Eye on the U

Kevin Grooms, UM's only RB signee in 2011, has Friday flight scheduled to Marshall according to coach

CORAL GABLES -- South Broward running back Kevin Grooms, one of the most highly-touted freshmen in UM's 2011 signing class, is likely heading to Marshall and not the Hurricanes backfield.

Grooms, at two-time All-Broward selection who ran for 1,363 yards and 20 TDs as a senior, has been battling NCAA Clearinghouse issues since signing with UM in February. His qualifying test score was red-flagged by the NCAA.

Groom's high school coach Allen Held told The Miami Herald this morning the 5-10 pound, 170-pound speedster already has a 5 p.m. flight scheduled Friday to fly out to Marshall if his issues with UM aren't cleared up.

"He's been trying to work things out with UM, but they want to send him to a junior college and just don't have anything set up for him yet," Held said. "Virginia Tech told him they could put him in a prep school. But it looks like Marshall is the best situation. They can put him in a program, have him sit out the year and then play in 2012."

Grooms was the only running back UM signed in its 2011 signing class. The Canes have one of the nation's top high school running backs in Miami Norland's Duke Johnson already lined up for the 2012 class.

UM coach Al Golden said Friday the school would know later today if Grooms and two other signees dealing with clearinghouse issues -- defensive end Corey King and linebacker Antonio Kinard -- would be getting into school.

UPDATE: Grooms told Canesport.com about 10 minutes after this blog was first posted: "It's just between Miami and Marshall right now. I don't know which one I'll choose."

Despite what he told Canesport, it's still a safe bet Grooms will not be a Hurricane this season.

Top recruit Duke Johnson said he'll stick by Canes until they pull his scholarship away

Randy "Duke" Johnson, widely considered the top 2012 recruit in Al Golden's next recruiting class, said Wednesday his plan is to stick by the Hurricanes through this NCAA investigation until somebody pulls his scholarship away.

"If it's my scholarship that's taken away, then I'll have no choice," said Johnson, a 5-9, 170-pound running back at Miami Norland. "But if I still have a full ride to go, I'll be there."

Johnson, who grew up a huge Hurricanes fan and has helped UM recruit other 2012 players to Coral Gables, came down to The Miami Herald building Wednesday to shoot his picture for the cover of the Miami-Dade High School Football Preview.

With the future of UM's program under a cloud of uncertainty, one might imagine Johnson is already considering Plan B -- especially if the mountain of allegations from former booster Nevin Shapiro lead to sanctions such as potential loss of scholarships, post-season bans and maybe much more. But Johnson said he isn't flinching or thinking about jumping ship. He plans on standing by Al Golden as long as Al Golden stands by him.

"Miami has been a school I've been loving since growing up," said Johnson, who along with Norland teammates Keith Brown (a 6-2, 230-pound star linebacker) and Ereck Flowers (a 6-6, 305-pound offensive tackle) are part of UM's 2012 class."

"It was always been my dream. If I ever had the opportunity to go to the University of Miami, that would be the school I would attend..."

Johnson, who wears a UM jacket to school and can always be spotted with a Canes cap, said he hasn't been contacted by any other schools since the Yahoo! news story broke. But adds, "I expect it will happen soon." Regardless, Johnson says, he's confident he'll be a Hurricane in the end.

"I would be shocked [if the NCAA handed down the death penalty]," Johnson said. "The death penalty for this? It hasn't been given often. I think it was given one time like 20-25 years ago [SMU]. So if they were given the death penalty, I wouldn't know what to do.

"But I think [the NCAA] shouldn't take away from what Coach Golden has accomplished -- what he's doing and working so hard to do. We're bringing in kids. Just cause something happened eight, 10 years ago, that's out of his power, that's out of our power. There's nothing we can do about it. The only thing we can do is avoid it from happening again."

Johnson said he hasn't reached out to any fellow UM recruits yet. He's trying "to give it time to blow over." But once he knows a little more about the penalties UM might incur, he said, he'll reach out and call others.

"I think we could do some special things with the freshman and sophomores that are already there and the upcoming freshman, my class 2012," Johnson said. "I just hope they let us keep it together."

Norland duo helps Canes pick up commitments from Homestead's Waters, Burgess

A pair of future Canes landed verbal commitments from another pair of future Canes Sunday. 

Essentially, that's what Miami Norland running back Duke Johnson and linebacker Keith Brown pulled off when they convinced Homestead linebacker James Burgess Jr. (6-1, 208) and receiver Herb Waters (6-0, 177) to call UM coaches and pledge to Al Golden's 2012 recruiting class.

The four players spent the past five days together in Beaverton, Oregon as part of Nike's newest training competition, The Opening. According to Johnson, who along with Brown committed to UM as a junior, the Homestead duo might just be the first of several players they recruited during the trip out West to commit to UM over the next couple days. 

"We got two so far, but we ain't done yet," said Johnson, a 5-9, 175-pound scatback considered one of the country's Top 150 high school seniors according to ESPN. "We're very close to getting tight end [and USF commitment] Sean Price [North Marion, Fla]. [Miami Columbus safety and ESPN Top 150 recruit] Deon [Bush] too. We spent a lot of time working it, talking to [Miami Beach safety] Ricardo Louis. [Miramar cornerback] Tracy Howard. [Tampa Berkley Prep athlete] Nelson Agholor.

"Guys see what's going on at Miami and they want to be a part of it. They're excited by the fact of all the guys who are committed and they look at the talent coming in this year. If we all go together and we all keep our talent and go together we have a chance of doing something special. Herb and James saw that."

The Hurricanes now have 22 non-binding, verbal commitments as part of their 2012 signing class. Most experts expect UM to sign upwards of 30 to 35 recruits. ESPN currently ranks UM's class ninth best in the country.

"Herb always knew inside UM is where he always wanted to be," Johnson said. "It was just the fact of doing it. Herb said he didn't want to go unless his linebacker went with him. James father graduated from UM, it was just a plus. Once James decided to go ahead and commit, so did Herb."

Homestead coach Bobby McCray said he still hasn't had a chance to speak with either of his players about their commitments, but confirmed with their families that the players had pledged to UM. James' mother, Lakeisha, said her son was "happy to be a Hurricane."

Last season, Burgess finished with 132 tackles, two forced fumbles and an interception for the Broncos. ESPN rates Burgess as a 4-star recruit. McCray said Burgess had offers from Alabama, Georgia, Florida, USF and North Carolina among others.

"We had Micheal and James' father down here before," McCray said. "He has more potential than both of 'em. He can play all positions, will, mike or sam. He's athletic enough in passing situations to not have to come out of the game. I'll put it to you this way, I've put him at free safety sometimes."

Waters, considered the 49th-best receiver in the country by Rivals, has been plagued by injuries his sophomore (separated shoulder) and junior (knee sprain) seasons. But he's an all-around gifted athlete, who has played quarterback, receiver and running back in high school. McCray said Waters had offers from Oregon, Alabama, UCF and FSU.

"He's a very good technician," McCray said. "He can also be a return man. He might be rated even higher if he hadn't been hurt. He just hasn't finished the last two seasons because of injuries. We were 5-0 in '09 when he got hurt and we ended up going 6-3. Last year we were 4-1 when he was hurt and finished 5-4. The coach from Oregon saw him said he hadn't seen many kids his age run a route like that before. He showed out in the 7-on-7 game and the jamboree against American [High]. He's shown big explosiveness."

The best news about both commitments for UM is that they're already academically eligible. According to McCray, Waters has a 2.7 GPA and scored a 19 on his ACT. Burgess has a 2.6 GPA and scored a 23 on the ACT.

"We have a nice little history now of sending guys to Miami," said McCray, who coached current Canes Jojo Nicolas, Marcus Robinson and incoming freshman defensive end Ricardo Williams at Homestead.

"That's how Butch Davis built the program. He took care of Dade County, then added to it from elsewhere. It seems like that's what Coach Golden is doing. His building a champion."

Canes pick up 20th commitment in Cypress Bay LB Josh Witt

Mark Guandolo has coached quite a few talented linebackers throughout his career in South Florida.

Two of his best at Hollywood Chaminade ended up becoming Hurricanes -- Glenn Cook and Jon Beason. His latest top-notch linebacker, Cypress Bay senior Josh Witt, is now planning to be one too. 

Witt, who earned MVP honors at one of Al Golden's summer camps this past month, told UM coaches Friday he wanted to be a part of their 2012 signing class. The 6-2, 208-pounder outside linebacker, clocked by Guandolo with 4.5-speed in the 40-yard dash, had offers from 10 other schools including West Virginia, Louisville, Texas Tech, Wake Forest and Kentucky.

"All the guys I've had are different in their own way, but Josh to me is sort of a mix of Glenn and Jon," Guandolo said. "I think Josh has Beason's motor. That's saying a lot. Jon's one of the hardest players I've coached. And, he's tall like Glenn Cook. He's also a little faster than both of 'em."

Witt grew up in Texas and played as a backup quarterback for Guandolo as a sophomore. But in the spring of last year, Guandolo decided to move him to outside linebacker.

"He was a decent quarterback, but we just thought with his speed and because he was a real aggressive kid who wanted to hit people we just thought his ticket would be defense," Guandolo said. "He's just a real, real strong, tough kid with great speed. He ran the 100 meters for our track team. Just a great motor.

"He's just gotten better every day. Our playoff run last year really helped him. He played at his best then even with an injured wrist. His best game was against [eventual Class 6A state champion] Miami Central. To me, you can put him anywhere. He's one of those guys who can come off the edge or stay in the middle and play the run. He has the ability to drop and cover too."

Witt could end up being the first of several Cypress Bay players the Hurricanes bring in over the next couple seasons.

Left tackle Danny Isidora, rated the 26th best offensive guard in the country by Rivals.com, has UM in his top four according to Guandolo. "He's looking at Wisconsin, North Carolina, Michigan and Miami," Guandolo said of Isidora (6-3, 330). "I think he wants to make a decision before the season starts if possible. But Miami is right there. There's nobody leading. He's still evaluating."

Other Cypress Bay players UM is interested in according to Guandolo are 2013 running back Matt Dayes and 2013 receiver Alex Montgomery.

"The one thing you have to give Miami a lot of credit for is that they're trying to build something and they're out there looking, being thorough," Guandolo said.

"They're working guys out hard. They really evaluated Josh hard. It wasn't just an offer. They really did a thorough job on him. It's a big commitment on both sides. I think a lot of schools have lost that evaluation process. They rely on video or the one time they come to watch a kid play. Josh was impressed with the staff. I've been impressed with the staff."

UM picks up verbals from LB Northrup, TE Holifield, 2012 class up to 19 commitments

Al Golden's first signing class at UM has grown over the summer from 16 to 19 players.

His 2012 class? That's already at 19 players and we're still a little more than seven months away from National Signing Day.

The Hurricanes picked up two more verbal, non-binding commitments on Tuesday. The first, 6-2, 215-pound outside linebacker Reggie Northrup from Jacksonville First Coast is considered the 26th best at his position according to ESPN. The other, Tallahassee Godby receiver/tight end Brandon Holifield (6-6, 216), just started playing football three months ago and isn't even the best pass catcher on his team.

Such has been the story this summer with Golden's second recruiting class. For every highly-regarded recruit he's landed a commitment from, there's another player recruiting analysts sort of scratch their heads at. Charles Fishbein of Elite Scouting Services said he likes the players UM has offered and received commitments from, but thinks Golden and his staff are "taking a lot of kids they can wait on."

"I don't think they're doing a bad job, I just think they're taking a lot of kids that are going to need time to develop, not instant impact type guys," Fishbein said. "That's not necessarily a bad thing. But when you're losing as many guys as they're losing, you need a few that can play right away. The teams they're trying to catch aren't waiting for kids to develop. They're reloading."

Of the 19 commitments in UM's class, eight are four-star recruits (five are considered ESPN Top 150 recruits) and eight are three star recruits. ESPN ranks the Hurricanes as having the ninth-best overall recruiting class as of June 23rd.

ESPN recruiting insider Corey Long said while UM's 2012 class "isn't going to win the 2012 recruiting national championship, they're loading up on athletes -- and some of them are real good."

"I think in general some Miami fans are wondering what's going on," Long said. "But you look at some of the players they've gotten -- Reggie Northrup is a heck of a player. [Miami Norland running back] Duke Johnson is the best player in the state. [St. Thomas Aquinas defensive tackle] Jelani Hamilton is one of the top three defensive lineman in the state. [Austin, Tex. quarterback] Preston Dewey is a major steal. [South Miami cornerback] Amos Leggett has a hard time staying with schools, but is a talent. [Norland linebacker] Keith Brown has gotten huge. [Norland's] Erick Flowers is a good offensive lineman.

"It might not be the sexiest group of kids, but the guys they're recruiting and getting commitments from players they're seeing up close and have a plan for. They're doing their due diligence. If a coach sees a player and believes he can play at the level they want him to and the level they'll be facing, he'll take them. That's anywhere. Al Golden has his own level of evaluating talent. Every coach sees something different. They're inviting kids to camp, watching them and taking the ones that stand out. That's what they're supposed to do."

Long believes UM will end up signing more than 30 players in its next class. The local must-gets in his opinion for the Hurricanes? Miami Columbus and ESPN Top 150 player Deon Bush (considered the sixth best safety in the country) and either Homestead receiver Herb Waters or Miami Northwestern receiver Amari Cooper.

"Bush has to be their No. 1 recruiting target," Long said. "As for the receivers out there, I like Cooper the most. I've got him as the third best receiver in the state. Waters is good too. Either one of them will make their receiving class better. There is also a lot of local talent in 2013 with [University's] Jordan Cunningham and [Northeast's] Stacey Coley. So maybe they wait for one of those guys."

Both Long and Fishbein like Northrup.

"I saw him at the FSU Camp last week," Fishbein said of Northrup. "He's going to be a 235 pound linebacker, going to run down hill and be a good run stopper. I think he could be a starter in his second year, after playing on special teams his first year. He's a little stiff in pass coverage. He's athletic enough to play bigger, slower tight ends. But I think he's more of a downhill run stopper, kind of like a Darryl Sharpton."

Northrup, who had 108 tackles and seven sacks as a junior, will likely come in and play outside linebacker according to his father. He could also end up enrolling early in January.

"He's completed a lot of his requirements already," Northrup Sr. said. "I know he's taking his ACT again, the math portion because he wants to get a higher score. But ultimately what will determine if he goes early is if they take away wrestling in the Jacksonville area. He's a two-time state qualifier, placed third as a sophomore. If they cut wrestling, I'm sure he's going to want to go to college early."

As for Holifield, he's considered a gifted athlete with a lot of upside, but not a whole lot of football experience. He finished third at the state championships in the high jump and caught one pass in his spring game for a touchdown. After camping at UM recently, Holifield added a UM offer to a group that included FAU, Gardner-Webb and Samford. 

"He's on a team with Laith Harlow, a 6-5, 240-pound tight end who is headed to Oklahoma," Long said. "So I don't know how many opportunities [Holifield] is going to get to catch the ball. But he's definitely a talented athlete, not a bad guy to take a chance on. Miami coaches obviously saw something at their camp they really liked."

UM commitments (Ranked in order based on ESPN Player grades, e-ESPN 150)
WR Angelo Jean-Louis, Palm Beach Central, 6-0, 185 (e-No. 7 WR)
RB Duke Johnson, Miami Norland, 5-9, 175 (e-No. 10 ATH)
CB Amos Leggett, South Miami, 5-11, 175 (e-No. 8 CB)
QB Preston Dewey, St. Andrews, Austin, Tex., 6-2, 200 (e-No. 9 QB)
LB Raphael Kirby, Stephenson, Stone Mountain, Ga., 6-1, 215 (e-No. 11 OLB)
LB Reggie Northrup, Jacksonville First Coast, 6-2, 215 (No. 26 OLB)
LB Keith Brown, Miami Norland, 6-1, 215 (No. 27 OLB)
DE Jelani Hamilton, Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas, 6-4, 245 (No. 35 DE)
DT Trenton Taylor, Lakeland Lake Gibson, 6-3, 245 (No. 26 DT)
WR Jontavious Carter, Crisp County, Cordele, Ga., 6-3, 192 (No. 40 WR)
QB Gray Crow, Clearwater Countryside, 6-3, 220 (No. 34 QB)
OT Ereck Flowers, Miami Norland, 6-6, 288 (No. 61 OT)
DE Dwayne Hoilett, Vero Beach, 6-3, 212 (No. 64 DE)
DE Jake O'Donnell, Central Bucks East, Doylestown, Penn. 6-5, 235 (No. 83 DE)
CB Vernon Davis, Miami Coral Reef, 5-9, 170 (No. 47 CB)
CB Larry Hope, Hialeah American, 5-10, 160 (No. 50 CB)
QB David Thompson, Miami Westminster Christian, 6-1, 195 (No. 89 QB)
WR D'Mauri Jones, Leesburg, 6-3, 185 (Unranked)
TE Brandon Holifield, Tallahassee Godby, 6-6, 216 (Unranked)

Canes land another commitment from Al Golden's camp: Coral Reef CB Vernon Davis

Coral Reef cornerback Vernon Davis went to Al Golden's football camp Saturday hoping to impress Hurricanes coaches. He earned MVP honors and a scholarship offer.

Sunday morning, he went back to UM with his mother so she could check it out. "She loved it," Davis said. 

So Davis told Golden Sunday to save him a scholarship for the 2012 signing class, making the 5-10, 170-pound junior UM's 14th non-binding oral commitment -- and the fourth to high school player to pledge to UM after attending Golden's camp.

"Having that experience at the camp and making that connection to Coach Golden, Coach Paul Williams was what did it for me," Davis said. "Once my mom was able to see it too, it locked it up for me. She saw everybody has my back. That's all you want."

Davis chose UM over offers from 15 other schools. Among them: West Virginia, Cincinnati, Duke, FIU, Ball State and Boston College.

Davis said he has a 2.7 GPA and scored a 17 on his ACT. He said he's qualified to get into UM.

Canes having recruiting success with coach Al Golden's summer camps

Larry Hope didn't know what to expect when he went to Al Golden's football camp on May 29.

The 5-11, 170-pound cornerback from American High in Miami had heard the University of Miami's new football coach had a reputation for working his players hard. But how hard could a one day summer camp really be? Hope, who has 15 offers (Nebraska, Louisville, West Virginia and Wisconsin among them), found out it was more demanding than any other camp he'd been to. 

"Man, I was real tired afterward," Hope said. "I've been to Duke's camp, the Nike SPARQ camps, speed camps, 7-on-7 Badger camps, the National Underclassman, I don't think I worked as hard as I did at UM.

"It was good too because it was different. This was the first camp where you started playing on the other side of the ball. Offensive guys played defense. Defensive guys played offense. I guess they wanted to see your coordination, your athleticism and overall ability. Then, we played defense, did one-on-one, did a bunch of drills. We worked hard, tested ourselves. We found out how we performed when we are tired and if we could overcome the tiredness. 

"I'm glad I went to the camp. I learned Coach Golden is a good guy. He's trying to get everything organized, trying to get it back to the old UM. He's more accessible to everybody than any other coach I've been around. He teaches DBs, offensive line, receivers. He doesn't just teach one thing. It's good to know your coach just isn't some coordinator, but somebody who really knows football."

Hope came away impressed and so did Golden, who offered Hope a scholarship before he left the camp. A few days later, Hope said he called Golden back and told him he was committing. Hope said they've spoken everyday since, relaying messages to each other on Facebook. 

"Like Coach Golden said for $55, I got a $250,000 scholarship," Hope said. "That's a pretty sweet deal."

Hope hasn't been the only high school player to commit to the Hurricanes after attending the coach's camp. UM landed ESPN Top 150 quarterback Preston Dewey (Austin, Tex.) and most recently 6-5, 235-pound defensive end Jake O'Donnell (Doylestown, Penn.) after they camped.

The Hurricanes now have 13 commitments as part of their 2012 signing class. More could be on the way. Golden has four more camps scheduled: Saturday, Sunday and June 18 and June 15.

Golden announced on twitter that he's expected former Hurricanes Bryant McKinnie, Brett Romberg and Andre Johnson to be at the camp this weekend. Hope said former receiver Leonard Hankerson and a whole host of current Hurricanes were at his camp on May 29.

