Mark Richt (AJC)
Here’s five recruiting stories from the weekend that people are talking about:
1. UGA is stockpiling an impressive collection of offensive linemen for the 2016 class. The Bulldogs have 10 commitments for next year, including four at OL. The latest was Chris Barnes, a 3-star from Lee County who picked the Bulldogs over Alabama after Saturday's G-Day spring scrimmage. UGA already has commitments from the state's No. 1 and No. 2 prospect at OL, 5-star Ben Cleveland of Stephens County and EJ Price of Archer. You can read some interesting background on Barnes by CLICKING HERE.
Derrick Brown (AJC)
2. Even though UGA only got one commitment out of Saturday's G-Day game, many of the state's top prospects made appearances to show the Bulldogs that they are seriously interested. Perhaps most noteworthy was the attendance of the state's top three top defensive linemen in the rankings – Derrick Brown of Lanier (state's No. 1 prospect), Julian Rochester of McEachern (No. 2) and Antwuan Jackson of Cedar Grove (No. 6). Getting two out of three of those guys would be monumental for UGA's 2016 class. Some other top uncommitted prospects in attendance were cornerback Mecole Hardman of Elbert County (No. 12), safety Marlon Character of Grady (No. 20), defensive tackle Tyler Clark of Americus Sumter, and offensive lineman Brodarius Hamm of Spalding (No. 31).
3. As for Georgia Tech, things will be picking up in recruiting this week. The Yellow Jackets have their spring game on Saturday, and we'll have a better idea on which top recruits are attending later this week. Tech has two commits for 2016, linebacker Jakob Brashear of Dacula and running back Xavier Gantt of Buford.
4. When the SEC Network launched last year, there were some concerns that it would give the SEC – which already dominates recruiting – an even bigger advantage against non-SEC schools on the recruiting trail. But did it? It doesn't seem so, at least not yet. I asked Miami coach Al Golden for his opinion on that. "I don't think so. But every program is different. Maybe there are some programs that feel otherwise. At the University of Miami, we're in prime time a lot. We get a lot of coverage nationally, maybe a little more than we want sometimes. From that standpoint, we at the University of Miami don't feel like we're at a disadvantage in that circumstance."
5. Another day, another rumor for Jaylen Brown, the nation's No. 2 basketball prospect from Wheeler High School who has yet to announce his college decision. ESPN wrote about a "potential package deal" with Brown and two other elite prospects to Cal, where Brown took a secret unofficial visit last month. Cal is one of Brown's eight finalists, along with Kentucky, North Carolina, Kansas, Michigan, UCLA, Georgia Tech, and UGA. The two in-state schools are considered long shots because he never able to work out unofficial visits during the season to either due to scheduling conflicts. Brown did have some interesting things to say last week about his rumored frontrunner, Kentucky, to VaughtViews.com: "I know Kentucky definitely has the best basketball program. I have been on a lot of campuses and Kentucky has the most impressive facilities. Coach Calipari does a good job running and organizing his program. Basketball-wise, it's the best. But if you are a pro, you are a pro. It doesn't really matter if you go to the University of Alaska, recruiters will find out. Going to the league, it's not that big a deal where you go to school. To me, it's more about liking everything about the school and coach." This weekend, Brown scored 8 points off 2 of 11 shooting for Team USA in the Nike Hoops Summit. Of course, he had his signature dunk:
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