
OK, that's most of what I know about these kids.
Originally posted by Ralphie Report
Click here to view the article.
More photos » Doug Pensinger - Getty Images The guy in the middle looks like he's having some fun...
Browse more photos »
After two months on the job, Jon Embree's first recruiting class is now (most likely) in the books. The Recruiting Luncheon was yesterday, so if anyone was there and can comment on how it went and what was said, that would be awesome. This would also be a pretty appropriate place to discuss your thoughts about this recruiting class and (because it never ends) what we will be looking for in the 2012 class. Listed are this years recruits and what I know about them. At some point, I'll get a quick look at roster depth and what we know about everybody on the team (or at least the ones I can remember anything about)
Everything is--as always--after the jump:
Shall we go alphabetically? I think so!
Paulay Asiata: the highest ranked of a trio of Hawaiians the Buffs snagged this year. He's a big boy, coming in at 6'5" and 295 lbs, and he looks like he's going to be an Offensive Guard or Tackle. He played at Guard and is quite a road-grater. He plays mean, finishes his blocks and (as Embree mentioned about all of these prospects) looks to me like he could contribute pretty early on. You've got to love these big Polynesian and Samoan guys. With Cabral and Tuiasosopo on staff together, we should be bringing in a couple guys from the Islands every February.
Brent Burnette: a JC Quarterback that the staff targeted to even out the class numbers at QB (giving us 1 Sr, 1 Jr, 1 Rs-Fr & 1 Fr) and to compete for the starting QB position right away. Embree emphasized that every position is open to competition, and this will be one to watch. He has some Division 1 experience, though not at the BCS Conference level, but having played in College at at the JC level may give him a leg up on the QBs not named Tyler Hansen. I don't know how often the staff will target JC QBs after this, but we will see. He's got some size at 6'3", 205
Jermane Clark: (Spelling according to CU website, though it appears differently on some of the recruiting sites) is a 6'2", 205 lb Athlete they the coaching staff is predicting could be a Safety or bulk up and eventually play Linebacker. He comes to CU with his Cousin, Rashad Hall (who I will get to later), and it looks like they were going to be a packaged deal. While Hall may be the more impressive athlete, Clark looks like a guy who can move very well for his size and should at least be featured on Special Teams units pretty early on. He hits hard and closes pretty quickly, so he should have a chance to contribute.
Malcom Creer: We were his only offer until Washington (and supposedly Nebraska) offered him in the 11th hour. He stuck with CU, and we should be pretty happy about that. A high character guy who also looks pretty darn good at Running Back. He's physical, runs with balance, and doesn't ever let guys hit him straight up, which makes him look a bit like Marshall Faulk in his highlight films. He's a solid 5'11" 200lb, which makes him one of the biggest Running Backs on the roster from the get-go.
Brady Daigh: I know we missed out on Leilon Willingham, but his former teammate is no slouch. He is a 'thumper', at 6'2", 235 lbs and knows how to find the football. He committed early and didn't entertain too many other teams, which likely lowered his ranking by the recruiting services, but his production and instincts speak for themselves. He's a local kid, so he knows what CU has been through, and there was enough love between him and the new coaching staff that he knows he's going to be a part of the rebuilding process. He's definitely someone to watch.
Stevie Joe Dorman: How can you tell he's from Texas? The two first names, dummy! He's a big boy at 6'4", 210, so it might surprise you to know that he's the Nephew of Ty and Koy Detmer and the Grandson of Sonny Detmer, his High School coach. He comes from a QB family, set all kinds of San Antonio area records with some pretty prolific stats, and is a pretty pocket-savvy pro-style QB. He sounds like just the kind of guy that Embree told us he was going to recruit. What is interesting, is that plenty of schools were recruiting guys on his team, yet we were his only offer. Hmmm, we'll have to see if it was an oversight by all of those teams and we get nice and lucky.
Woodson Greer: This guy should be one of the more exciting players in this class. He's definitely bigger than the 6'2", 225 lbs that he's listed at. I wouldn't be surprised if he ended up at Defensive End because of his pass-rushing ability off the edge. He's another California guy (hmmm, could this be us already seeing advantages to ending up in the {Pac-12 South?) and he can move. He absolutely blows guys up in his highlight footage and he has some pretty impressive closing speed. He will be contributing early, I can promise you that.
Rashad Hall: As I already stated, he came here with his Cousin from the same school that they both transferred to for their senior years. It's a Military Academy whose coach said that they went because they wanted to get a larger recruiting profile. Hall reportedly runs a 4.32 40 yard dash, which would make him even speedier than Speedy, plus he's bigger, at 6', 200 lbs. He's a physical guy, in addition to being fast, and his High School coach seems to think he should be ranked WAY higher than he was. Can you say, "Chip-on-his-shoulder"?