"It's definitely good to see the former players and current players out there," Hope said. "It makes it feel like a real family."

It's always easy to take shots at what Randy Shannon did when he ran the show at UM. But in this case, it's obvious Golden has made some smart decisions and changes to the camp structure at UM. For starters, his camps are cheaper ($55) and they're spread out over various weekends.

Randy Shannon's football camp, which cost $130 for one-day participants and $390 for overnight campers, took place over just one weekend in June.

According to UM's sports information department, over 600 middle and high school athletes have participated in Golden's first two camps. For more information on the camps, visit www.algolden.com.

UM announces addition of DT Corey King

Defensive tackle Corey King, a graduate of West Boca Raton Community High School, has officially signed on to play football for the Hurricanes. King, who has four years of eligibility remaining, will join the team when camp begins in August.

“Corey King is a great addition to our already deep class,” defensive coordinator Mark D’Onofrio said in a statement released by the school. “He has tremendous strength and athletic ability. He is weight-room strong, benching 400 pounds.”

As a senior at West Boca Raton in 2010, King recorded 56 tackles, seven sacks, three forced fumbles and an interception. He was selected to the National team at the Outback Bowl – the annual South Florida high school football all-star game.

The announcement of King’s signing comes a little over a week since it was announced that quarterback Ryan Williams, who led Miramar to the Class 6A state title in 2009, was transferring to Miami from the University of Memphis. Williams and King mark the 17th and 18th members of the 2011 signing class, after 16 newcomers signed on National Signing Day.

> Here are King's 2010 highlights. By the way, I'm working on my own mixtape of video highlights. In fact, everyone should have one.

Canes land '12 commitment from QB Gray Crow

The Miami Hurricanes may have struckout on signing a quarterback for their 2011 signing class earlier this month, but they're making serious headway for the 2012 season.

Sunday, UM picked up a verbal commitment from Clearwater Countryside junior Gray Crow. The 6-3, 220-pound pro-style passer hasn't necessarily shown a lot on the field yet, but scouts believe he has a lot of upside.

Crow, who received his first verbal offer as a freshman from former Notre Dame coach Charlie Weis after attending one of his camps, is rated the 95th-best player regardless of position in the state by The Herald's Larry Blustein. Last month, Crow was tabbed by Rivals.com as the second-best junior quarterback at the U.S. Army All-American combine in San Antonio.

Although his junior numbers weren't very impressive (103 for 194, 1,439 yards, 8 TDs, 7 INTs), he did play on a team that ran the ball 433 times for 2,978 yards and 45 touchdowns and finished 12-1, losing to state runner-up Tampa Plant in the Class 5A regional final. But, more importantly for the Canes, he's someone offensive coordinator Jedd Fisch apparently likes a lot.

Countryside coach Jerad Davis said Fisch offered Crow about a week before National Signing Day and said Fisch fell in love with what he saw of Crow on tape. The Hurricanes were the first school to offer Crow a scholarship. He committed to UM on Sunday, shortly after flying down with his parents to be a part of UM's Junior Day with about 50 other high school student-athletes.

"I just liked everything Coach [Al] Golden and Coach Fisch told me," said Crow, whose older brother L.D. Crow is the third-string quarterback at UCF. "I got to meet and spend a lot of time with them. I didn't really see any downside of it. Going into the Junior day I knew I really liked Miami from an academic standpoint and the program in general.

"Me, personally I'm a very hard worker. I feel like I can compete against any quarterback in the nation. Yes, the fact only two QBs will be there helped in the deciding factor. But if any QBs would have been in this signing class, I probably still would have committed.

"As far as the offense, we run a college style offense. I'm used to having to see a lot different reads. It's a complex offense. The playbook is very complex. So, I think the transition will be easy because what we do is very similar to what a college offense does such as Miami."

If Crow sounds smart, it's because he is. He has a 3.8 GPA and recently scored a 1380 on the SAT.

"You can hold on one hand how many B's he's ever gotten," said Davis, who was the high school teammate of former UM kicker Jon Peattie. "He's a great kid and a great person, too."

Crow said he's planning on graduating in December and enrolling at UM in January.

The Hurricanes, who picked up a transfer from former Michigan quarterback Tate Forcier on Wednesday, have reportedly offered scholarships to at least two other quarterbacks in the 2012 class. One is Kentucky's Zeke Pike.

> Westminster Christian slugger David Thompson, who set the Miami-Dade County home run record last season with 19 longballs, also attended Sunday's Junior Day event at UM. Last summer, he verbally committed to playing for the Hurricanes baseball team.

Sunday, he told Canesport.com he's committing to UM's football program as well. But Thompson, who was named to Baseball America's All-American Second Team, probably won't ever end up playing in college. He's considered one of the best young up and coming baseball talents in the country.

Brissett signs with UF; Canes focus on other QBs

The Miami Hurricanes' chase of Palm Beach Dwyer quarterback Jacoby Brissett is officially over.

Three days after announcing at a basketball he wanted to play for the Gators, the U.S. Army All-American quarterback faxed his signed National Letter of Intent to Gainesville on Monday despite the efforts of his mother to sway him back toward the Canes.

Brissett (6-5, 225) was the top remaining unsigned quarterback in the country and said on Friday that he narrowed his choices down to UM and UF. But he chose to follow his heart -- and three former Dwyer teammates -- to Gainesville, against his mother's wishes.

Former Michigan standout Tate Forcier and Rutgers freshman All-American Tom Savage remain transfer possibilities for the Hurricanes at quarterback. Both would have to sit out the 2011 season if they picked UM per NCAA transfer rules. Forcier is reportedly going to visit UM sometime this week.

Just my opinion, but of the two, Savage is more likely to end up a Hurricane. Forcier had academic issues before leaving Michigan and is more likely to end up closer to home on the West Coast. Savage's grandparents own a home in South Florida.

> As the Canes look for a quarterback of the future, here is an interesting read from Rivals about Super Bowl MVP Aaron Rodgers, who had zero offers coming out of high school.

> The Hurricanes could end up adding another defensive tackle to their 2011 signing class sometime this week. According to InsideTheU.com, Bradenton Manatee senior Quinton Pompey (6-3, 275) still remains unsigned and is waiting on Miami according to his high school coach. Pompey's other offers are from Georgia Southern and Eastern Kentucky. Pompey was lightly recruited because of academic struggles, but has apparently worked them out according to his coach.

> Men's basketball coach Frank Haith, whose team pulled out two close home wins last week to keep their faint postseason hopes alive, said it looks like his two leading scorers Durand Scott and Malcolm Grant, and starting swingman Garrius Adams, finally appear to be getting past the flu.

The bigger concern? Sophomore center Reggie Johnson, who continues to battle issues with his right foot. Johnson, averaging 12 points and 9.9 rebounds a game (third most in the ACC), had bone spurs in his foot earlier this season. He played a season-high 34 minutes in Saturday's overtime win over Virginia.

"He has a reaction in his foot," Haith said during Monday's ACC teleconference. "We got to see that goes. He didn't practice Friday and I think he's going to be tabled at practice. We'll wait to see what the doctors say today."

> ESPN's Bruce Feldman said former UM coach Randy Shannon is supposed to interview for the vacant defensive coordinator job at Maryland later this week. Shannon interviewed for the same position with UCLA last month.

> Looks like another former Hurricanes assistant has landed at Alabama. Joe Pannunzio, who coached the special teams and tight ends under Shannon the last four years, has reportedly been hired in an "off the field role" by Nick Saban. Alabama hired former offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland last month.

> Just a reminder: the Hurricanes baseball team will have its team banquet Friday night at 6 p.m. and Fan Fest Saturday at 3 p.m. Jim Morris' team opens its season at home a week from Friday (Feb. 18) against Rutgers.

> Also, in case you missed Jorge Milian's blog from last week, UM is in talks with Florida State about scheduling next season's game as the season-opener on Labor Day. It's still not finalized.

Mom says 'it's not over yet', but Brissett does

Palm Beach Dwyer quarterback Jacoby Brissett was so worried about how his mom might react to the news of him picking the Gators Friday he decided to text message her two hours before his basketball game. It didn't make his announcement any easier to take.

His mother, Lisa Brown, didn't hide her emotions after Brissett told a gym full of spectators his future was in Gainesville. But like it or not, the 6-5, 225-pound U.S. Army All-American said after his game, he's sticking with his decision whether it hurts mom or not.

"I feel good about my decision," Brissett said. "I've thought to myself since Wednesday where I could see myself next year? It came down to UM and Florida. And I just had to follow my heart. And my heart [was] with Florida."

For what it's worth, Brissett said he went back and forth over his decision "about 25 times." Then, he made a final decision on Wednesday during school."

Still, Brown, a long-time Hurricanes fan, said she will try to sway him to pick the Hurricanes before he faxes his National Letter of Intent on Monday.

"I'm going to try to talk him out of it," she said. "He hasn't signed it yet. He's just orally committed right now."

Brissett said he was planning on sending his letter of intent on Saturday.

So why wasn't mom happy with her son's decision? It seems while she felt good about Gators offensive coordinator Charlie Weis, she was upset by the fact she hadn't met coach Will Muschamp yet.

Brissett said he's not worried about the impeding competition with Jeff Driskell at Florida. In fact, he's looking forward to it. "He just has to show me he's better than me," Brissett said. "That's all it is."

The Gators are scheduled to come to Sun Life Stadium to face UM in 2013.

Brissett to announce -- probably for UF -- soon

PALM BEACH GARDENS -- Al Golden said last month the thought of not having enough depth at quarterback scared him to death before going to sleep every night.

Barring a surprise, it looks like there will be a few more restless nights for the Hurricanes football coach.

U.S. Army All-American quarterback Jacoby Brissett will announce shortly if he's decided if he looks better in orange and blue or orange and green. UM, once thought to be the favorites in the Brissett sweepstakes, now looks like the underdog to Florida after a long day of rumors and unconfirmed reports on the internet.

The 6-5, 225-pound high school senior is expected to make his announcement at halftime of his basketball game here on Senior Night. The gym is near capacity.

The Hurricanes, who led all Football Bowl Subdivision schools in interceptions thrown last season, have senior Jacory Harris, senior Spencer Whipple and sophomore Stephen Morris on their current roster at quarterback.

As a senior at Dwyer, Brissett completed 63.5 percent of his passes for 2,473 yards, 32 touchdowns and only one interception. He rushed 63 times for 368 yards and seven touchdowns. As a basketball player this season, he is averaging 15.9 points per game for the Panthers (20-2).

Brissett was ranked the third best quarterback in the country by Rivals.com, ninth best by Scout.com and 25th best by ESPN.

The fact he may opt to sign with the Gators is a bit surprising. Florida already signed Oviedo's Jeff Driskel, rated by numerous recruiting services as the number one quarterback in the country. But, the Gators did sign three Dwyer players last season -- tight end Gerald Christian, receiver Robert Clark and safety Matt Elam. Plus, Dwyer coach Jack Daniels is a Florida grad.

"I'm not saying he can't compete and do well at Florida, but Jeff Driskel is going to be the man there," said ESPN recruiting analyst Corey Long, who said Thursday he heard Brissett was headed to Florida.

"The kid had two chances to really play in my opinion -- at Miami or Wisconsin."

Before UM coach Randy Shannon was fired, the Hurricanes had a commitment from Miami Northwestern's Teddy Bridgewater, also considered one of the nation's premier quarterbacks. But Bridgewater de-committed and signed with Louisville in December. The Hurricanes have been looking for a replacement ever since.

Brissett, who remained uncommitted through the recruiting process until Friday, didn't begin getting recruited by UM until Golden took over as coach. He visited UM on the final available recruiting weekend before National Signing Day "and loved it" according to his mother Lisa Brown, who is a huge Hurricanes fan.

"He can make any throw," Daniels said last week. "He can lose people in the pocket. He's just such a winner. I'll never have a quarterback like him."

With or without Brissett, the Hurricanes could still end up with another quarterback. Former 2009 freshman All-American Tom Savage left Rutgers and has expressed interest in Miami. If Savage were to transfer to UM he would have to sit out the 2011 season per NCAA rules.

"He's a kid that can come in and play as game manager, but I don't think the kid is a great quarterback," said Charles Fishbein of Elite Scouting Services. "He's not very mobile and will need a lot of guys around him to make plays. He struggled at Rutgers."

Even with a transfer or another pickup, the Hurricanes will most likely still sign at least two quarterbacks in their 2012 class. Long said he expects national recruiting coordinator Brennan Carroll to use his West Coast connections from his days at USC to land the Hurricanes a top-flight California quarterback.

Dade Christian's Bilal Marshall (6-3, 180) is considered the best 2012 quarterback in Miami-Dade and Broward Counties. Marshall, who threw for 1,600 yards and ran for 1,100 yards last season, said Friday he grew up a Hurricanes fan. UM receivers coach George McDonald visited Marshall last week, but UM has yet to offer him according to Dade Christian coach Mike Sonneborn.

"I'm looking for a school that fits my personality, a program that likes to win," said Marshall, who already has scholarship offers from Wake Forest, Duke, Rutgers, Boston College and Kansas among a collection of nearly a dozen.

"But it's not always about what school was your favorite school was growing up. You have to look at the best interest in your future life."

Golden's quest to solidify state of Miami has begun

If you listen closely enough, at around 7 p.m. tonight you'll either hear a roar of celebration coming from Coral Gables or Canes fans across the country cussing up a storm.

Tonight is the night U.S. Army All-American quarterback Jacoby Brissett will announce where he's going to college. He will choose between Florida, Miami or Wisconsin. Although he can't say it publicly, UM coach Al Golden desperately wants Brissett to be the 17th member of the Canes' 2011 signing class.

There's been a lot of speculation over the last couple days about where Brissett will be going to school. Dwyer coach Jack Daniels said he thought Miami had a great shot, especially since Brissett's mom is a huge Canes fan. Then, yesterday, we began hearing Brissett may now be favoring Florida. Brissett will announce his choice before his basketball game scheduled for a 7 p.m. start.

The Hurricanes, quite frankly, shouldn't be in this mess. After leading the country in interceptions thrown last season, finding and landing a quarterback should have taken place a long time ago. But this isn't Al Golden's fault. It's Randy Shannon's. And the clean-up of his mess continues.

Golden spoke for nearly 40 minutes on Wednesday about his first signing class. Between talking about how happy he was to land the 14 recruits he did in a matter of five weeks (15 real recruiting days) -- and the eight he was able to steal from others -- Golden made sure to apologize plenty too. Being a thief is something Golden didn't like having to be to sign players. Being the new guy on the job was difficult enough. What was even tougher was being seen as a total stranger in his own backyard.

You see Golden didn't just have to introduce himself and his new staff when he went out recruiting. In many instances, he had to introduce The U to coaches and players that hadn't seen anybody come around with that U in a long time.

Brissett? The previous staff gave him an offer when every other school in the country did. But once Miami Northwestern's Teddy Bridgewater committed to the Canes, Shannon pulled back the reigns. No need for a Plan B right? Apparently, Shannon and his staff took this approach more often than most of us realized. 

Want to know how many times UM went to visit Miami Central, a school that won the Class 6A state title this year and produced 17 Division I players on Wednesday (and as Golden pointed out produced more D-I talent than the entire state of Connecticut)?

"They came out once in the spring," Rockets coach Telly Lockette said Thursday night, shortly before Golden hosted nearly 100 head coaches and assistant coaches from Miami-Dade County at UM's basketball game against Georgia Tech.

"I remember the recruiting coordinator [Aubrey Hill] and the [defensive backs] coach [Wesley] McGriff came out to see us. McGriff came one other time. I'll say they came three times total to be safe."

Lockette, one of three on the board of the Miami-Dade County Coaches Association, doesn't want to take shots at Shannon or his staff. He's known Shannon since he was a teenager, grew up playing at the same park where Shannon frequented up in Northwest Dade. But Lockette still isn't sure why the Hurricanes didn't come around to recruit his players more often or other local players many thought were good enough to play for the Canes but ended up elsewhere.

The thought process here isn't that the Canes need to get every local kid. The thought process is at least come and make your presence felt so if you have to offer a kid late in the game, you don't come in as a total stranger.

"I remember Randy coming in personally about a year ago, we sat down and talked," Lockette said. "From then on, we thought it was going to be better. I'm not trying to throw Randy Shannon or his staff under the bus. I just thought they were recruiting a different type athlete. They would say, 'Well this guy can't play at Miami.' Jeffrey Godfrey? He can't play at Miami? You look at the guys who are going off to Louisville and what they're going to do. You know and I know you've been watching football for a long time -- that's sickening.

"At the end of the day, if you look at the track record, I've been here for three years. You mean to tell me I'm sending 53 kids off to school from here, 38 are D-I and only one is going to UM? I don't know what the deal was. They have to answer that."

That player UM got from Central, cornerback Thomas Finnie, wasn't even recruited by Shannon or anybody on his staff. Golden came down and swooped him away from South Carolina -- right under Steve Spurrier and Lockett's nose. Lockette was a little bothered at first that Golden nor anybody on his staff called to let him know they were meeting with Finnie on the morning he was set to leave for South Carolina.

But that's ancient history now.

"He came in and we sat down a week ago Tuesday," Lockette said. "He wanted to apologize for the whole ordeal and how everything went down. I told him I understood. I was telling him at this point if he wants to recruit my kids I don't have any problems with him doing it. That's when they jumped on [offensive tackle] John Miller. Once coach [Art] Kehoe got in and saw John Miller, he was ecstatic, wanted the kid bad, but it was too late.

"Coach Golden is a good guy, a straight up guy. I don't blame him for coming after the kids the way he did late in the game. It's unfortunate they were caught in that situation. I just would have liked a courtesy phone call saying coach I'm going to go after your kid. But I understand they were under the gun. That's called recruiting. I didn't have a problem with that."

Golden promised Wednesday the Hurricanes won't ever be under the gun or strangers in their own backyard again as long as he's coach. His plan to change htings: put all nine of his coaches to recruit what he calls 'The Eye Of The Storm' -- Dade, Broward and Palm Beach Counties.

"All of Florida is vitally important ot us. We’ve got to get back to our roots...," Golden said. "We’re going to get back to being really strong in those areas. We’re talking right now about which areas we’re going to allocate. Not only do we have all nine coaches within two hours of where we are right now, which is what we call the Eye of the Storm, we have all nine coaches in-state, which is really important to us. If we take care of our home state, we’re going to be in great shape. We’ll have all nine guys in the state and all nine guys here in the eye, which I think is a departure from what they’ve done before. We want to make sure we get it right here.

"There are too many kids signing late, too many kids that are the next Ed Reed or the next Ray Lewis who was the last player taken, or the next Reggie Wayne. There are too many of those kids locally to go all over the country when they’re right here in our backyard. We want to make sure our central focus is here and then go out of state to get kids that want to be a part of this tradition.

"The number of kids that come out from down here and play Division I football is the reason whywe’re developing our recruiting philosophy... if there’s 350 or 400 kids that sign Division I scholarships in Florida, we only need 18 to 20 a year to be a great team. Not to compete, but a great team. So let’s get it right at home and go from there."

Golden isn't just taking a new approach to recruiting, he's taking a new approach all around. Among other things on tap: junior days, camps, coaching clinics. In essence, he's extending his hand out and shaking hands with people who often wondered why that old football powerhouse down the street was ignoring them.

"We are the University of Miami, the University of all of South Florida," Golden said. "And we want to make sure we are giving kids an opportunity to learn, to be exposed to the University of Miami, our mission on campus. And clearly we want an opportunity to evaluate to see which ones are good enough to be Hurricanes and who wants to be Miami Hurricanes.

"Our last four years at Temple, 78 percent of the kids that we signed attended [our] camp. So obviously you have a chance to evaluate them in the camp. There’s nothing like seeing a student-athlete live. There’s nothing that compares to it. If you can take that, plus the academic transcript, plus the film and then the intangibles, you have a chance to mitigate risk."

UM's camp used to cost $390. Golden has slashed it down $55.

"We're going to keep that price low," Golden said. "It's $40 through President's Day weekend, then will go up to $55. It's not a money maker for us. It’s about getting to know the high school coaches, giving kids an opportunity. The camp is designed so if you don't get a scholarship offer from Miami – FIU, FAU, Bethnue Cookman, MAC schools, a bunch of 1-AA schools – all those schools will be here and represented so there's a safety net in there. It's not just going to benefit you if you want to go to Miami, but it will benefit you if you want to go to one of those other institutions as well."

How does it work? "You show up at 8, you get introduced to the staff, we break you down into groups and you do a bunch of drills on offense, then you do a bunch of drills on defense, then you have a chance to go to lunch on campus - inside, for a barbecue," Golden said.

"We'll finish up with some one on ones and some competition at the end. It's really an 8 to 4 deal. We coach the heck out of them. We have it down cold. We’re going to develop them. They're going to learn. Hopefully, the goal is to get them back again. We have six of those dates in June."

Of course, Golden still isn't done with 2011.

The Hurricanes, ranked as having the 36th-best recruiting class in the country by Rivals.com, could end up moving up a few more notches tonight if Jacoby Brissett decides UM (which didn't begin recruiting him until three weeks ago) is really the best place for his future.

But gain a quarterback or watch him go elsewhere tonight, we've learned at least one thing over the last six weeks: Al Golden is not going to be a stranger in his own backyard very long.

Canes ink 16 recruits; Brissett watch begins

At 4 p.m. UM coach Al Golden will meet with local reporters to talk about his signing class. You can watch it online at Hurricanesports.com. 

For all intent and purposes it feels like the Canes are done for today. There is still at least one possible addition out there:

> Encino Crespi (Calif.) receiver Devin Lucien could still end up picking UM when he announces his choice at 6 p.m. EST. But the expectation is he will stay out west at either Arizona State, Colorado, UCLA or Utah.

So, for now, it appears, the next big news will come from Palm Beach Dwyer quarterback Jacoby Brissett, who will make his announcement on Friday during halftime of his basketball game. Brissett is said to be deciding between UM and Wisconsin. 

"I'm hoping he's the last big surprise," said Tampa Alonso defensive end Anthony Chickillo, who signed with the Canes Wednesday. "Jalen Grimble was the one I knew about. I thought there might be a few others. Right now, I've got my fingers crossed for Jacoby."

NEW VIDEO: Coral Gables LB Denzel Perryman spoke with our Andre Fernandez this morning. Here is the interview.

DUBOSE SWITCHES: Northeast defensive end Bryant Dubose said he started having second thoughts the moment he left his official visit from the University of Miami last Sunday. Now we know he probably should have never committed to the Canes in the first place.

Dubose, an All-Broward First Team selection, switched his commitment to Louisville during a ceremony in front of his teammates, coach and mother. He's the first Canes commitment to flee the class. The 6-4, 245-pound recruit, rated the 24th best defensive end in the country by Rivals.com, said he just felt more comfortable with the Cardinals.

"We have a great recruiting class there," Dubose said. "I love the environment there, the coaching staff. I feel like that's where I will be best at in my future."

Dubose still needed to qualify academically at UM. I believe grades definitely played a factor.

THIS MORNING'S NEWS...

Ricardo Williams was so jacked up about signing with the Miami Hurricanes on Wednesday he woke up eight minutes before his alarm clock was set to go off at 5:30 a.m.

The 6-6, 218-pound defensive end from Homestead High wanted to be the first player to fax his signed National Letter of Intent in to coach Al Golden. Unfortunately for Williams, who sent his fax through at 7 a.m., here was a slight glitch. He had forgotten to send his financial aid form in along with his signed letter of intent.

"Coach [Micheall] Barrow called and told me I had to resend it," Williams said. "I guess you can say we were a little too excited."

When UM finally received all of his necessary paperwork at 8:20 a.m., Williams was the sixth recruit to become an official new member of Golden's first recruiting class. Melbourne Central Catholic receiver Rashawn Scott was the first to get his letter in at 7:10 a.m.

As of 11 a.m., UM had recognized 14 signees as part of its 2011 class. The others: St. Thomas Aquinas receiver Phillip Dorsett; Coral Gables linebacker Denzel Perryman; Lakeland Kathleen linebacker Gianni Paul; Tampa Alonso defensive end Anthony Chickillo; Dallas, Ga. offensive tackle Taylor Gadbois; Hargrave Military Academy (Va.) linebacker Antonio Kinard; North Atlanta Ga. linebacker Eddie Johnson; South Fort Myers cornerback Dallas Crawford; South Broward running back Kevin Grooms; Las Vegas defensive end Jalen Grimble; West Hills, Calif. kicker Matt Goudis; and Taft, Calif. punter Dalton Botts.

The big surprise for UM: Grimble, a 6-2, 280-pounder from Bishop Gorman who was rated an ESPN Top 150 recruit and a four-star prospect by Rivals.com.

“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” Grimble told the Las Vegas Review Journal. “The coaching staff is great. The school’s in a nice area. The student-to-teacher ratio is 11-to-1. You could go across the country and that’s hard to find.”

The other surprise was Johnson, a player most Canes fans hadn't heard of until Wednesday. A three-star prospect according to ESPNU and Rivals.com, the 6-1, 230-pounder had originally committed to UCF. He had 90 tackles on defense and scored four touchdowns on offense.

THE MISSES
Golden went after several other recruits -- and didn't land them all:
> Jacksonville Ed White offensive tackle Kaleb Johnson opted for Rutgers.
> Lake Butler Union County Lonnie Gosha took a late visit to UM, but opted to stick with his commitment to Arkansas.
> Osbourne (Va.) athlete Dominique Terrell decided to stay home and play at Virginia. He was set to choose between the Canes and West Virginia.
> Inglewood (Calif.) receiver Patrick Onwuasor chose Arizona over Miami, Arizona State, Washington and Hawaii.

Canes Signing Day blog

Good morning, it's National Signing Day. Here is what's on tap:

> I will be on the move starting at 6 a.m. -- driving up and down Miami-Dade and Broward County -- to visit schools and talk to Canes recruits until coach Al Golden discusses his signing class in Coral Gables at around 4 p.m. Throughout the day, you can follow me and all updates regarding the Canes commitments on my Twitter page. The plan is to post as much content -- video, audio, stories -- as possible here and The Herald's website throughout the day. Be sure to check out our Recruiting page for stories. We've already contacted sports writers around the country to be on the scene when players considering UM make their announcements throughout the day (check the schedule below).

> Associate AD for Communications Chris Freet and his staff will announce on Hurricanesports' Twitter page when those signed Letters of Intent have officially arrived through the schools' fax machine.

> For those of you who want to hear from UM's coach, Al Golden's press conference will be carried live on Hurricanesports.com at 4 p.m. You can also see Golden and his assistants talk about those recruits after they their sign National Letters of Intent throughout the day on UM's site. Golden is also supposed to join ESPNU and CBSCollegeSports for interviews some time in the afternoon.

> Our Larry Blustein will host an interactive live blog starting at 9 a.m. on The Miami Herald's high school page. Blustein, who also hosts a radio show on WQAM, will be on the radio throughout the day providing analysis and thoughts.

So what else will this day bring?

Anthony Chickillo said there would be surprises. We'll see. One won't be Palm Beach Dwyer quarterback Jacoby Brissett. He's waiting to make his announcement on Friday night at halftime of his basketball game.

Here's a list of UM's 15 commitments heading into Wednesday (only Northeast defensive end BJ Dubose was thought to be considering switching out on the Canes for Louisville or Syracuse).

EARLY ENROLEES
DB Thomas Finnie, Miami Central, 5-10, 170 VIDEO LINK
DL Olsen Pierre, Fork Union Miltary Academy (Va.), 6-6, 280 VIDEO LINK

COMMITMENTS (Check Twitter updates for when they actually sign)
> Dalton Botts, Moorpark CC (Calif.), P, 6-3, 200 VIDEO LINK
> Anthony Chickillo, Tampa Alonso, DE, 6-4, 235 VIDEO LINK
> Dallas Crawford, South Fort Myers, CB, 5-10, 185 VIDEO LINK
> Phillip Dorsett, St. Thomas Aquinas, WR, 5-10, 170 VIDEO LINK
> Bryant Dubose, Northeast, DE, 6-4, 240 VIDEO LINK
> Taylor Gadbois, Dallas East Paulding (Ga.), OT, 6-8, 295 
> Matt Goudis, West Hills Chaminade (Calif.), K, 6-0, 165 VIDEO LINK
> Kevin Grooms, South Broward High, RB/CB, 5-10, 165 VIDEO LINK
> Antonio Kinard, Hargrave Military Academy (Va.), LB, 6-4, 215 VIDEO LINK
> Gionni Paul, Lakeland Kathleen, LB, 6-0, 227 VIDEO LINK
> Denzel Perryman, Coral Gables, LB, 5-11, 217 VIDEO LINK
> Rashawn Scott, Melbourne Central Catholic, WR, 6-2, 198 VIDEO LINK
> Ricardo Williams, Homestead, DE, 6-5, 210 VIDEO LINK

PLAYERS TO WATCH ON SIGNING DAY

OL Kaleb Johnson, Jacksonville Ed White, 6-5, 280
- Set to announce at 9 a.m. Rated 47th best offensive guard in the country by Scout.com. Met with UM offensive line coach Art Kehoe on Tuesday and hit it off. Other schools that remain in the picture are North Carolina, Louisville, Rutgers and Iowa State. MY PREDICTION: Hurricane.

DT Elkino Watson, Miami Booker T. Washington, 6-2, 265 VIDEO LINK
- Set to announce at 9 a.m. Rated 23rd best DT by Rivals.com; 97th best DT by Scout.com. Has UF, USF and Louisville in the mix. MY PREDICTION: Not a Cane, but will probably stay in-state.

CB/WR Dominique Terrell, Osbourne (Va.), 5-10, 165 VIDEO LINK
- Supposed to announce at 11:30 a.m. Finished as his area’s leading rusher (272 att., 2,077 yards, 30 touchdowns) and leading scorer (192 points) and second-leading passer with 1,430 yards and 15 touchdown passes. Will decide between UM, West Virginia and Virginia. MY PREDICTION: He's a Hurricane. Golden's relationship with his family, knowing older brother pays off.

DT Lonnie Gosha, Lake Butler Union County, 6-2, 260 
- Set to announce at 12:15 p.m. ESPN Top 150 player committed to Arkansas but visited UM and liked it a lot. Former FSU commitment, Rivals.com ranks him as the nation's 169th-overall prospect. PREDICTION: Arkansas. But wouldn't be surprised if he also chose the Canes.

DT Jalen Grimble, Las Vegas Bishop Gorman, 6-3, 255
- Set to announce at 5 p.m. EST. Considered 7th best DT in country by Scout.com. A long-time USC commitment, he will decide between the Canes and UCLA. Cousin, Xavier Grimble, signed with USC last year. Family grew close to Brennan Carroll and Jethro Franklin. PREDICTION: Hurricane. This is the guy I believe Chickillo was talking about when he said a surprise was in store.

WR Devin Lucien, Encino Crespi (Calif.), 6-1, 189 VIDEO LINK
- Set to announce at 6 p.m. EST. Rated 44th best WR in country by Scout.com. As a senior, Lucien caught 71 passes for 1,259 yards and 17 touchdowns. Will choose from Arizona State, Colorado, Miami, UCLA and Utah. MY PREDICTION: Not a Cane. He's staying out West.

WR Patrick Onwuasor, Inglewood (Calif.), 6-2, 190 VIDEO LINK
- Set to announce at 6 p.m. EST. Rated 56th best safety in country by Scout.com. Caught 37 passes for 745 yards and 7 touchdowns as a senior and had 46 tackles and 6 interceptions from his safety spot. Will choose between Miami, Arizona, Arizona State, Washington and Hawaii. MY PREDICTION: Not a Cane. Will end up somewhere in Arizona.

Previewing Signing Day for the Canes

WIth less than 24 hours before National Signing Day, the Miami Hurricanes are at 15 commitments (two players have already enrolled) as part of their 2011 signing class.

So what will transpire when fax machines start spitting out signed National Letters of Intent on Wednesday? Nobody is really sure. But I caught up with Canesport.com's Matt Shodell, who has covered UM recruiting since the 18th century, to get the latest in what turned out to be a half-hour podcast. If you love recruiting or don't know anything about it, Matt did a great job breaking things down position by position with me. Not only did he review the players UM already has committed, but he gave us some quality info on who they might add and are considering.

PREVIEWING SIGNING DAY WITH CANESPORT'S MATT SHODELL

If you don't care to listen, here is an abbreviated/written version of what Matt and I talked about (FYI, National Signing Day is just the start of the signing period. Players have until April 1st to sign with schools):

QUICK POSITION BY POSITION BREAKDOWN

OFFENSE

> At quarterback, the Hurricanes don't have any commitments yet, but are obviously hot on the trail of Palm Beach Dwyer's Jacoby Brissett (who may end up waiting until halftime of his basketball game Friday to announce his choice between UM, Wisconsin and Florida). Former Rutgers quarterback Tom Savage remains an option as a transfer. Matt thinks if UM doesn't end up with Brissett or Savage, UM could end up offering Steve Weatherford (committed to Cincinnati) or end up with another option.

> At running back, UM has only one commitment in South Broward's Kevin Grooms and they are fine with it -- especially with 2012 standout Duke Johnson of Miami Norland already committed. Grooms could end up switching to cornerback, an area where UM may not end up signing enough players in this class.

> At receiver, an obvious area of need, the commitments remain St. Thomas Aquinas' Phillip Dorsett and Melbourne Central Catholic's Rashawn Scott. The Canes could end up adding California's Devin Lucien (he will announce at 6 p.m. EST Wednesday) or Patrick Onwaussor (6 p.m. EST Wednesday). But Matt thinks the fact those kids didn't commit on their visits probably hurts UM. Former Aquinas and Ohio State Duron Carter, the son of ESPN analyst Cris Carter, who is attending Palm Beach Community College, also remains an option if he can get his academics in order.

> At tight end, UM already has USC transfer Blake Ayles on campus. Barring a major surprise, he will be the only tight end in this class. Northeast defensive end Bryant Dubose, one of UM's commitments, could end up switching to tight end. He could also end up not being a part of this class at all. Matt said Dubose could be having second thoughts with heavy pressure from Syracuse and Louisville.

> On the offensive line, the Hurricanes have big Taylor Gadbois (6-8, 295), a player Matt compares favorably with former Canes offensive tackle Jason Fox. The Hurricanes are expected to land two players on the offensive line -- Jacksonville Ed White's Kaleb Johnson (6-5, 280) will likely be the other. Matt said Johnson (will announce at 9 a.m. Wednesday) hit it off with Art Kehoe during his in-home visit last week. Johnson is also considering North Carolina, where a family member is currently employed.

DEFENSE

> On the defensive line, the Canes have four commitments -- all at defensive end. We told you about Dubose, the others are Tampa Alonso and Under Armour All-American Anthony Chickillo, Fork Union Military Academy (Va.)'s Olsen Pierre (a former Temple commitment already enrolled) and Homestead's Ricardo Williams.

If the Canes add any linemen at this point it will be defensive tackles. UM's best shot according to Matt is Lake Butler Union County's Lonnie Gosha (an Arkansas commitment and ESPN Top150 player). Gosha will announce at 12:15 p.m. at his high school. Las Vegas Bishop Gorman's Jalen Grimble, who was a USC commitment, could also be a big surprise addition. He will decide between UM and UCLA (5 p.m. Wednesday). The Hurricanes are also still after Miami Booker T. Washington's Elkino Watson (9 a.m. Wednesday). But we both think Watson will end up going elsewhere. The Hurricanes have invited a couple recruits to hold off on making a decision and taking a possible visit -- Bradenton Manatee's Quinton Pompey being one of them.

> At linebacker, the Canes seemed to be settled with their three commitments: Coral Gables' Denzel Perryman, Hargrave Miltary Academy (Va.)'s Antonio Kinard and Lakeland Kathleen's Gionni Paul. Matt likes Perryman the best of the bunch.

> In the secondary, UM took a bit of hit late Monday night when Los Angeles-area JUCO cornerback Byron Moore opted for Tennessee instead of the Canes. Matt said UM was expecting to land Moore, but it didn't happen. As it stands, the Canes have two commitments -- Miami Central cornerback Thomas Finnie (who is already enrolled) and South Fort Myers' Dallas Crawford. California's Marqise Lee visited UM, but is expected to remain on the West Coast. Virginia's Dominique Terrell (11:15 a.m. Wednesday) remains a possiblity after his visit, but isn't likely. But who knows, there might be another late surprise.

SPECIAL TEAMS

> On special teams, the Canes have landed two highly regarded prospects in kicker Matt Goudis and punter Dalton Botts. Both should do a good job replacing the departed Matt Bosher.

Signing Day may extend past Wednesday for UM

Al Golden and his staff are scheduled to talk to reporters about their 2011 signing class at 4 p.m. on Wednesday. But Golden may not be able to talk about all of the players who end up inking with Miami.

In addition to several west coast recruits who will be announcing later in the day/night, Palm Beach Dwyer quarterback Jacoby Brissett could end up waiting a few days to make his decision known to the public. The 6-4, 200-pound U.S. Army All-American, who trimmed his list down to UM, Florida and Wisconsin on Monday, could wait until his basketball game on Senior Night Friday to announce where he's going.

"Right now, his mother and I are both trying to convince him to do it on Wednesday at school," Dwyer coach Jack Daniels said. "But I think he wants to wait until Friday. We'll see what happens."

National Signing Day is just the beginning of the signing period for football recruits. They have from Wednesday until April 1st to pick a school. UM could still end up hosting a few other potential recruits in the coming weeks.

> As it stands, the Hurricanes have 15 commitments. Junior college cornerback Byron Moore of Los Angeles Harbor Community College will announce at 11 p.m. tonight if he's going to UM or Tennessee. Moore finished his season with 42 tackles and seven interceptions and will head to his next school with three remaining seasons of eligibility left.

Moore will make his announcement on an internet radio show called The All-Star Approach.

> According to the Newark Star-Ledger, Rutgers has given former quarterback Tom Savage permission to transfer to either UM or Florida.

Savage, a freshman All-American in 2009, announced three weeks ago he was transferring after losing his starting job last season. He threw for 2,211 yards and 14 TDs and 7 INTs as a freshman. He played in only two games because of injuries and ended up on the bench last season.

> As I told you guys last week, former UM coach Randy Shannon will be on ESPNU on Wednesday as a special guest. Shannon, who was a candidate for the devensive coordinator position at UCLA, could end up looking for a job in TV in 2011 according to the Associated Press.

> Booker T. Washington defensive tackle Elkino Watson, who visited UM two weekends ago, said he will announce at 9 a.m. on Wednesday his choice between UM, USF, Florida and Louisville. He grew up a Canes fan, but didn't receive an offer from UM until a few weeks ago when Golden took over as coach.

I spoke to him at school for about 10 minutes Monday. Here is his interview:

ELKINO WATSON INTERVIEW 1-31-11

Brissett enjoys UM visit, will decide Monday

Lisa Brown has felt a lot like a phone operator of late. Everyone she knows and doesn't know has been trying to figure out where her son, Palm Beach Dwyer quarterback Jacoby Brissett, will be going to college.

Brown isn't sure where that will be just yet. But she knows her and her son will probably be making that decision on Monday night, before announcing it to the public on Wednesday morning at 9:30 a.m. at Dwyer High.

"Our plan is to cut the list down by tomorrow," Brown said Sunday evening. "We have to hammer a few things out so he can make the best decision possible. But I can tell you this: he had a really great time on his visit to Miami this weekend and they're definitely in it."

UM's coaches have tried hard over the last two months to recruit a talented quarterback since Miami Northwestern's Teddy Bridgewater de-committed and signed with Louisville following the coaching change. The Canes learned over the weekend they are out of the running for Orlando Lake Nona's Kevin Sousa, who informed UM coaches he's down to South Florida and Wake Forest. St. Thomas Aquinas' quarterback Jake Rudock told UM coaches earlier this week he was sticking with Iowa.

As for Brissett, Dwyer coach Jack Daniels said he called him Sunday morning to trim one of his four remaining schools from the list. So who is out? "He has it down to three schools," Daniels said. "He kind of wants to tell the school before I say anything else. I can guarantee Miami is one of the three schools still in it."