Will Harlos: Childhood friend of Stevie Joe, this guy will be interesting to follow. He won All-Area honors at Defensive End, but projects to Safety early on at 6'4", 200 lbs. He may eventually bulk up enough to play Linebacker, but he's going to start out as a Defensive Back. He's fast and can blitz, so if he can cover, we may have ourselves a pretty talented back-seven player. Also, Embree and J.D. Brookhart flipped his commitment from Wake Forest.
Sherrard Harrington: Here's a guy to root for. Embree said that Harrington will be a team captain someday, and the more I read about him, the more I agree. He is a pretty amazing person, and a pretty amazing athlete. He's very fast and should be yet another big corner for Greg Brown at 6'1", 175 lbs. He is also a model (don't laugh, he uses the money he makes from modeling and acting to help pay his Mom's rent so that she could move to a better part of town after his Father passed away last year. Like I said: amazing person), which means we now have two models on the team in Harrington and Brian Lockridge. I will definitely be cheering for Harrington for the next 4/5 years.
Alex Kelley: A 'Baby Buff' as Embree called him, his father played for the Buffs back in the late '70s along the Offensive Line, which means pedigree and history. He's a true Center, who's already 6'3", 295 lbs. He's another one of the Hawkins-commitment holdovers. He looks pretty solidly built but I don't think his frame is topped out quite yet. We were cycling guys in and out of the backup Center position, so he has a chance to come right in and become the # 2 guy.
Marc Mustoe: Kid is huge. He's a legitimate 6'7", 280 lbs. He's got pretty good feet, but he's another one of those tall Offensive Tackles who has got to be careful about overextending. It will be interesting to see what side they want him on. He's played RT in High School, but he also has a huge reach and might make sense on the left side. I wonder if they'll decide purely based upon numbers or if they have a specific profile for Right and Left Tackles. That'll be interesting to watch.
Stephan Nembot: They talk about 'Boom-Bust' prospects when referring, and this guy is the High School equivalent. He is from Cameroon and only began playing football a couple of years ago. He came over to play Basketball, but found that he was better at Football, and he is quoted as saying something like 'he likes to hit people too much to play BBall.' He is listed as a Defensive End...a 6'8", 280 lb Defensive End. He's enormous, can probably put on a bunch more weight, and is fast and quick with good feet. He has all the potential in the world. I'm excited to see what Tui and McGhee can do with him.
Will Oliver: Isn't in nice to hear a Head Coach be pratical? Embree said in the Signing Day presser that while we rebuild, we will probably have plenty of close games. We already have two scholarships allotted to a Kicker and a Punter, so many people are wondering why we are bringing in yet another one? Well, it's because Embree doesn't know what he has in Castor and Grossnickle, so why not bring in someone that you like to compete with them. May the best foot win.
Juda Parker: He's the second of the three Hawaiian, and he might be the most talented. He was named MVP of the Army All American Game, which is one of the premier exhibitions for High School recruits. He's a Defensive End that can stand up, but he can also probably put on enough weight to play anywhere along the Defensive Line. He is a guy that will keep working and makes plays all over the field. His name is one you won't have to remember, because they'll be calling it plenty on Saturdays for the next 4 or 5 Falls. He's 6'2", 245 lbs...for now.
Nelson Spruce: He is big, fast, has great hands and runs great routes. What more could you want in a Wide Receiver? He's got long arms to compliment his 6'2", 190 lb frame, so he's able to make tough catches and shield Defenders from the ball with his body. While we didn't bring in quite as many Receivers as I'm sure Coach Embree wanted, this guy should make a name for himself.
K.T. Tu'umalo: The last of the Hawaiians, K.T. is fast and flies to the ball. He is a Linebacker that is just as comfortable in coverage as he is in Blitzing and stuffing the run. He is only 6'2", 200 lbs right now, but he should pack on at least a few lbs going into his first fall. After a season or two, he could easily be working his way into CU Linebacker lore. His highlight tape is fun to watch because he makes plays all over the field.
Kyle Washington: He is being brought in as a Defensive Back to start, and he's a very solid one at 6'1", 200 lbs. He is fast and moves very well. He may get his shot on the other side of the ball as well, depending on how the numbers play out. He is another example of the high quality athlete that Embree is trying to add to the team.
OK, that's most of what I know about these kids.
Originally posted by Ralphie Report
Click here to view the article.