Florida, Wisconsin and Washington were the other schools still in the running for Brissett before his weekend visit to Coral Gables. The 6-4, 200-pound senior U.S. Army-All American visited Washington officially last weekend. Wisconsin is the only remaining school that has recruited him since Sept. 1 of his junior year. Florida, which already has highly-touted Jeff Driskel, "only started recruited him a few weeks before Miami did," according to Daniels.

"I don't try to get too involved," Daniels said. "But I know he has a pretty good opportunity at Miami and his mom is a huge Canes fan. That's definitely in their corner."

Daniels said Hurricanes coaches have put a full court press on Brissett over the last two weeks. Al Golden and several assistants went to see Brissett's high school basketball game on Monday. Golden sat next to Brissett's mother during the game.

"He's as close to Coach Fisch and Coach Golden as someone can get to anybody in a span of two weeks," Daniels said. "If he's really close to anybody, it's the coaches at Wisconsin because they've been recruiting him from Day 1. He really likes the offensive coordinator. The thing is the distance.

"We'll have to wait and see how he feels Monday. But the plan now is he'll inform the coaches of where he's going and make a formal announcement Wednesday morning. Honestly, it's kind of exciting. I'm on edge. We'll see what he ends up deciding soon."

A FEW MORE TIDBITS

> Daniels said UM, which hasn't spent a lot of time recruiting his players in the past, have already verbally offered 6-6, 280-pound left tackle Patrick Miller, who is part of Dwyer's 2012 class.

> Jacksonville Ed White offensive lineman Kaleb Johnson, who visited UM Jan. 21, will make his announcement at 9 a.m. Wednesday at his high school, according to his coach Terry Gilliam. Johnson (6-5, 280) met with UM coaches on Tuesday.

"Miami is still definitely in the picture," Gilliam said. "The others are North Carolina, Louisville and Rutgers. His mom decided he would let the school know before hand."

Does any school have an edge? "I don't know," Gilliam said. "But I do know he has a family member who works at North Carolina."

> Las Vegas Bishop Gorman defensive tackle Jalen Grimble, a 5-star recruit according to Scout.com who visited UM last weekend and was once a USC commitment, took his official visit to UCLA this weekend according to coach Tony Sanchez.

"He's going to announce at [5 p.m. EST] on National Signing Day," Sanchez said. "I'll find out more tonight when I talk to him at our banquet. But I can tell you Miami is still in it."

Canes land commitment from DE Dubose

Bryant "B.J." Dubose will remain a Hurricane. 

The 6-4, 230-pound defensive end/tight end and two-time All Broward First Team selection from Oakland Park Northeast High (whose nickname is the Hurricanes) committed to UM on Sunday -- although he was hoping to keep it a secret until National Signing Day.

"That was the plan," Dubose said of his commitment. "But you know how these websites are. They hear something and they call you nonstop."

So why did he pick the Canes? "It just felt like the place for me," Dubose said. "I felt most comfortable there."

Dubose, who visited UM this weekend, played in high school for former Canes running back Donnell Bennett. He's considered a three-star recruit by both Rivals and Scout.com. Dubose had 60 tackles, 11 sacks and an interception as a senior as he helped lead Northeast to the Class 6A regional final. As a junior, he had 55 tackles and 13 sacks.

"I'm just very proud of him as a person," Bennett said. "He's grown so much on and off the field. He's starting to get the gist of this growing up thing."

Bennett said Dubose still isn't a full academic qualifier for college, "but he's pretty close."

"I'm not sure what he needs -- the guidance counselors handle that," Bennett said.

Bennett said Dubose would have his National Signing Day event at school at noon on Wednesday.

> Orlando Lake Nona quarterback Kevin Sousa scratched the Canes off his list Saturday night according to his high school position coach Anthony Paradiso.

"He's probably going to make a decision between Wake Forest and South Florida in the next day or so," Paradiso said. "We called coach Fisch last night and shared that news with him. We were up at South Florida this past weekend. With Kevin being new to football and Wake Forest and USF having recruited him for awhile, he just feels more comfortable with those guys. They know him better and he knows them better."

At this point it appears UM will either land Dwyer's Jacoby Brissett (visiting UM today) or end up with a transfer or prep school quarterback.

> Dubose becomes UM's 15th commitment and fourth defensive end to join this class. UM is expected to land JUCO DB Byron Moore when he makes his announcement on Monday night. Moore is choosing between UM and Tennessee. The Hurricanes have at least 16 scholarships to offer in this class -- if not more. 

Canes take LB Paul away from Arizona St.

"Welcome to The U" Gionni Paul.

With National Signing Day less than a week away, the Miami Hurricanes landed their 14th oral commitment Friday morning when the Lakeland Kathleen High School linebacker announced he was switching his future plans from Arizona State to Miami.

"I just did it this morning," Paul (6-0, 227) told CaneSport.com. "I called, talked to coach [Al] Golden and [Micheal] Barrow. They were so excited. They really made me happy, made me feel good, my parents feel good. It was a big decision. It was the best decision for me and my family.

"It just came down to Auburn, Louisville, Miami and Arizona State. It came down to the people. They're great, down to earth people. I love the way coach Golden conducts himself, his program. He's big on discipline. I love the players. There's nothing bad to say about Miami."

According to Canesport.com, Paul got an in-home visit from coach Al Golden on Thursday evening; Arizona State coaches came in for a visit afterward. But it was Golden & Co. that won out.

"Coach Golden came with Barrow," Paul said. "They told me they want me to come in and run the show. They didn't talk to me like recruiting. They talked to me more like from a life perspective."

Paul, who visited UM last weekend, said UM wants him either at middle linebacker or outside. "I'm shooting for nothing less than to play right away," he said. "My goal is to be Freshman Player of the Year in the ACC."

Paul started at safety as a high school freshman before moving to linebacker. Paul is He's rated the nation's No. 33 outside linebacker prospect by Rivals.com. He finished his senior season with 149 tackles, double digit sacks and four interceptions.

PODCAST: Will UM's recruiting efforts pay off on West Coast?

With a week to go before National Signing Day the Miami Hurricanes have 13 commitments and about a dozen more recruits they are still after. 

It's not humanly possible to chase down all the rumors and all the players coach Al Golden and his staff have gone after over the last five weeks. So, instead, I chased down two of the experts who work the recruiting circuit 24/7 for a living -- Scout.com's Mike Bakas and Brandon Huffman.

Bakas has covered Hurricanes recruiting for 10 years. In our conversation, he provided some good insight on new UM commitment Rashawn Scott, a 6-2, 200-pound receiver from Melbourne Central Catholic. We also talked about who Bakas thinks the Canes really have a shot at signing come Wednesday (yes, he believes UM will land Dwyer quarterback Jacoby Brissett) and a lot more. 

Huffman, the Regional Recruiting manager on the West Coast for Scout.com, will have JUCO defensive back Byron Moore on his show Monday night to announce his choice between UM and Tennessee. Huffman knows all about Brennan Carroll and Jethro Franklin and the work they did on the West Coast as recruiters. Huffman talks about that, which California 2011 recruits UM really has a shot at and which 2012 players the Canes have already given written offers to. You don't want to miss that.

EYE ON THE U: Recruiting Podcast 1/26/11

Do Canes have surprises on tap for Signing Day?

Nobody ever wants to ruin a good surprise. So, its hard to blame Anthony Chickillo when he says he doesn't "want to be THAT GUY!" either.

The Hurricanes' top recruit in the 2011 football class has been a busy worker bee for coach Al Golden since reaffirming his commitment over a weekend visit. His goal: recruit more monsters to Miami.

"I've be calling guys, texting them, sending them messages on Facebook," said Chickillo, the MVP of the Under Armour All-American Game.

"Recruiting is a tough job. I want to build a good class. My goal is to bring a sixth national championship team to Miami. I'm telling you there are going to be a couple surprises, guys who have committed but will announce later. I just don't want to spoil it for them."

Chickillo said he's spent a lot of time talking to quarterback targets Jake Rudock of St. Thomas Aquinas (who informed UM coaches he will stick with Iowa late Monday night) and Palm Beach Dwyer's Jacoby Brissett. "I have a feeling we're going to get one of those guys," Chickillo said. "I've talked to Jacoby a few times."

Others Chickillo said he feels UM has a real shot at: Booker T. Washington defensive tackle Elkino Watson, Junipero Serra (Calif.) safety Marqise Lee and Las Vegas Bishop Gorman defensive lineman Jalen Grimble.

UM, which has 12 players who have publicly said they're committed to the Canes, is likely to land Los Angeles Harbor City Community College's Byron Moore, whose friend from California (a fellow visitor to UM this weekend) told InsideTheU on Sunday he has picked the Canes over Tennessee. Moore hasn't come out and said it himself yet -- so don't officially count him as a commitment yet.

So, who could other potential silent commitments be? I guess we'll find out a week from Wednesday.

> Chickillo, by the way, said he is planning to have his National Signing Day event down here in South Florida, possibly at the Titanic restaurant near UM.

> As for Grimble, a 6-3, 255-pound five-star linemen and USC commitment, his visit to UM this weekend wasn't only a surprise to UM fans -- but his high school coach, too. Bishop Gorman coach Tony Sanchez said he "had no idea Miami was bringing him down."

"I talked to him today a little bit about the whole situation," Sanchez said. "Their coaches haven't contacted me at all. It seems like things with USC have changed a bit with him. Miami definitely has a shot. I don't believe he's going to visit USC this coming week. For me, his trip to Miami speaks for itself. But you'll have to ask him what he's going to do. I don't want to speak for him."

Sanchez said Grimble will probably make his final announcement on National Signing Day. Grimble's cousin, Xavier, was a freshman tight end at USC last season. He was the No. 1 high school tight end in the country last year according to Rivals. He didn't catch a pass this past season.

Could he eventually end up heading to UM, too? That's just pure speculation right now. UM national recruiting coordinator Brennan Carroll, however, did recruit Xavier Grimble to USC before being let-go by Lane Kiffin.

Sanchez said Jalen Grimble had a basketball game Monday night. He couldn't be reached for comment.

> Orlando Lake Nona quarterback Kevin Sousa will likely make his announcement by the wekend according to his position coach Anthony Paradiso. But first he will host the offensive coordinators from South Florida, Wake Forest and UM. Paradiso said UM offensive coordinator Jedd Fisch told him he would visit either Tuesday or Wednesday. Wake Forest's coaches come in on Wednesday.

"Kevin is going to ask a lot of questions, like how they can help him and get him better," Paradiso said. "I think his mind is made up about what he likes about certain schools. Every school has a little bit of something of what he wants in his future and what his goals are. He's excited about Coach Fisch and what he said.

"Ultimately, I know Miami would like to bring in two quarterbacks. They're goal is to take two. If they can get a real quality one or a transfer, they'll do that. The two kids they told me they've offered were Brissett and Sousa."

> South Broward running back Kevin Grooms didn't end up taking his official visit to Virginia Tech this past weekend according to coach Allen Held. Hokies coaches came down and tried to make a push for him to follow through, but Held said Grooms is fully committed to UM.

"Unless he did it without me knowing, I'm 99 percent sure he was here this weekend," Held said.

> Don't forget to watch former Canes Colin McCarthy, Allen Bailey, DeMarcus Van Dyke and Leonard Hankerson at the Senior Bowl this week.

> When the Hurricanes face Georgia Tech over the next four years, they can expect to face an angry and hungry Nick Menocal. The former Canes' commitment, who switched to Georgia Tech over the weekend, expressed his frustrations to ESPN about UM's new coaching staff.

"After coach Shannon got fired I was still very solid," Menocal told ESPN. "But last week I received a call from Coach [Micheal] Barrow and he told me that after re-evaluating my film they didn't think I would be a fit on the defensive side of the ball."

Menocal, a 6-2, 235-pound outside linebacker from Miami Belen, said that the Hurricanes wanted to honor his scholarship offer and move him to the offensive side of the ball, most likely as a fullback. At that point, though, Menocal began to reassess his standing with the program.

"I told them how I felt, I didn't feel like I was wanted to be honest," Menocal said. "None of the coaches ever came to my school or my house to speak to me.

"I went to Miami on an unofficial visit about the first weekend coach [Al] Golden was there and met with him, but there wasn't any real communication after that. No phone calls or anything, they pretty much abandoned me."

Canes recruiting: The Chase for a QB continues

With a little more than a week to go before National Signing Day, finding the Miami Hurricanes in the national recruiting rankings has become a little harder than usual.

UM, which had 12 publicly declared oral commitments as of Monday night, has the 47th-best class in the nation according to Rivals.com and the 52nd-best according to Scout.com. ESPN, which ranked the Hurricanes No. 1 in 2008, doesn't have UM anywhere near its Top 25.

But where the Hurricanes are ranked come Feb. 2 -- when those fax machines start churning -- isn't how new coach Al Golden and his staff should be judged. It should be whether or not the team fulfilled its biggest needs, starting with quarterback.

"We are all going to judge him, but it's really unfair to," ESPN's Jamie Newberg said. "You're asking Al Golden to do in four, five, six weeks what other teams have been trying to do for the last year to three years in building this class.

"Regardless of what they do from here on out, what they've done is make this class a lot better. But again, it's about filling needs -- and that primary need is the quarterback position. They really need to make sure they get a couple arms. I know they're doing their best."

The Hurricanes, who once had Miami Northwestern's Teddy Bridgewater all set to be their quarterback of the future under former coach Randy Shannon, have worked hard over the last month and a half to put themselves in position to land three of the nation's best signal callers.

At the top of that list is Jacoby Brissett, a 6-4, 220-pound U.S. Army All-American from West Palm Beach Dwyer, who will likely take his last official visit to UM this coming weekend and decide between UM, Wisconsin and Florida according to his coach.

“They hammered him and sold him on a few things. It piqued his interest," Dwyer coach Jack Daniels told The Palm Beach Post last week. "To me, it seems like Jacoby’s the No. 1 player they target.”

The other two quarterbacks UM has offered scholarships to: St. Thomas Aquinas' Jake Rudock (a long-time Iowa commitment) and Orlando Lake Nona's Kevin Sousa, who visited UM last weekend and is committed to Wake Forest.

Rudock, a two-year starter at Aquinas, is expected to announce on Tuesday he will stick with Iowa. Sousa, who only began playing football as a sophomore, will host several in-home visitors next week (UM, USF and Wake) and will likely make his mind up by Saturday according to his position coach Anthony Paradiso. Wake Forest will visit Wednesday night Paradiso said. UM offensive coordinator Jedd Fisch will come either Tuesday or Wednesday. 

"He likes the tradition, being close to home, the opportunity with the depth chart and the chance to be part of something special," Paradiso said of why Sousa (rated the 42nd best quarterback in the country by Scout.com) likes UM.

"He's excited about Jedd Fisch and what he said. They broke down all of his highlights on his visit, talked about how he could get better. [Fisch] was impressed how much better Kevin looked as the year went on."

If neither of those three end up choosing the Canes, other options include: Land O'Lakes' Steve Weatherford; Marcus McDade out of Hargrave Military Academy (Va.); and Dustin Paonessa, a 6-5, 220-pound left-handed quarterback out of Fork Union (Va.) Military Academy. But the Hurricanes could also opt to not take any quarterbacks and use those scholarships elsewhere.

There is also a possibility former high school All-American quarterback Tom Savage will transfer in from Rutgers. His father is currently appealing a decision by the school to deny Savage permission to speak to Miami. His father said he's hoping the final decision of a three-person panel at Rutgers handling the appeal (according to him) will be reached in the next 10 days.

All-American defensive end Anthony Chickillo, UM's top recruit who re-affirmed his commitment over a weekend visit, said he's been trying to help the Hurricanes recruit Brissett and Rudock and several other top uncommitted players.

Among the others Chickillo has been talking to on his phone, texting and messaging on Facebook: ESPN Top 150 safety Marqise Lee of Junipero Serra High in Gardena, Calif; Lee's high school teammate, George Farmer, the nation's No. 1 receiver, who is expected to remain committed to USC; Las Vegas Bishop Gorman defensive end Jalen Grimble (also committed to USC but strongly considering UM according to his coach); and Miami Booker T. Washington defensive tackle Elkino Watson, who has thrown UM into the mix with Florida and Louisville.

"My goal is to bring a sixth national championship to The U," Chickillo said. "I'm telling you right now there are going to be a couple surprises, guys who are committed but will announce later. I'm not going to spoil it for them."

How many available scholarships the Hurricanes have left remains unclear, but Golden told reporters after the Sun Bowl UM would sign at least 16 players, if not more. 

The remaining spots UM would like to address outside of quarterback: receiver, defensive line and cornerback.

Former Miami Central cornerback Thomas Finnie enrolled at UM last week and South Fort Myers cornerback Dallas Crawford, considered the 27th best at his position by Rivals.com, is locked in. Los Angeles Harbor College's Byron Moore, considered the top Junior College cornerback, will likely be the third cornerback the Canes bring in.

At receiver, where UM will have three seniors next season, St. Thomas Aquinas' Phillip Dorsett remains the only commitment. UM is hoping to sway 6-1, 190-pound Devin Lucien of Crespi Carmelita in Encino, Calif. (rated 44th best WR by Scout.com) and/or 6-2, 194-pound Patrick Onwuasor of Inglewood, Calif. Aquinas' Rashad Greene, a longtime Florida State commitment, isn't expected to switch to UM.

On the defensive, the Hurricanes are looking to get Watson and or Grimble. Both are likely signing day announcements. David Moala (6-0, 285) visited UM with his friends from Juniperro Serra (Gardena, Calif.), but still has yet to land a Canes offer.

UM could also end up adding Jacksonville Ed White's Kaleb Johnson (rated 47th best offensive guard by Scout.com); Lakeland (Fla.) Kathleen's Gionni Paul (rated 33rd best outside linebacker by Rivals) an Arizona State commitment  who visited UM over the weekend; and Winton Woods (Ohio) outside linebacker Antonio Poole, who doesn't have an offer from UM yet, but has UM in his final three with Kentucky and Purdue.

There is also one more recruiting weekend on tap. Oakland Park Northeast defensive end B.J. Dubose (6-4, 245) is among a little more than handful of visitors expected to check out UM. Louisville is Dubose's other finalist.

Which of the current commitments could make the most immediate impact?

"It's kind of hard to say who can make the big splash," Newberg said. "I think guys like Kevin Grooms (who didn't visit Virginia Tech this weekend) and Dallas Crawford can help out in other ways with special teams.

"I think Phillip Dorsett could be a guy that is a spark to the offense because he's dynamite with the ball. It's hard to say because you don't know how a kid is going to transition. I think they're all big time gets."

The recruit who will surprise fans most? "I think [Homestead defensive end] Ricardo Williams has a chance to be big time for them," Newberg said. "He's a kid on the edge, kind of flown under the radar screen a little.

"[Offensive tackle Taylor Gadbois] is starting to blow up, a big offensive linemen. Georgia just offered him."

Newberg thinks in the end UM could end up "somewhere between 20 and 30" in most national rankings.

Grooms talks commitment to Canes

South Broward running back Kevin Grooms, one of the best all-around football players in the state, committed to the Hurricanes Monday morning during an in-home visit from coach Al Golden.

Grooms, considered the 83rd best recruit in the country regardless of position by ESPN, rushed for 1,363 yards and 20 TDs last season and returned six punts for TDs. He is considered the second-best recruit in UM's class by ESPN, right behind Tampa Alonso defensive end Anthony Chickillo, considered the 82nd best player in the country.

"It was just a great visit over the weekend and I feel like I'm the type of player that has to be at Miami and try to help Coach Golden bring that swagger back," said Grooms, who said he had not been recruited by UM at all until former offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland came to visit him at school three weeks ago.

"God works in mysterious ways. That's why you have to honor him. He made this possible. Once I went on the visit, saw the small classrooms, the great academic system -- that got me. Plus, I know there are a lot of players at UM that enter the draft. I'm excited. I can't wait to get there."

Grooms said Golden told him he would get the opportunity to play running back first. But if it doesn't work out, the 5-9, 170-pound athlete said he'll be more than happy to move to cornerback or receiver -- which he has played plenty of in the past. "They definitely want me on special teams," Grooms said. "Coach said they need a lot of help there and I'm ready to start delivering. I told him 'Give me the ball, I want it.' I can play anywhere. I played corner my junior year and was strictly running back this year. But I'll do what I have to do to get on the field."

Grooms was scheduled to visit Virginia Tech next weekend and Florida State on Jan. 28. But he said he will cancel those visits. "I'm not going to take any more visits. I feel like I don't want to waste anybody else's time. I've got my mind made up."

Now, all that's left to do is some more work in the classroom. Grooms said he has a 2.5 GPA and scored a 22 on the ACT. But he has to make up 4.5 credits -- something he said he is in the midst of doing during his senior year with online classes. "I'll be fine and ready to go," Grooms said. "I'm taking school seriously."

Grooms is the 10th oral commitment for UM and seventh since Golden replaced Randy Shannon as coach. The Hurricanes have hosted big recruiting weekends over the last two weeks and are scheduled to have their largest this coming weekend.

> For more on Grooms, check out this feature story I wrote on him over the summer.

UM women crack Top 25 poll at No. 22

The University of Miami women's basketball team is back in the Associated Press Top 25 poll.

The Hurricanes, who have won 15 consecutive games, found themselves at No. 22 Monday afternoon following a pair of ACC road wins last week at Virginia and Virginia Tech. Last year, UM entered the poll at No. 25 for the first time since 2004 after knocking off then 13th-ranked Florida State. But they were only ranked a week after losing to then No. 8 Duke. 

The Hurricanes have been led by the three-headed monster of junior guards Shenise Johnson and Riquna Williams and sophomore forward Morgan Stroman. Williams and Johnson are the top two leading scorers in the ACC averaging 19.8 and 19.1 points per game. Stroman is averaging 14.5 points.

"I'm certainly happy that our players and staff have been recognized nationally for all their hard work," UM coach Katie Meier said in a press release from the school. "I have a lot of faith and belief in our team and I am confident we will keep practicing and preparing for the ACC schedule in order to reach our goals moving forward."

UM (16-1, 2-0 ACC) returns home this week to face Clemson Friday night and Boston College on Sunday at 1 p.m. Both games will be televised by FSN.

> When it comes to quality big men, UM's men's basketball has a rather large one in 6-10, 303-pound sophomore Reggie Johnson. But beyond Big Reg, the Canes have proven to be a bit thin. Saturday's 79-72 loss at Clemson was proof as the Tigers dominated UM on the inside with a gimpy Johnson battling bone spurs in his right foot.

UM coach Frank Haith said during Monday's ACC Teleconference he's hoping Johnson can make a quick recovery this week in time for Saturday's 6 p.m. tip-off against Boston College at BankUnited Center. Haith said Saturday Johnson didn't practice all of last week and had his foot in a walking boot.

> Latwan Anderson, a highly touted All-American cornerback from Glenville, Ohio who signed a track scholarship with the Hurricanes last year with the hopes of eventually playing football, will not be returning to the program.

Chris Freet, UM's Associate Athletic Director for Communication said Anderson, who left in December, is no longer a part of the Miami Athletics Department and will not be with UM during the spring semester.

"Latwan did not fulfill the requirements to be a student-athlete at the University of Miami," Freet said.

> Al Golden and the UM football team is expected to announce the hiring of the final two assistant coaches -- including offensive coordinator -- in the next 12 to 24 hours.

Golden, UM steal local cornerback from Spurrier

It started with a visit from defensive coordinator Mark D'Onofrio on Monday, heated up when Steve Spurrier missed an in-home visit on Wednesday and ended in Al Golden's office Friday morning.

That's the short version of how Miami Central cornerback Thomas Finnie went from being a Gamecock to a Hurricane -- and the first local recruit Golden and his staff were able to sway away from another school since taking over for Randy Shannon. 

Finnie (5-10, 170, 4.4-speed) was a three-year starter for the Class 6A state champion Rockets and is considered the 39th best cornerback in the country by Rivals. He grew up dreaming of being a Miami Hurricane. But it wasn't until Friday that it became a reality.

"It's been a big week -- a lot has changed," said Finnie, an early enrollee who was all set to drive up to South Carolina Friday morning before UM got into his recruiting picture earlier this week. "I guess you can say it's pretty special. Everything is going to be good. I'm going to be a Miami Hurricane. I was always a Cane fan, grew up down here. Everybody likes to dream about UM and everything. Now, it's real."

Finnie received initial interest from the Hurricanes at the beginning of his senior season. But then, UM backed off. Finnie then committed to South Carolina and assumed the Hurricanes weren't interested. The plan for Finnie's family was to drive up to South Carolina this weekend. But little by little, Golden and his assistants got UM back into the picture, starting with a visit from D'Onofrio on Monday.

"They really showed themselves, really went after him the way they should recruit a kid," Finnie Sr. said. "Coach Golden told him everything we needed to hear in terms of us parents putting our child in his hands. They actually really showed the program to him and to me and my wife. He did a hell of a job.

"The recruiter from South Carolina did a good job. But we were suppose to meet with Steve Spurrier Wednesday and he never showed. The recruiter told us he had an emergency. But you could kind of see through that. That, he just wasn't going to come to that. That kind of took the air out of my son. When you get to meet the head coach, that means a lot to a kid, shows that you really want him. That took the air out of him. My wife wanted to meet him for him to know that 'I'm going to put my son in your hands.'

"But Golden went all out man. I'm talking about since yesterday and he had one day to do it. I told him my son is leaving in the morning. He asked for an opportunity to do it, to talk with us and everything. And he went at it. He was in Tampa with [Anthony] Chickillo. He said 'I'll come straight to your house when I leave there.' But I knew it was going to be at 2 or 3 in the morning. So we setup a meeting at 6 a.m. Everything he told my son starting yesterday, that made my son say he'll commit to UM."

Finnie, a former assistant coach at Miami Northwestern, said Golden and his staff really impressed him and just kept asking for an opportunity.

"The new coaching staff apologized for what happened, 'Saying we didn't have the opportunity to recruit, come after your son. Now, we're doing what we have to do to.' And I mean, in two days man, not even a whole day everything changed," Finnie Sr. said. "[Golden] really put pressure on us. He came at us. He was unreal. He was like: 'Sir I apologize for the old staff. We have a whole new staff. We evaluated your son, watched the state championship game and we were very impressed. We really like what we saw in him. And we want him, we want him bad. Whatever it is, I'm going to do everything I have to do to get him.'

"He impressed me and my wife. He showed I want him. They always said he was a heck of a recruiter. He can go get 'em and he showed he could do it. He went after him. He didn't let me say no. We tried everything. We said when we give our word, we stand behind it. He said 'I understand that. But give me an opporunity.' And he went from there.

"He told us everything a coach should tell a parent as far as getting their kid. South Carolina did it too. But we only got a chance to talk to the recruiter. [UM's] defensive coordinator, Michael Barrow, quite a few of the coaches contacted us about him. They said they evaluated him and that he has an opportunity to come in and play right now. They put it on the table. When they do it like that, it's hard to say no. Plus, he's staying home."

Finnie said he hopes to come in and compete right away for a starting job. The Hurricanes have only five cornerbacks on their current roster for 2011: redshirt sophomore Brandon McGee, junior and former running back Lee Chambers and three redshirt freshmen. 

"There's no better place than home," Finnie said. "With Brandon Harris and all the cornerbacks left, there's a lot of opportunity. They got new coaches, a new playbook. The U is going to be back soon. And I want to be a part of it."

Meet Brennan Carroll, UM recruiting coordinator

Here is a transcript from Carroll's teleconference Thursday:

Do you see similarities between UM and USC and how do you think you will help Miami get back to where it needs to be?
"I think there's quite a few similarities. One, the great home recruiting bases. South Florida is very similar to Southern California -- great talent, great kids. I also believe both private schools bring huge benefits for recruiting, and for these kids to get a private education. It's almost $55,000 a year. It's the same at USC. It's a really and impressive education, world class, all that stuff. In terms of helping the program get better, hopefully, I'll be able to help in recruiting and coach the tight ends up, get this offense going."

When you look at the roster, what are the biggest areas, immediate needs that need to be met through recruiting in 2011?
"I really haven't gotten a long look at our depth chart. I haven't been able to evaluate our own guys. I know obviously we lost our big receiver, so that's going to be an area of need. We only have two quarterbacks on scholarship. So, obviously, we're going to have to go and get some depth there.

What is your background in recruiting? What did you do at USC?
"I did both. I did California recruiting, recruited Orange County, the city, North Carroll and also went out of state. I recruited Midwest, East Coast, New York, Arkansas, Michigan, a little bit of Florida. I've been kind of everywhere. Wherever the top guys have been, that's where I went."

Have you had a chance to watch any film on this team?
"I really have not. I got into Miami the 1st, flew out right after New Year's Eve. It's been non-stop recruiting. The coaches have done a good job keeping me up to date, kind of what our needs are for recruiting. And I just kind of just gone off that. That's the one thing I wish I could do and I will do next week when we have our dead period, really evaluate our team. I just don't have the time. I can't do it right now. Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, I'll be all over it. I'm really excited to get into that."

On coming into recruiting game late with new staff...
"It's always tough. When you have a new staff, there's always questions, concerns. Most of these guys have been getting recruited for 12 months by other staffs. We've been at it for a week -- a week or two. Obviously, it's difficult. But we're trying to bring a new energy, a new passion to Miami and hopefully some of these guys feel that."

Recruits have been changing minds on coming to UM. Do you ignore it and move on? What do you do?
"I haven't stayed up to date on who is supposed to come in and who is all that right now. Some of these guys were scheduled before we were hired. We just want to get all the guys that want to be Hurricanes. If a kid doesn't want to be a Miami Hurricane, he's not the kid for us, to be recruited. So, we'll find a way to get there."

How do you know Coach Golden and what was the decision making progress to come to UM?
"I knew him just a little bit, through the coaching circles. My decision process was: it was Miami. How could I turn it down? Tight end U. Tight ends coach. I had to come check it out. It wasn't very hard. The only thing I had to really make sure was that it was good for my family and that the kids could make the transition. I talked it over with the wife. She was great about it. We're in a new area now. But you're in Miami."

How do you plan to restore UM tradition at tight end?
"We've got to work with the guys we have here, get those guys coached up, to maximize their potential. And then obviously we're going to go out and recruit, and find some prospects to keep going in the future."

With quarterbacks, you watch the Top 100 guys, most of them are committed somewhere. How tough is it to get on a top quarterback at this point?
"There's a ton of kids. The rankings are great, they're great to look at, especially if at the end you have one of the top classes. But really, there's a lot of great quarterbacks out there that aren't always on everybody's radar. We've identified a couple of them. We still think we can get guys we think are great quarterbacks. It doesn't always have to be who everybody thinks is the best. We just have to get the best for our system, the best fit for what we're trying to do and guys who want to be winners and great leaders, great kids and guys who love Miami."

Miami hasn't signed many JUCO players in the past. Seems like you guys are going after a good number now. What is the benefit of getting a JC player versus a high school kid?
"Well, obviously, the JC guys have played against guys that are older than high school. They've played against 19, 20, 21 year olds, so they've played at a higher level of competition. They've played in college technically. So, if there's a need we're trying to fill -- obviously, Harris, our corner, is going into the league, going to the combine and tear it up there. So, there's a possibility we may have to go get a junior college guy to replace a starter we may lost to that spot. At USC and Miami they have very strict relations on getting JUCO kids in. So, there's a lot of kids we won't even be able to touch in recruiting because of the rules and such. We're trying to work it out, we're trying to find any means we can to make this team better as fast as we can."

The state has become a lot more competitive with UCF, USF on the rise. How tough does it make it to recruit in state?
"I haven't been here long enough to really get into what the kids are feeling about those schools. But I think it really goes back to how much talent there is down there. You can really have different programs and they can all be successful. They can all go to bowl games. If I'm not wrong, four out of five won their bowl games. That just goes to show you how much talent the state has."

What is the biggest lesson you've learned regarding football from your dad?
"Just be a great competitor. Just find a way to compete, whether it be in coaching or recruiting. Just find a way to get better. Usually things will work out as long as you compete."

Getting into recruiting so late, are you guys selling your vision or are you finding your dealing with negative recruiting?
“Our core is just to talk about us. Our motto is, it’s all about the U. That’s what we stand for. You can go down that route of negative recruiting but it just reflects on your overall program. It’s hard to find negative things about Miami University. With a great education, private school, top school in Florida in terms of education, great location Miami, South Beach, Coral Gables all that and we always have a great talent pool to recruit from. So we don’t find anything to talk about because we have all positives to talk about. We don’t have to cover anything up. We’ll let everybody see what we got.”

Do you find that people still use negative recruiting?
“Oh yeah. Sure they do. I think they need to and when they do, it’s a backwards way of respecting us because they know they just can’t talk about their program..."

You guys are going after a lot of players that are committed to other schools?
“That we can’t really consider kids committed to other programs. -- that term holds so little value nowadays anyway. We’re going to recruit everybody. We’re a new staff. Just because somebody says something to somebody  they’re going to do this or go to that school or whatever that doesn’t deter us at all initially, Some of these kids are truly committed and want to go to whatever school they want to go to. That’s just how it’s going to be. We wish them well. It goes back to we want guys that want to be at Miami. That’s what it’s all about. There’s some kids who always wanted to be at Miami and for some reason didn’t get recruited….if we can find those guys who have been to other schools but always wanted to be at the U, we’ll try to find a way to get them here.”

Some local coaches felt that relations with the previous staff had deteriorated. Has that been a focus of your efforts to mend those relationships?
“I can’t really comment too much about the last staff because I don’t know too much about them. The only coaches I’m familiar with are coach Barrow and coach Stoutland, but our goals are always going to be to get to every school in Florida and let every coach know that Miami is the top school in Florida and we’re going to be recruiting their kids, we’re going to do our research, do a very good job at it and involve them in the process and let the coaches know what we’re all about.”

What was so enticing about this job for you?
“The chance to win national championships. When we were at USC, our goal was to win all our games and whatever happens, happens. We can do that here. We have a great recruiting base, with everything the university has to offer, we really don’t have an excuse why we shouldn’t be competing with the top teams in the country real soon. The chance to win, that’s really why we do things. We want to win for our program and win for our kids and get our kids degrees and all that. They’ve done a great job with graduation rates here, they’re through the roof right now which is a testament to the previous staff and the academic facilities. You put all that with a chance to win, play on a huge stage, that’s what I’m all about. That’s what I want to be involved with.”

Can you talk about the parellels of when you father took over USC and taking over this program?
“I agree. I feel coach Golden and coach Carroll got started at the same time in recruiting, it was late and were trying to make a push and make a splash. They felt like they needed a ton of guys and they really had a ton of talent. Coach Carroll inherited Troy Polamalu and Carson Palmer. Just talking to coaches, there’s a ton of talent in this program. There’s a great offensive line, a great defensive line. That’s the core of everything so in terms of recruiting there’s a lot of similarities. They’re both city schools. USC is south of downtown and Miami is a little south of the city and South Beach. That’s one of the things that attracted me to it.”

But the stages of the programs, USC was a sleeping giant waiting to get awoke again and Miami seems to be in the same situation?
“If we get anywhere near what we did at USC, I think we’re doing pretty good. Miami went to a bowl game this past year so they’re doing a little better than USC when that change was made. But we’ll see. Hopefully we can get going right away. USC’s first year, coach’s first year there at USC went 6-5, went to a bowl game. I think we can do better than that, but we’ll see. There’s a lot of work to do and a lot of hours to put in. Hopefully, we’ll get a lot better and there will be a lot of similarities. Hopefully.”

Will you get a chance to see the playoff game this weekend?
“I hope so. Somehow I have to work it out that I’m on a home visit and that family likes to watch the Seahawks. That would be great. I wish those guys all the best. They have a tough task ahead of him.”

What did your dad tell you about taking this job?
“He was fired up. He was excited for me to come down here and get started. We’ve always been talking about if I left USC what could be my value and what could I get done..."

Were you out of football last year?
“I was out of ball and working on some family projects. When the shot came up, everything I was trying to do on the side fell off. I said let’s go do this. This is what I always felt comfortable doing. When you start coaching football, there’s not many opportunities to do something else. When this opportunity came up, I couldn’t even think twice about it.”

Richardson: 1,000-yard back at UM is possible

When it comes to coaching 1,000-yard running backs, Terry Richardson knows what he's doing. As the running backs coach at UConn the last 12 years, Richardson had six running backs eclipse the 1,000-yard mark -- including one, Colts running back Donald Brown, run for an NCAA-leading 2,083 yards in 2008.

Richardson, who met with reporters Thursday afternoon inside the Edgerrin James room, believes the Hurricanes have more than enough talent to have a 1,000-yard back too. UM hasn't had one since Willis McGahee ran for a school record 1,753 yards in 2002. But with Richardson -- a former local star tailback at Oakland Park Northeast High and Syracuse -- now in charge of the 'Canes backfield, it's almost inevitable Lamar Miller, Mike James or Storm Johnson will be the next UM running back to run for more than 1,000.

"Normally in the past, I've worked with three guys -- three tailbacks, two fullbacks and worked with those five guys," Richardson said Thursday. "If there's a big separation between No. 1 and 2, obviously No. 1 gets the majority of the carries. If it's even where that No. 2 guy is better than a tired, winded No. 1, the playing time will be split in half. That No. 3 guy could be a special teams guy, third down, short yardage guy. At the most, we've played three backs in the past. But the majority of the time there's two - it's a main guy and a spell guy."

This past season, UM had six backs split carries, with senior Damien Berry (899 yards, 5 TDs on 190 att.), Miller (646 yards, 6 TDs, 108 att.) and James (398 yards, 3 TDs, 70 att.) getting the bulk of the work. With Berry leaving, it is expected that freshmen Eduardo Clements and Johnson will step up and compete for playing time. Richardson, who arrived in South Florida Monday night, said he's already called each of them and spoken to them about what he expects moving forward. He said he doesn't expect to have any problems because his philosophy is simple: "the best guys will play."

"I've never had an issue with that," Richardson said of players complaining over playing time. "We're always honest and up front with guys. Guys always knew where they stood. If they wanted more carries -- either study harder or work harder or beat the guy out in front of you. That's the way it has to be. We're not in the business to stroke egos. The best guys are going to play. We'd do ourselves an injustice if we don't put the best guys out on the field. I had a kid that was talented and a kid that was a crafty veteran the year we had two 1,000 yards rushers. The situation called for both. The biggest thing was we were committed to running the football. We ran it a lot, split the load in half and that was the result."

Richardson, who told me Monday he knew very little about UM's running backs when he first got the job, said he had some time to watch film of the guys he will be working with.

"There's no doubt the talent is there. We just have to refine it, get it channeled in the right direction -- that's my goal," Richardson said. "The biggest thing I bring to the table is my ability to motivate my players and hold them accountable for the job that they have to do. I bring a professional mentality, a professional state of mind to the position. My knowledge of blocking schemes and how to attack a defense, how to run the football when the defense doesn't want you to run the football. I think that's my biggest strength.

"And I think I project to my players. The biggest thing I tell my guys is it's a 50/50 deal. Take the knowledge I'm providing for and put it with your talents and ability and we get 100 percent. That's how I approach it."

A FEW MORE TIDBITS...

> With the Canes loaded at running back, one might assume UM would go without a running back in this class. But Richardson said that might not necessarily be the case. "To me you never pass up a good player," Richardson said. "If there's a good player you can get that's interested, why not take him? Even thought there are good backs in the program. He'll come in as a freshman, hit the weight room a little bit, learn the system. But why not?"

> As for the fullback position, where senior Pat Hill will be leaving, Richardson said he has no idea what the Canes will do right now. "To me they're in the program," Richardson said. "They're on scholarship. We got to use them and they have to earn their scholarship."

> UM could be moving closer to picking up a quarterback commitment for their 2011 class. Canesport.com reported this morning Hargrave (VA) Military Academy QB Marcus McDade is getting a visit today from defensive backs coach Paul Williams. McDade (6-3, 200) setup an official visit to UM this weekend and could get an offer if qualifies academically.

McDade threw for 2,400 yards with 35 touchdowns and two interceptions in his senior year of high school.

> Coach Al Golden will meet with the media Friday at 1 p.m. It's expected that he will announce the rest of UM's assistant coaches -- offensive coordinator, receivers coach, special teams coordinator -- at that point. 

Carroll joins staff; Canes looking for QBs

The Miami Hurricanes have themselves a new assistant coach with a famous last name.

Brennan Carroll, the 31-year old son of former USC coach Pete Carroll, has joined Al Golden's new staff where he will be tight ends coach and national recruiting coordinator.

Carroll was on the USC staff from 2002 to 2009 and is a former tight end at Pittsburgh.

In 2007, he coached Fred Davis, who won the John Mackey Award, honoring the nation's top tight end. This past season, Carroll worked in private business in Los Angeles.

"Great hire for UM," WQAM and Miami Herald recruiting analyst Larry Blustein said. "He and Jethro Franklin will get a lot of West Coast kids. Brennan is very good, works hard, just like his dad."

Tom Lemming, national recruiting analyst for MaxPreps and CBSSports, said he's liked what Golden has done in building UM's staff early on.

"Everyone on that staff is a good recruiter," Lemming said. "I'm glad he kept [Micheal] Barrow, that will really help with the guys locally, act as a bridge."

CANES WORKING HARD TO FIND QBS: Now that Teddy Bridgewater has moved on to Louisville, the Hurricanes have picked up the intensity in finding a quarterback for their 2011 class.

The most appealing and perhaps most realistic shot the Hurricanes have of finding a quarterback is at national perrenial power Don Bosco Prep (N.J.) with 6-2, 210-pound signal caller Gary Nova, who recently de-committed from Pittsburgh.

"I’m looking for a chance to play at a stable place; that’s what I had at Pittsburgh and that’s why I’m disappointed that it didn’t work out," Nova told NorthJersey.com. "I want to be at a place that is close so my parents can see me. That all factors into my decision."

Most believe that close place could be Rutgers, who recently hired a former Pitt assistant. But Nova, who went 24-0 in two years as the starter for Don Bosco, could end up giving the Hurricanes a serious look.

"Growing up I wanted to play for Miami," Nova told Canesport.com. "I committed early to Pitt, never got a chance to look there. As soon as I heard [Dave] Wannstedt got fired, Miami was the first school I wanted to look at."

Nova threw 23 touchdowns and 3 INTs this season at Bosco. Lemming believes Nova would be a great fit at UM.

"I've liked him from the get-go," Lemming said. "He's the No. 1 QB in New Jersey. He's a real good guy if they can land him. He has tremendous potential, decent height. He's not there yet. But those coaches at Miami can make them a real good one."

> Golden told WQAM on Monday he would like to recruit two quarterbacks in his next class. Who the other QB could potentially end up being isn't clear right now.

The Hurricanes have been in hot pursuit of St. Thomas Aquinas quarterback Jake Rudock, a long-time commitment to Iowa, since Shannon was fired. But a couple of sources have told me it appears Rudock will probably stick to his guns and stay with the Hawkeyes. It also just isn't in Aquinas coach George Smith's nature to allow his players to switch schools once they've made a commitment.

Lemming said Miami is looking at quarterbacks in California and a couple others in the Southeast currently committed to other programs.

> Two defensive backs the Hurricanes have stepped up their local recruiting efforts for recently, Southridge's Gerrod Holliman and Andrew Johnson, de-committed from Ole Miss on Tuesday night.

Holliman, an Under Armour All-American safety who along with Johnson grew up a huge Canes fan, said the Hurricanes' recent pursuit played a factor but not as big as UM fans might hope.

"As of now, I just wanted to open up my options again and see how everything plays out from there," Holliman said Wednesday afternoon. "I know Ole Miss already recruited four safeties and three coming back. I just wanted to open my options to other schools with less players on depth chart.

"In a way, UM has played a role. But they took so long to start recruiting us. Now they have to play catchup with all the other schools, ones we've already narrowed it down to."

Holliman said he's scheduled to visit Ole Miss, Cincinnati and Louisville in January. Will the Hurricanes receive a visit?"I don't know," Holliman said. "Until recently, the only thing they've ever talked to me about was stopping by practice on my own time. But I haven't spoken to coach Golden yet. Maybe things will change."

Canes could end up without QB in '11 class

Teddy Bridgewater is taking his talents to Louisville, Ky.

The nation's No. 2 dual threat quarterback and a top recruiting priority for the University of Miami before Randy Shannon was fired decided over the weekend according to his mother he will be following his Miami Northwestern teammate and favroite receiver Eli Rogers to Cardinals Country. Both players were recruited by former UM recruiting coordinator Clint Hurtt.

"Man, more than anything it came down to playing time," Bridgewater told Scout.com "With me enrolling early I can come in and compete for a starting spot. When I visited I had nothing but love from all the coaches but especially coach Hurtt and coach [Charlie] Strong."

Bridgewater was committed to UM until about a week after Shannon was fired. His mother, Rose Murphy, was unhappy with the way Hurricanes fans reacted to her son de-committing from UM. "Every kid has to look out for what is best for them," Murphy said. "Teddy is a great kid, hardworking kid. He doesn't deserve all that hate."

Bridgewater was once considered the centerpiece to UM's 2011 signing class. But the Hurricanes may not end up signing a quarterback in this class at all. Most of the best ones have long been committed to other programs.

> The Hurricanes picked up their first commitment under new coach Al Golden over the weekend when 6-6, 280-pound prep school defensive lineman Olsen Pierre announced he was going to be part of the class.

Pierre, a former Temple commitment at Fork Union (Va.) Military Academy, visited UM over the weekend with three other players: Brockton, Mass. cornerback Albert-Louis Jean, Vero Beach High offensive guard Marcus Jackson and Knoxville (Tenn.) Catholic High punter Spencer Roth.

"I had the best time of my life," Pierre told Canesport.com of his visit. "[Golden] recruited me to Temple, and I'm the only one from Temple that he's taking with him here. He's been recruiting me since my freshman year [at Rahway High School in New Jersey], saw me grow."

Louis-Jean's father said his son will announce his final decision at a press conference at school on Jan. 5. Jackson's recruiting coordinator Pete LeDuke said last week he would make his final decision at the Under Armour All-American Game in St. Petersburg on Jan. 5.

Golden, Canes pounding recruiting trail

Al Golden didn't officially become cleared to begin recruiting until around 5 or 6 p.m. Tuesday. But since he's been given the green light, UM's new football coach and recruiting coordinator Aubrey Hill have been pounding the recruiting trail.

> Goal No. 1: Pursue the players who plan to enroll in January and have been strongly considering the Canes -- whether they're uncommitted or have de-comitted.
> Goal No. 2: Phone as many coaches in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach Counties as possible and let them know the Canes are eager to build friendships and get some players.

Golden started the day by visiting with Vero Beach offensive linemen Marcus Jackson at his high school, then followed him home to meet with his mother after school. How did it go?

"He said it went well -- and that's pretty much all he said," said Pete LeDuke, assistant head coach and recruiting coordinator at Vero Beach. "I didn't get to talk to Marcus too long because the coach from Georgia Tech was coming in to talk to him tonight. But Coach Golden and Marcus talked, the and mom talked to Coach Golden and pretty much that was it."

Jackson, who is trying to complete an online course while studying for finals, is declining all interview requests. But what Golden set out to do, he achieved. LeDuke said Jackson told him he is planning to go through with visiting UM this weekend. Jackson (6-2, 315) is considered the 13th best guard in the country by Rivals.com. He was committed to UM until two weeks ago when former coach Randy Shannon was fired.

LeDuke said Jackson will make his announcement Jan. 5 at the Under Armour All-American Game in Tampa -- the same place where Monsignor Pace defensive back Jabari Gorman, considered the 10th-best safety in the country by Rivals, plans to announce his decision as well (We'll get to him later).

"Marcus hasn't said where he's leaning to and all that," said LeDuke, who said Jackson visited Michigan State, Georgia Tech and Tennessee twice (once unofficially).

"The visit to Miami will be huge. But I think coach Golden did a great job. I was very impressed with him. I thought Miami did a great job hiring him. He's very personable, very easy to talk to. We talked about families. Obviously, he's a family man. So am I. I like what he was talking about. He talked about how we want football players. I liked how he talked. He was very easy to talk to like I've known him forever. He's a former linemen. We had a bond there. I think he had the same bond with Marcus."

Golden's next scheduled stop Wednesday night was Boston where he was set to meet with another Canes de-commitment, cornerback Albert Louis-Jean, rated 12th best at his position by Rivals. No word yet on how that meeting has gone, but Louis-Jean's father told me Monday night his son was coming down this weekend to visit UM.

The big question that remains is if Miami Northwestern quarterback Teddy Bridgewater will be joining Jackson and Louis-Jean as the only other guests at UM this coming weekend.

According to a source, Bridgewater, who visited the University of South Florida officially on Tuesday, told UM coaches last night he would be making the trip. But UM is still waiting for a final confirmation.

Bridgewater (6-3, 185) has and continues to be the No. 1 recruiting target for the Hurricanes according to the source and was set to receive an in-home visit from Golden on Tuesday night until it was learned he was in Tampa. The hope now is UM coaches will be able to visit Bridgewater on Thursday night and try to convince the No. 2-ranked dual threat quarterback in the country according to Rivals to jump back on board at UM.

It will definitely take some convincing. His mother, Rose Murphy, wasn't happy with the way UM fans reacted when her son de-committed last week, telling me, "nobody reacted this way when those other boys de-committed. They should be happy he's looking for a great education, be respectful."

OTHERS WAITING FOR A CALL: While some recruits and coaches have received phone calls from Golden and Miami assistants, others are still waiting patiently.

Miami Belen defensive end Nick Menocal (one of four commitments along with Tampa Alonso defensive end Anthony Chickillo, St. Thomas Aquinas receiver Phillip Dorsett and Milford Prep cornerback Jeremy Davis) said Wednesday afternoon he had still not heard from Golden. But Menocal said was he told by defensive line coach Rick Petri on Monday to expect a call from UM's new coach soon. Menocal said he's hoping to be invited to come see the Hurricanes practice for their bowl game.

"I am still committed," Menocal said. "I look forward to seeing what Coach Golden has to tell me and who is going to bring in and hopefully I can go to UM and do big things."

Menocal (6-3, 235) is ranked as the 58th best outside linebacker by Rivals. He said he plans on visiting UM in January, somewhere between visits to Georgia Tech, Virginia and possibly North Carolina, which still hasn't offered Menocal but has been after him harder of late.

> Coral Gables High linebacker Denzel Perryman, a longtime target of the Hurricanes rated, met with UM coach Aubrey Hill on Wednesday and spoke to Golden by phone in the morning.

"I talked with him to touch base," Perryman said. "It was a regular conversation. He's going to touch base with all the recruits. I'm looking forward to talking to him in person. Everything is still up in the air. But I still feel good about UM."

Perryman (5-11, 217) rated the 23rd best middle linebacker in the country by Rivals said he has plans to visit Florida State, Florida, USC and LSU in January, but wants to squeeze in an official to UM as he gets to know the new Canes coaches better. He said he planned to be out at practice on Friday.

What could end up being huge for Perryman is if linebackers coach Micheal Barrow sticks around. "I hope he does, I really do," Perryman said. "It's a big factor. We've had a little bond since my freshman year. I don't want to lose that."

> Monsignor Pace defensive back Jabari Gorman (5-11, 170) cut his list down to Ohio State, Miami and Florida earlier this month before Randy Shannon was fired and Urban Meyer stepped down in Gainesville. He said Wednesday night while Ohio State still leads, the Hurricanes and Gators remain in the hunt. Gorman said he plans to announce his choice at the Under Armour All-American Game on Jan. 5.

"I'm sure I'm going to talk to him soon, talk to him this week and have a meeting so I can get a feel for him," Gorman said of Golden. "I'm hearing great news about him. I like the fact of how he turned Temple's program around. That means the coach knows what he's doing. You want to be around a coach like that."

Gorman said even if he picks a school at the UA game, he will still visit UM in mid-January and could end up changing his mind by National Signing Day.

"Nothing is final until signing day," Gorman said. "I've been feeling OSU. But I've been having doubts about it too. You know how Miami is, they come at you hard. Coach Hill has been on me.

"Stephen Morris is recruiting me as hard as the coaches the do. Me and Stephen have always been real close since my ninth grade year. We always talk. Me and him always used to be together as far as doing the right things on the field. I know what he tells me at Miami is no lies. I can trust him."

> While Golden was in the Northeast Wednesday night, Hill was visiting with Oakland Park Northeast defensive end BJ Dubose at his home. Dubose is one of several local players UM plans to make hard efforts to get in the coming weeks.

Others include Perryman, Gorman, Palm Beach Dwyer tight end Nick O'Leary and Miami Southridge defensive back Gerrod Holliman. Golden is expected to also make a push for Brooklyn, N.Y.'s Ishaq Williams (6-6, 220), considered the second best defensive end in the country.

Will D'Onofrio be UM's next d-coordinator?

According to a report by the Philadelphia Sports Daily, Temple defensive coordinator Mark D’Onofrio has turned down Temple's head coaching job and will follow his best friend Al Golden to the University of Miami.

According to the report, D’Onofrio is expected to become UM's defensive coordinator under Golden, though the source, who requested anonymity because of the nature of the situation, could not confirm that was the job he would have with the Hurricanes.

D'Onofrio was Al Golden’s teammate at Penn State before becoming an assistant with him at Virginia. After serving as the Owls’ defensive coordinator for two seasons, D’Onofrio was promoted by Golden to assistant head coach/defensive coordinator in the spring of 2008. D'Onofrio, who played professionally with the Green Bay Packers, has 10 seasons of college coaching experience.

As a player, the North Bergen (N.J.) native played at Penn State, where he starred at both inside and outside linebacker from 1988-91. He led the Nittany Lions in sacks (11) as a sophomore and tackles (71) as a junior. As a senior, he was elected captain and finished second in total tackles despite missing six games with an injury. He set the Penn State school record for causing the most fumbles in one season (five) and finished his career ranked in the top 10 in sacks with 15.

His defense at Temple ranked 18th against the run, 32nd in total defense, 39th in scoring defense and 74th in pass defense during a 9-4 season in 2009. The Owls also ranked 23rd in sacks. This season, Temple ranked 14th in pass defense, 16th in scoring defense and 17th in total defense. The run defense ranked 45th.

Golden said Monday after his introductory press conference he was going to first focus his efforts on recruiting before the dead period (which begins Sunday) and then will turn his attention toward building a staff. If D'Onofrio becomes his coordinator, it would be the least bit surprising considering how close the two are.

CHICKILLO TALKS WITH GOLDEN: With his wife looking for a new home for the family, Al Golden spent his second day in South Florida Tuesday working the phones and calling recruits.

One happy person to receive a phone call late Tuesday night was Tampa Alonso defensive end and Under-Armour All-American Anthony Chickillo, who said he spoke with Golden for 35 to 40 minutes and came away impressed. The first thing Golden told him: "I want to win championships."

"We had a great talk," Chickillo said. "He's a real proud speaker. He was real enthusiastic about the direction he thinks he can take the University of Miami program. He said I'm a No. 1 priority right now, that I'm real important to the recruiting class and he knows about my family history and he says I'm very very important to the program. He wants me to be a Hurricane."

Did the talk change his opinion of Golden? "I never had a bad opinion of him because I never spoke to him," Chickillo said. "He had success at a Temple program that hadn't had a lot of success. Everywhere he's been he's had success. I think he's one of the best up and coming coaches right now. He really surprised me. I have a lot of love for UM. His passion surprised me. I think he's going to do a great job."

Chickillo said Golden wants to meet him and his family and build a relationship as soon as he can finalize his coaching staff. Chickillo said he will still take his other visits, but is planning on visiting UM in January.

On Sunday, Chickillo said he was a little worried about the defensive scheme UM would employ. But that changed after talking to Golden. "He said it's going to be a 4-3," Chickillo said. "You know all teams run different packages and stuff.

"He just said he watched my film and loved it and all the passion and how hard I play. He said guys like me can help the U return to where he wants it to be. He says there are so many great players in the program right now. He said it's not about them, it's not about me, it's not about him, it's about us. He said it's what we can do to bring Miami back to the glory days. I liked that. He seems like he has a little swagger to him."

Chickillo said Golden's recruiting approach is very different from the way former coach Randy Shannon handled things.

"Coach Shannon is a great guy, but he kept to himself a little bit more," Chickillo said. "I don't know how to really explain it except that he really didn't like to talk on the phone. You know what I mean? Coach Shannon preferred to talk in person. Coach Golden wanted to talk to me for a long time. He gave me his cell phone number and said to call whatever time it is. I didn't know coach Golden that well, but I can tell you now I like him."

Despite reports to the contrary, Chickillo said he never de-committed from Miami and has just been talking to schools more. "When I told coach I would take all my visits, he understood," Chickillo said.

As for how Golden stacked up against new Florida coach Will Muschamp, who called Chickillo on Sunday: "They are both great coaches. I would say Coach Golden got me a little more pumped. Coach Muschamp had me pumped up too. He's a very enthusiastic speaker too.

"All I know right now is I'm going to take all my trips. After that, I really don't know when I will make a final decision. But I'm still committed to Miami."

> Chickillo said he saw former Hurricanes commitment and Miami Northwestern star quarterback Teddy Bridgewater Tuesday at the University of South Florida in Tampa.

"I went over there to hang out like I always do," Chickillo said. "I'm real close with Coach Patrick. Teddy was there on an official. I just said hi to him. He seemed tired and was going back to the hotel."

VIDEO OF D'ONOFRIO AT TEMPLE

Bridgewater latest to 'de-commit' since firing

Miami Northwestern quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, one of the stars in the University of Miami's 2011 recruiting class before Randy Shannon was fired hours after the team's loss to South Florida on Nov. 27, said Monday he's no longer committed to the Hurricanes.

"I'm just going to keep my options open, see who the next coach is," said Bridgewater, a U.S. Army All-American who is considered the second-best dual-threat quarterback in the country by Rivals.com.

"I can't tell you what he's going to do," Bridgewater's mother, Rose Murphy, told The Miami Herald Monday night. "because I don't think he knows what he's going to do."

Murphy told The Miami Herald her son got a visit from UM assistants Wesley McGriff and Tim Harris Sr. last week. Murphy said she believes that's when her son told UM he was planning to take official trips to other schools and was going to re-open his recruitment.

Bridgewater, who threw for 2,606 yards and 22 touchdowns in 12 games this season, has become the third UM player since Shannon's firing to de-commit from the program. Albert Louis-Jean, a standout in Brockton, Mass. considered the 12th-best corner in the country by Rivals, and Vero Beach High offensive guard Marcus Jackson, considered 13th best at his position nationally by the same publication, were the first two players to de-commit after Shannon was fired.

The Hurricanes have four remaining commitments: Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas receiver Phillip Dorsett; Tampa Alonso High defensive end Anthony Chickillo; Miami Belen linebacker Nick Menocal and Milford Prep School (N.Y.) defensive back Jeremy Davis.

UM athletic director Kirby Hocutt said the day after Shannon was fired he would honor the seven commitments. UM is only expected to have between 15 and 16 scholarships available in its next signing class.

The Hurricanes canceled their first recruiting weekend scheduled for Dec. 10-11, but still have not canceled the following weekend. Several top-tier players including Rivals' No. 1-rated receiver George Farmer (Gardena, Calif.) and No. 2-rated offensive tackle Cyrus Kouandjio were supposed to visit UM this weekend. Those trips to Miami have yet to be rescheduled for later dates.

The day after Shannon was fired, Chickillo, an Under-Armour Army All-American, said he had 50 phone calls and text messages from other programs trying to scoop him up. He said he remains committed to UM, but wants to see who the Hurricanes hire as coach.

"I'm still committed," Dorsett said last Friday. "It's tough. But Miami has always been my dream school. They've always been loyal to me and I'll always be loyal to them. I'm a Hurricane at heart."

Rogers decommits, could Bridgewater be next?

Miami Northwestern receiver Eli Rogers told me Wednesday his dream is to spend the next four years catching passes from his best friend Teddy Bridgewater. Now, it looks like that might no longer happen -- at least at the University of Miami.

Sunday, the 3-star receiver told Canesport.com that he has decommitted from the Hurricanes and he's reopening the recruiting process.

"I'm open to any colleges that want to talk," Rogers told Canesport. "Coaches know about [the decommitment]. They said they can understand my reasoning and that they're still recruiting me and still see me the same. I told them I just want to open back up my options and they said they're cool with it."

No word yet on whether Bridgewater, one of the nation's top high school quarterbacks and the only QB in UM's 2011 signing class (at the moment), will do the same.

On Wednesday, when I drove to Northwestern and spent about two hours watching practice, Bridgewater told me he was still planning on being a Hurricane. But he also said he was a bit disappointed by the Florida State loss and what he's seen from UM's offense this season. He also admitted he's been having second thoughts about his commitment.

"I’ve been paying close attention," said Bridgewater, who went to the UM-FSU game. "The season is going good so far. But it could be better. They have to improve in some areas.

"More can be done in the offense. I paid attention to the Florida State game. Third and 10, Third and 8, they came out unbalanced. I’m just asking myself 'What’s going on? Why aren’t they opening the offense at this point of the game?'"

Bridgewater also said he's been paying close attention to the way Jacory Harris has been struggling and the way he's been criticized by fans and the media.

"I’ve been paying close attention to that," Bridgewater said. "That’s the one thing that stands out. It’s something to think about. The way he’s playing, the way he’s been treated, everything. He’s playing good. The wide outs have to help him also. I talked to coach. He said the past five games the wide receivers have dropped 30 passes. That will bring a quarterback’s confidence down.

"Everywhere I look, everyone on TV, the internet, everybody is dogging Jacory. That’s something I really don’t like because he comes from the same school I play at. He’s my role model. Seeing that, seeing him go through that it makes me wonder do I want to go through the same thing. It upsets me a lot. It upsets the coaching staff, the alumni, everybody at Miami Northwestern.

"People need to keep the faith, don’t give up, don’t give up on Jacory or the team."

Bridgewater said he thinks the biggest thing Harris needs is competition.

"From what I’ve seen, I would like to come in and play – or push Jacory at least," Bridgewater said. "I think that’s the one thing he’s missing. I think he feels like he has no one there to push him. He might be a little relaxed or something. That’s one role I’d like to play."

Bridgewater said a number of schools have continued to recruit him over the past few months including the University of Florida, South Florida, Louisville, LSU and Michigan.

"All of them want me as a quarterback," said Bridgewater, who at times has been dubbed by some recruiting analysts as a better receiver than passer. "I’m paying attention to everything. It’s like the whole recruiting process is rebuilding. At one point, I thought it was over. Now, more teams are showing interest."

Stay tuned. I'm guessing this story is far from over.

Chickillo to become third generation Cane

Sometimes, you're just born to be a Cane.

Highly-touted Tampa Alonso High defensive end Anthony Chickillo, whose father Tony (1979-82) and grandfather Nick (1950-52) played for the Hurricanes, realized that Thursday when he announced his intentions to be part of the University of Miami's 2011 signing class.

"Deep down in my heart, that's where I've wanted to be since I was a little kid," said Chickillo, a 6-4, 235-pound senior considered by both Rivals.com and ESPN.com to be a consensus Top 10 defensive end in the country. "I'm ready to be a Hurricane and help Miami recruit."

Chickillo had more than 50 scholarship offers. Last season, he played in only six games because of a broken collarbone, but still managed to compile 80 tackles, 12.5 sacks and two forced fumbles. He announced his commitment just after 2 p.m. Thursday in his school gym, choosing Miami over Florida and South Florida.

Throughout the recruiting process, Chickillo said he made it a point not to let his family ties to Miami get in the way of picking the best school for him. But after making his announcement, Chickillo put on a Miami baseball cap and held up a shirt that said "THIRD GENERATION." On the back of the shirt it read: "BLOOD IS THICKER THAN WATER."

"Orange and green run through my veins," said Chickillo, who plans to enroll at UM in January. "As much as I tried to separate it, I couldn't. Once I figured out where I wanted to go, I didn't want to waste any coaches time. I told Coach Shannon and the staff last night and they were screaming."

Chickillo said the Gators and the hometown South Florida Bulls made his decision tough. "Both of them did a great job of recruiting me," Chickillo said. "My uncle in the beginning of the process was real worried. I was talking about Florida a lot. But my heart has always been in Miami. I grew up in Tampa. But I've always felt like my real hometown is Miami. Now, I'll just be going home."

The Hurricanes don't have many scholarships for the 2011 class. Chickillo becomes the program's seventh non-binding oral commitment. He likely will be the only defensive end the Canes sign.

"They want me to be a speed rusher, maybe come in and contribute on passing situations," Chickillo said. "I'm excited to be a part of the defensive line. They have a great group of guys right now. I saw they had eight or nine sacks against FAMU. They didn't have that in any game last year. You can tell they're improving with coach Petri, he's a technique guy. We clicked from the beginning."

Tony Chickillo, who was the starting nose guard for the first Hurricanes team to beat a No. 1-ranked team (Penn State, 1981) in the modern era, said UM coach Randy Shannon did a great job fostering a relationship over the years with his son. Anthony Chickillo has been attending UM football camps since he was six years old.

"I remember how Anthony used to drive Randy crazy because he always wanted to go and practice with the older kids," Tony Chickillo said. "I would have been damned if [Anthony] didn't go there. We've been season ticket holders for 20 years. He cried when the 58-game winning streak came to an end and when they tore down the Orange Bowl. Being a Cane has just always been in his DNA."

Nick Chickillo, an All-American guard in 1952, passed away in 2000. But Tony Chickillo said his father always knew his son would follow in their footsteps.

"When Anthony was real young he was a good little league player, but he wasn't sensational. He just loved the game," said Tony Chickillo, now an area sales manager for Brulin.com, a company which sells industrial cleaning products. "Nick saw something in Anthony before we all did. He always used to tell me that I had to prepare him for high school because he was going to be a good one. We're all very proud."

Catching up with Bridgewater, Rogers

I'm down at The Miami Herald today talking with the top high school juniors and seniors in Miami-Dade who came in for our media day. 

I got to catchup with Northwestern quarterback Teddy Bridgewater and receiver Eli Rogers, two future Canes. Bridgewater, fresh off his trip to the Elite 11 camp in California, talked about his relationship with Jacory Harris and how he's been working on taking snaps under center. Rogers shared a personal story about how his mother is battling AIDS.

Henderson's addition huge for Canes

Remember what Bryant McKinnie meant to the Hurricanes offensive line? Consider the potential addition of Seantrel Henderson just as large.

Although a few sources at UM as of late Tuesday night could not confirm Henderson (the nation's No. 1 high school offensive lineman) was already on his way to South Florida after being released from USC earlier in the day, indications are it might not be long before he becomes the last addition to the 2010 signing class.

Apparently, the only hold up at this point according to a UM source, is that the Canes have to wait until Wednesday -- when he is officially cleared by the NCAA -- to talk to him. After that, Henderson has to make it through UM admissions and the clearinghouse (so it probably will take a couple days before UM makes it official). Henderson would then likely start classes in August. I've been told UM, which looked like they would be about four over the 85 scholarship limit, has a scholarship to give to Henderson. By being released from his national letter of intent by USC, Henderson does not have to sit out this season.

Henderso, who was reportedly in Miami according to the St. Paul Pioneer Press this past weekend, hasn't spoken to any reporters in weeks and his father, who did most of the interviews for him late in the recruiting game, hasn't been answering his cell phone the last couple days. While there is likely some wiggle room (he could always back out and go to Ohio State), the word is Miami is his first choice. 

Henderson (6-8, 337) is the type of lineman that every coach dreams of. Described by Sports Illustrated as "the most polished linemen of the past decade," he would become the most highly touted lineman to sign with the Canes. McKinnie, drafted seventh overall by the Vikings in the 2002 draft, was the anchor of UM's national title team. Henderson is of the same ilk, a player most expect could at least contribute right away if not start at left tackle and keep Jacory Harris' jersey free of grass and blood stains for the next couple years.

If he comes, it would also mean young, perhaps, less talented players like Ben Jones and Jermaine Johnson (slotted to compete for the starting right tackle job) will not have to be depended on to carry a huge load right away. All three could potentially all end up splitting playing time until one emerges. Neither Jones or Johnson has played much yet and are still developing. 

Couple more tidbits...

> I was told the likelihood of freshman cornerback Jeremy Davis getting into school in August was "about 40 percent." Davis (5-11, 162) is one of four DBs in UM's 2010 class.

> It is expected that offensive tackle Tavadis Glenn, who attended an academy school his senior year while playing for Jacksonville Raines, will end up at prep school. 

TE Chase Ford ready to make an impact

Instead of being where he wanted to be, Chase Ford said he spent most of his time this spring and summer working as a maintenance man at his old high school in Corrigan, Texas, a small town with less than 2,000 people, located about a two-hour drive northeast of Houston.

So what did Ford do to pass the time when he wasn't mowing the lawn or picking up after students? 

"Daydream about catching touchdowns," the 6-7, 250-pound tight end said Monday as he shopped at WalMart with his family for the stuff he'll need when he moves into his new dorm on the University of Miami campus Tuesday. 

"Miami coaches told me they want me to come in and produce. They're not expecting me to be a redshirt. So that's what I want to do -- make an impact."

Ford, one of 29 football players in UM's 2010 signing class, will be among a large group of players to begin taking classes in Coral Gables this week. Six arrived in January and participated in spring football. A few others are still waiting for academic issues to be cleared up (more on that later). 

Ford was hoping to be among the early arrivals, but the NCAA denied him a waiver he needed to take off from Kilgore Community College and arrive at UM in January. At Kilgore, where former Hurricanes tight end Kevin Everett once starred, Ford caught 34 passes for 571 yards and three touchdowns during the 2009 season. 

The Hurricanes, desperate for tight end help, didn't start recruiting Ford until last December. But once they did, it didn't take them long to convince him to pick them over Arizona and interest from North Carolina and become one of four new tight ends in the class.

Ford said he's been working hard during the offseason in the weight room to be physically ready to play every down if needed. The Hurricanes, who got a huge lift from former basketball star Jimmy Graham at tight end last season, had only two tight ends in the spring: senior Richard Gordon and redshirt freshman Billy Sanders. Ford, who will wear No. 9 at UM, said he thinks he can play right away for UM. Among the biggest areas where he says he needs to improve is blocking.

"I definitely feel like I've gotten stronger, faster," Ford said. "I know I ran a 4.68 as a freshman. I run a lot faster since then. When I visited Miami, saw the guys they had here before, I felt like I fit in with them [Dedrick Epps, Graham]. Both of those guys were good."

DL DELMAR TAYLOR HEADED TO JUCO: The Hurricanes may have signed 29 players in their last class, but not all of them are going to make it into school. Miami Beach defensive lineman Delmar Taylor is the first we know won't.

"As far as I know, he's going to [Navarro Junior College] in Texas," Miami Beach coach Ralph Jimenez said Monday.

Taylor, who grew up in the Bahamas, was told by the NCAA he would not be cleared for admission because some of the classes he took when he lived there wouldn't transfer over. Taylor said he still plans to be a Hurricane. "I just have to do this before I can come back," Taylor said.

Jacksonville Raines offensive lineman Tavadis Glenn, Clovis (Calif.) linebacker Kelvin Cain and Cape Coral High WR/CB Jeremy Davis will also not begin classes this week because of academic issues.

"It's going to be slow process for him because he may not be qualified," Raines coach Deran Wiley said of Glenn. "He went to an [Drop Back In Academy] his senior year, not here, and they're going through his stuff with a fine tooth comb. I think he's going to get in, but he'll be an August guy."

Cain, who graduated with a 2.5 GPA and scored a 17 on the ACT, is hoping to be an August guy too. "I'm just waiting on the SAT score," Cain said. "I took it a couple weeks ago and should hear back soon. I've just been training, getting ready, running hard. In my mind, I'm definitely leaving for UM August 4th."

Davis, the younger half brother of former Hurricane Phillip Buchanon, hasn't answered his cell phone of late. But both Canesport.com and InsideTheU.com reported this week he could be an academic casualty as well.

UM gets commitment from Belen LB Menocal

Nick Menocal got an offer in the mail from the University of Miami two weeks ago. It didn't take him long to cash in on it.

The 6-3, 232-pound Class of 2011 linebacker from Miami Belen Jesuit asked UM coach Randy Shannon Monday afternoon to save a scholarship for him in the school's next signing class, ending what had become a hot heavy recruiting process with a growing number of schools.

"A couple weeks ago I went to UM unofficially and just felt comfortable from the get go," said Menocal, whose mother went to UM. "Today I went back and I spoke to coach Shannon and told him this is where I want to commit. He said 'Welcome to the family.'"

Menocal, who had 17 offers including ones from Virgina, Iowa, and Florida State, recorded 61 tackles last season and helped lead Belen to the Class 3A state championship game. A baseball player most of his life, he didn't begin playing football until the spring of his freshman year at Belen.

His coach Rich Stuart said Menocal is very raw, but has plenty of upside. Menocal was one of the state's highest scorers at the Nike SPARQ camp, which measures overall athleticism. He ran a 4.59 in the 40-yard dash at the Miami Nike Camp earlier this spring and had a 35.5-inch vertical leap. This season, Menocal will play mostly defensive end for Belen, but said UM is recruiting him to play linebacker.

He will come in as one of UM's brightest recruits, boasting a 3.5 GPA. He already scored a 1510 on the SAT exam and is a full qualifier.

UM has six commitments in its 2011 class. Four are from South Florida.

Northwestern 2011 duo "commits" to Canes

NEW YORK -- I'm covering the Marlins-Mets up here at CitiField, but felt compelled to pass along the news that a source at UM has confirmed reports that Miami Northwestern quarterback Teddy Bridgewater and receiver Eli Rogers have committed to the Canes.

Bridgewater, the No. 1 recruit in 2010 in Miami-Dade County, hasn't returned phone calls from The Miami Herald since Canesport first quoted Rogers saying both he and his star quarterback had called Hurricanes coaches to inform them of their decision. Rogers hasn't returned phone calls either. 

But he did tell Canesport.com: "Me and Teddy just committed. We just decided we wanted to do it and let the world know. Since me and Teddy are so close we decided to go on the same day. Today Teddy said, `Let's make it official and do it,' so that's what we did."

Northwestern coach Billy Rolle said he hasn't spoken to Bridgewater or Rogers "lately," and has only heard reports they've committed. "I always let my kids handle their commitments," Rolle told The Miami Herald. "If they've committed, I don't know about it. But when I do talk to them, I'll ask."

Bridgewater, considered a four-star recruit by Rivals.com, completed 165 of his 262 attempts for 2,546 yards, 32 TDs and 12 INTs as a junior and ran for 379 yards and five scores as a junior. He was clearly the Hurricanes' No. 1 recruiting priority in the 2011 class.

Rogers, unranked by Rivals, finished third on the team at Northwestern as a junior with 35 catches for 551 yards and 11 touchdowns. 

The question now becomes how firm both commitments really are. Both players told me in March that regardless of whom they committed to, they would still take their five recruiting trips. UM coach Randy Shannon has said he takes commitments from players who still take visits with a grain of salt.

Northwestern has been a longtime pipeline to UM. They sent seven players there in 2008 including quarterback Jacory Harris. But I wouldn't consider this a done deal. 

A good day for UM recruiting

GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Is it just me or did Wednesday's news regarding five-star defensive back Latwan Anderson feel like the first big victory in recruiting for the University of Miami in a while? 

I'm not trying to put a negative spin on it. It's great the Canes were able to land a top-notch recruit they weren't supposed to get. But ever since Jacory Harris and those other guys from Miami Northwestern came in as part of ESPN's No. 1 recruiting class in 2008, the public perception has been the Canes have missed out on most of the big-time kids they really wanted.

You remember the names and the stories. It started with Patrick Johnson (now Patrick Peterson) dumping the Canes for LSU. Then, there was Matt Patchan, son of a former Cane, choosing the Gators over UM and talking trash about his dad's program. A year later, Kayvon Webster, Defensive player of the Year in Miami-Dade, switched from the Canes for USF on National Signing Day. Then, there was the whole Bryce Brown fiasco, which ended with him choosing Tennessee a few weeks after NSD. This year, Canes fans crossed their fingers for Seantrel Henderson and Ivan McCartney. Again, UM came up short.

Today, though, was a good day for UM. Anderson, a big-time talent in Ohio State's backyard, basically fell into the Canes' lap. Before Signing Day, he wasn't really even on the Canes radar. A U.S. Army All-American, he picked West Virginia on national TV and was all set to go there. Now, he's headed to UM without even being really recruited by UM coach Randy Shannon and his staff. 

The general response I gathered from fans since the news broke Wednesday morning was "it's about time." But is it really fair to say that? Last month, when the Canes wrapped up their 2010 signing class, the overall consensus from experts was that Miami underachieved. The thought was the Canes were supposed to do better with all of the talent available in their backyard. 

The truth is, nothing burns Shannon more than the perception he and his staff aren't doing their jobs as good as they should be doing it when it comes to recruiting in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach Counties. In his eyes, there have been a lot of great recruiting days since Jacory and company picked The U.

LUNCH WITH RANDY... Three weeks ago, I got a chance to go out to lunch with Shannon. There were no tape recorders, no note pads. It was just two guys born and raised in Miami talking about the college football program they've been around (In my case, from a seat far away from the field for most of it). The hour and half I spent with Shannon was about as close as I've been able to get to him in the four years since I've been covering the team.

Shannon, guarded by nature, doesn't trust the media one bit. He thinks most of us don't do a good enough job investigating anything before we write it. But he also doesn't think he needs to volunteer any information he doesn't have to. This lunch -- in part -- was for us to get a better feel for where we come from, where our opinions are formed. 

In this case, Shannon doesn't want the idea to get out there that he's bashing programs in his backyard. So you won't ever read or hear any quotes from him saying high school programs are failing him. But the truth is he's worried about the way many local high school programs are being run these days. 

He says there are many issues that has made recruiting local players to UM a lot tougher than before. At the top of the list: Academic failure (test scores or low GPAs) and arrest records. The old UM might have been to take a chance those kids. But not this one run under President Donna Shalala. 

Then, there is the issue of individuals (street agents/assistant coaches) who are making deals (either for money or employment) with other colleges to send players away. On top of that, there are a few high school coaches for one reason or the other who have agendas against him and the program (in some cases because Shannon didn't hire them as assistants he was named UM's coach). Add it all up, and the field of high-end available recruits available to UM has shrunk. 

Shannon says he isn't asking for pity. He says he just thinks there needs to be a better understanding of why UM ultimately might not recruit a certain player or end up with them on National Signing Day. Ultimately, he says, every player now at UM has gone through the recruiting ringer (background checks, academic checks, character checks). Ultimately, he says, he is the final person to sign off on any written scholarship offer the program hands out. That whole Todd Chandler fiasco? Consider it one of a few mistakes by a now former assistant. But we know through Miami Northwestern coach Billy Rolle that Chandler was never given a written offer. 

Shannon says he is trying to help as many local coaches (many who are young and replacing legends) as he can better understand their responsibilities. He said he talks to them about image (he's scolded several local coaches for wearing bagging jeans and sunglasses on the sideline), instilling discipline (he says not enough suspend their best players for breaking the rules or missing practice) and not falling prey to recruiting promises (some high school coaches he says have been burned by college programs who promise they'll give them a job in exchange for a recruit). But it's hard sometimes, he says, to get through to them.

Whether you are a Shannon supporter or not, you still have to respect the fact the position he was put in wasn't easy. The Canes were well on the way to going in reverse by the time he took the steering wheel. Little by little he's made the program better than it was when he took it over. Nobody can argue that there isn't more talent on this team here now than when got it. Miami has a chance in 2010 to be really good again. And the bottomline is Latwan Anderson would not have picked UM if he didn't like the direction the program is headed in.

A FEW MORE TIDBITS...

> I didn't make it up in time to catch the Canes basketball team practice at the Greensboro Coliseum, but I'll be at Thursday's ACC Tournament game against Wake Forest. I'll be sending updates on Twitter throughout the game. Our Michelle Kaufman wrote about the Canes' uphill battle coming into the tournament.

> Here is a highlight video I found on Latwan Anderson on YouTube.

Seantrel Henderson waiting on USC investigation

Wednesday evening in front of a national audience, Seantrel Henderson, the nation's No. 1 offensive tackle announced he had chosen USC over Ohio State and the University of Miami.

Turns out, Henderson picked the Trojans, but still hasn't signed with them yet. According to an interesting New York Times article, Henderson's father said the family is waiting to see what happens with a pending NCAA infractions committee investigation into USC.

No word if that means Henderson would switch to UM or Ohio State if the family doesn't like what it hears when the infractions committee meets with USC officials Feb. 19-21. But you have to imagine the Hurricanes would have a shot -- especially after the way they reportedly treated Henderson on his trip. He has until April 1st to sign a National Letter of Intent.

According to the article, Henderson's trip to UM supposedly included limo rides and trips to night clubs where he hung out with Pro Bowlers Willis McGahee, Ed Reed and Bryant McKinnie. It is a must read.

A FEW MORE LEFTOVERS FROM WEDNESDAY... 

>  Shannon said six recruits are currently enrolled at UM: OL Malcolm Bunche, QB Stephen Morris, LB Tyrone Cornelius, WR Allen Hurns, RB Storm Johnson, and OL Shane McDermott. Shannon said Booker T. Washington running back Eduardo Clements has until today to enroll at UM. Clements told me last week he was waiting on his transcripts to get in and was confident he would make it. But it doesn't appear to be the case.

> Shannon was asked about running back Graig Cooper's health on Wednesday. All Shannon said was that Cooper was "rehabbing."

>  Receivers coach Aubrey Hill has added recruiting coordinator to his title. Hill takes over for Clint Hurtt, who left UM in mid December to take a position at Louisville. Hill has experience with the responsibilities having done it while he was the University of Pittsburgh.

> Shannon told the Palm Beach Post's Jorge Milian that linebacker Arthur Brown won't be coming back to UM. I've been told Brown's plan is to play at Butler Community College (Kan.) this season before jumping on in a year at Kansas State. Nobody from Brown's family -- nor his mentor Brian Butler -- have returned phone calls to address that.

> The ACC will release its schedule at 2 p.m. later this afternoon. We'll see if the Canes are given another tough month of September.

UM National Signing Day Blog (final update)

Good morning, it's the craziest recruiting day of the year. How crazy will it get for the Hurricanes? If all goes well, absolutely insane. UM (already with 27 commitments) is a finalist for six more of the country's top remaining recruits. 

I'll be on the road for most of the morning hitting South Florida high schools to grab video, audio and interviews with Canes recruits. My plan is to be at Miramar High at 9:30 a.m. when All-American receiver Ivan McCartney chooses between UM, UF and West Virginia. I'll be sending Twitter updates as I gather the news from around town regarding the locals and other future Canes around the country. Be sure to follow my updates. And if you like, join Larry Blustein over on our high school blog for a live chat throughout the morning and early afternoon.

For now, here's a guide to the Super Six UM is still after...

> WR Ivan McCartney, 6-3, 180, Miramar (9:30 a.m. announcement): The Under-Armour All-American receiver spoke with me Monday and said he loved his visit to the University of Miami over the weekend. But will it be enough to sway him from joining his former high school quarterback Eugene Smith and other teammates at West Virginia? Most experts don't think so.
- Eye on The U forecast: UM has a 35 percent shot of landing McCartney. Barring a surprise, I expect McCartney to follow his teammates to West Virginia and make his high school coach happy. Verdict: McCartney chose West Virginia.

> OT Shon Coleman, 6-7, 285, Olive Branch, Miss. (10 a.m.): UM knew it was a longshot when the U.S. Army-All American visited campus last weekend that they it could sway Coleman over SEC powers Auburn, Alabama and Ole Miss. Coleman has been quiet since his visit. But nobody expecting the Canes to pull this suprise out.
- Eye on The U forecast: UM has a 5 percent shot of landing Coleman. Look for Coleman to stick with Auburn or jump ship to Alabama. Verdict: Coleman chose Auburn.

> DE Ego Ferguson, 6-3, 275, Chatham (Va.) Hargrave Military Academy (10:45 a.m.): When I asked CBS College Network recruiting analyst Tom Lemming Tuesday night which player UM would land Wednesday, he pointed to the one he thought UM would hand, he pointed to Ego Lemming isn't alone. Four Rivals analysts think Ego goes with UM as well. The problem for UM late in the game is that Ferguosn's coach at Hargrave was recently hired at Texas Tech. Florida State is another strong option. You can watch Ferguson's announcement on CSTV.
- Eye on The U forecast: He might be UM's best shot. It's going to be the Canes or Seminoles in my mind. Verdict: Ferguson chose LSU.

> OL Seantrel Henderson, 6-8, 340, Saint Paul (Minn.) Cretin-Derham Hall (3 p.m.): The nation's No. 1 left tackle told Canesport.com his recent visit was a perfect 10. Henderson's parents would like to live someplace warm. His hometown newspaper, The Twin Cities Pioneer press, say USC is the favorite with Ohio State second. Lemming and ESPN's Tom Luginbill say the Canes have a shot and call them a darkhorse. Ultimately, if the Canes win this, its because offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland blew Henderson away this past weekend. You can watch Henderson's announcement on CSTV.
- Eye On The U forecast: UM has a 25 percent chance and probably finishes third to USC or Ohio State. Verdict: Henderson chose USC.

> LB Josh Shirley, 6-2, 225, Fontana (Calif.) Kaiser (4 p.m.): Shirley has maintained a strong relationship with assistant Michael Barrow throughout the recruiting process. Ultimately, though, this comes down to whether or not Shirley wants to leave the West Coast for South Florida. He told Scout.com's Allen Wallace he was surprised how much Coral Gables reminded him of home. But will it be enough to sway him?
- Eye On The U forecast: Canes are the underdog. USC favored to win by about 60-40. Verdict: Shirley chose UCLA.

> TE Asante Cleveland, 6-5, 230, Sacramento (Calif.) Christian Brothers Prep: Since his visit to UM two weeks ago, Cleveland has been mum on not only his visit but his previous commitment to Washington State. The nation's 15th best tight end has to like the fact UM is in desperate need for help at tight end. But like Shirley, is he willing to leave the West Coast for South Florida?
- Eye On The U forecast: Cares have a 50-50 shot. Cleveland stays out west and goes to Washington State. Verdict: Cleveland picked UM.

McCartney: "I can't wait until Wednesday"

Miramar High receiver Ivan McCartney has been hiding out since his trip to the University of Miami this past weekend, trying to avoid the pressure and the questions from people who want to know if he's decided between the team he grew up rooting for (Miami), the team with his former teammates (West Virginia) and the program he said he had secretly chosen (Florida) early in the recruiting process.

So which one will it be? "I don't even know yet," McCartney said. "The trip to UM definitely made it hard for me. It was awesome."

McCartney, a 6-3, 185-pound U.S. Army All-American, said he spent his two days hanging out with host and potential future quarterback Jacory Harris. "We started cooking from the moment we were in each other's presence," McCartney said. "He's real down to earth. We went to the Grove, walked the strip, ate a lot, the usual. We hung out with the players, played games. You can tell the University of Miami is just a big family."

Still, he left without making a commitment, rather a promise to coach Randy Shannon he would make a sound choice. "He said no matter where I go, he'll be happy for me," McCartney said. "He said just make sure wherever I chose to go make sure that's where I want to go, that it's the place for me. Coach Shannon is real cool like that."

McCartney said any rumors of him having picked a school already are false. He said people saying he'd choose West Virginia because of his academic situation "don't know what they are talking about."

"As far as I know, you need the same ACT or SAT score to get into Miami as you do as West Virginia. I think you need an 18," said McCartney, who has raised his GPA from a 2.1 to a 2.7 and scored a 15 on the ACT exam. "Regardless of which school I pick, I know I have more work to do in the class room. This decision will be based on the best fit for me."

So what are his family members and friends saying is the best fit? According to McCartney, his teammates would love for him to pick West Virginia, but are not pressuring him at all. And his mom, who would like for him to stay home, has told him the same.

"Believe it or not, Gino [West Virginia quarterback Eugene Smith] tell me to pick the best school for me," McCartney said. "My mom told me as long as I'm comfortable and able to do something after football with a degree, she's fine with wherever I go."

McCartney said that choice would have been the Gators at the start of the season. Florida's need for receivers and its rich recent history were attractive early on. But he said the way Miami and West Virginia have come at him this year have made it "a three horse race."

"To be honest, in the beginning of the football season Florida was the school I was going to go to," McCartney said. "But I kept it quiet. There's something about Florida I don't feel for the other schools, a very strong, loving feeling. The atmosphere is wild. The campus is outrageous. They have swagger. A lot of people thought Florida was going to drop when Billy Gonzalez, who recruited me, left. But I learned early on you can't go to a school off coaches. Any coach can leave at any given time. You success depends on how you work as a player. Florida is an awesome place with whoever is coaching there."

As for West Virginia, where former Miramar quarterback Eugene Smith is waiting to throw him passes, McCartney said he believes its only a matter of time before the Mountaineers win a national title. "They lack receiver depth, which is huge for me," McCartney said. "The coaches are very down to earth and cool. They have a family over there, just like Miami. One thing I noticed, though, is they lack the swagger. If I go up to West Virginia, I'd love to bring some of the swagger up there. Because to me, they have a chance to go to the national championship soon. With Eugene, Noel [Devine], they have a chance to do big things."

The Hurricanes, he feels, are also close to winning a national title. And if he had to sit out a season, redshirt and learn on the scout team, he said he'd have no problem with that. "There's nothing left to say about Miami, really," McCartney said. "It's The U. Miami is just a home away from home. Players are cool. Coaches are cool. Of all the schools I've visited, they are the most close in a family way. And nothing makes you feel better than a family."

McCartney will announce his decision Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. "I'm going to do it real big, maybe bring in 10 hats to confuse people," McCartney said. "Honestly, I just can't wait until Wednesday."

ANOTHER RECRUITING TIDBIT...

> UM lost out on defensive tackle Jeffrey Whitaker from Warner Robins, Ga. on Monday. The 6-3, 295-pound defensive tackle picked Auburn over Georgia and the Canes. 

Word is UM feels better about its chances with Virginia prep school defensive tackle Ego Ferguson, who will announce his college choice on CBS College Sports Network Wednesday morning at 11 a.m.

DT recruit Jeffrey Brown a star wrestler

The final recruiting weekend of the 2010 season has come and gone. So how did it go in Coral Gables? We really won't know until Wednesday. But as expected the University of Miami landed the commitment everyone expected them to from Evanston (Ill.) Township defensive tackle Jeffrey Brown.

Brown pledged his allegiance to the Hurricanes this morning when he met with UM coach Randy Shannon before leaving campus. Of course, it wasn't very hard for Brown to fall in love with the place considering his other offers were from Illinois State, Eastern Michigan and Toledo. Still, Brown became the 27th player to say he'll sign with the University of MIami Wednesday.

So what kind of player are the Canes getting? According to Rivals (2-star), ESPN (3-star) and Scout (75th defensive tackle in country), another under-the-radar recruit. But if you ask his high school coach Mike Burzawa, Brown (6-3, 275) is someone UM defensive coordinator John Lovett fell in love with after seeing on film. 

Burzawa, who attended a UM alumni dinner in Chicago with Shannon two years ago, said he called Hurricanes coaches in November and told them about Brown, who had received very little attention from BCS schools until that point.

"The biggest problem for Jeff was he didn't go to a lot of camps, so he wasn't seen by a lot of scouts," Berzawa said. "I think everybody gets caught up on the recruiting service, the four-star, five-star. Some kids develop in their senior year. Jeffrey was a dominating force this season. We had every coach in our conference sending scouts over here. To me, it was surprising nobody was all over him. Michigan called, liked him. We sent tapes to everyone in the Big Ten. They all liked what they saw. But nobody followed through. Everybody has different needs. Miami is doing things this year a little differently. And I know they like what they see in Jeffrey."

Brown is actually a three sport star. On the football field, Berzawa said Brown had 42 solo tackles, five sacks, nine tackles for loss, a forced fumble, four fumble recoveries, two blocked kicks and blocked for a 1,300 yard rusher as a pulling guard. But his talents were not only reserved for the gridiron. As a wrestler, he's compiled a 39-1 record as a senior and is a favorite to win a state title in the heavyweight division. Last year in track, Brown was a state qualifier in the shot put.

"The No. 1 characteristic is he's an outstanding young man," Berzawa said. "He's a leader in our school, a leader in the field. Wrestling has helped him. He wins the leverage war and has some huge hands and can dominate defenders. We played Hubbard High from Chicago and he was the Channel 2 Player of the Week with 12 tackles and a couple fumble recoveries. Against Main South, the 8A state champion, he had one of the most incredible performances we've ever seen."

> I'm at the UM-Virginia Tech basketball game. I'll have more recruiting news for you as we near National Signing Day.

Canes LB recruit impressive in All-Star game

It's not often you get a chance to represent your country, especially in football. University of Miami linebacker recruit Travis Williams, however, made the most of his opportunity Saturday representing the red, white and blue in the Team USA vs. The World All-Star Game at Fort Lauderdale's Lockhart Stadium.

In fact, he didn't wait long to make his presence felt, racing down the field on the opening kickoff and drilling the kick returner for the game's first tackle. Williams went on to start at strongside linebacker along with MVP Mike Hull (Penn State) and Steele Devitto (Boston College). Williams (6-2, 200) finished with a team-leading eight tackles (5 solo) in USA's 17-0 win. Williams (from Lake Taylor High in Norfolk, Virginia) said the experience was "once in a lifetime."

"It was awesome, I enjoyed myself," Williams said. "I played with a great group of fellas and played my part. I made a couple big tackles and did what I needed to. It was a great week down here."

Williams can't wait until he's down here permanently. Considered the nation's 14th best outside linebacker by Rivals.com (44th by ESPN.com), Williams said he still has some work to do in the classroom before can qualify at UM. He said he's working to raise his GPA (currently 2.4) and waiting on the SAT he took last weekend (he needs at least an 820). But he has big plans once he qualifies and arrives at UM in the summer.

"When I visited last weekend, coach [Randy] Shannon basically told me he wanted to see me at every linebacker spot and which ever one I felt most comfortable with, the one I could help the team most, that's where I would be," Williams said. "Personally, I like playing the [strongside linebacker]. I feel comfortable in coverage, or bringing pressure off the edge."

Williams spent the week rooming with future Hurricanes teammate and team captain Keion Payne. He said when he gets to UM, he's supposed to room with running back Storm Johnson, who has been enrolled at UM since last week. All week, Williams caught the eye of Team USA coach Chris Merritt, who coached LSU-bound running back Jakhari Gore this past season at Miami Columbus.

"He's a little bit of an athletic freak," Merritt said. "He's aggressive, covers a lot of ground quickly. He fits a lot of Miami linebackers of old, the type I grew up watching. I picture him as an outside linebacker guy, dropping in coverage. He can hit now, too.

"One day of practice this week we were doing some head-on hitting. I had to smile at him a couple times and tell him to pull off the reigns a little bit. He's a kid when he wants to bring it, he brings it. He can play with fire."

Williams certainly did when he was little. He actually burned down his grandmother's home playing with matches at the age of three. No one was seriously injured.

He's since saved his most destructive behavior for the football field. He had 72 sacks in his high school career and earned first team honors in the Virginia "Tidewater area" his junior and senior seasons.

A FEW MORE TIDBITS...

> I caught up with the coach of Seantrel Henderson Friday morning and he said the one thing he has to congratulate UM coaches on is there "persistence." He said while every school in the country came in and offered, few kept recruiting Henderson as hard as UM did. He said the fact Henderson's parents are moving to whatever city their son chooses gives the Canes "a real chance."

"Seantrel is a smart young man," said Mike Scanlon, who has coached the 6-8, 340-pound Parade Magazine National Player of the Year at Cretin-Hall High School in St. Paul, Minn. for the past three seasons. 

"A lot of his decision is going to be based on his relationship with his position coach. I told him, everybody is going to be nice to you during the recruiting process. But what is he going to be like when you get there, when your sitting in his office, breaking down film? I think he's looking for somebody who is not only to give him an opportunity to play at a high level, but take his abilities to an even higher level."

Scanlon said he doesn't think the coaching changes at USC or Notre Dame put either of those programs at a disadvantage and said he has no inkling of where Henderson is headed. Florida, Oklahoma and Ohio State are Henderson's other favorites. He will announce his decision between 3 and 7 p.m. on CBS College Sports TV with analyst Tom Lemming.

> How desperate is UM basketball coach Frank Haith for some positivity? In a team meeting this week he had his players write something positive about each other on paper and had them read it in front of the rest of their teammates.

One description that clearly didn't show up on Haith's sheet for any of UM's seniors was "great vocal leaders." "I think what this team is [searching for] is that great leadership," Haith said. "I'm not sure we've had that this year. Our seniors are not great talkers. James [Dews], Cyrus [McGowan] and Dwayne [Collins] aren't great talkers. They're more lead by example type guys."

Haith talked a lot Friday about how difficult his team's ACC schedule has been. He pointed out once again how four of his team's first six ACC games in January have been on the road and how after Sunday's afternoon tip with Virginia Tech, UM has to get on a flight and ready for a game at Wake Forest on Tuesday. "That's not exactly easy when you consider the Demon Deacons have three days to prepare," Haith said. Hard to blame Haith for feeling the way he does. But it's life in the ACC.

> One comical side note: UM's sports info office made a tiny mistake when it sent out a press release regarding its Save Haiti campaign. It read: "In future games, the Hurricanes will be sporting a patch on their uniforms in support of Save Haith Saturday..." We know they meant Save Haiti. But it was still funny. UM sent a correction shortly afterward. 

Canes set to make final recruiting push

University of Miami coach Randy Shannon and offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland will be in the living room of the top offensive lineman in the country tonight, trying to convince Seantrel Henderson and his parents that The U is the best place for him. 

After they're done, Shannon and Stoutland will come racing back home from chilly St. Paul, Minnesota to host what will be the final recruiting weekend before National Signing Day. Most experts think Henderson, a 6-8, 320-pound monster left tackle and Parade Magazine's National Player of the Year, will opt to stick with Big Ten power Ohio State or Notre Dame when he announces his decision Monday afternoon in a CBS studio in New York. 

But his coach said the Canes, who will host Henderson and a rather large group of visitors this weekend are definitely in the running. "They're definitely on the short list he's seriously thinking about," Cretin-Derham Hall coach Mike Scanlon said. "He wouldn't be wasting their time if he wasn't."

Even though fans might feel down, the Canes have a consensus Top 20 recruiting class according to all three major recruiting services. ESPN currently has UM highest at 12. Both Scout and Rivals have UM 20th. But landing Henderson -- or any other of the top-end weekend visitors -- would go a long way in improving that ranking. And it might even put a smile on some of even the most critical of Shannon bashers. 

So who else will UM get a visit from? Aside from U.S. Army All-American receiver Ivan McCartney from Miramar High (whom UM has a 50-50 shot at) and a handful of other commitments, the rest are out of towners the Canes are hoping to make a big impression on. 

> There is highly-touted defensive tackle Ego Ferguson from Hargrave Military Academy, whose father McDonald played at Miami Edison with UM director of football operations Corey Bell. Florida State and Notre Dame are considered the front runners, though, for the 6-4, 270-pound standout who also has Cal and LSU in the mix. He's supposed to announce his decision Wednesday in New York.

> In addition to Ferguson, two other less touted defensive tackles will be visiting. UM probably has a better shot at landing at least one -- if not both.

Jeffrey Brown, a 6-2, 270-pound senior from Township High in Evanston (Ill.) is expected to become UM's 27th commitment after his weekend visit to Coral Gables. Lightly recruited out of the Chicago area (his other offers are from Eastern Michigan, Illinois State and Toledo), his coach told me Brown is an under the radar star with big hands and a lot of upside. He was discovered by defensive coordinator John Lovett.

Jeff Whitaker, a much more highly-touted player (Rivals has him ranked as the fifth best defensive tackle in the country) out of Warner Robins, Ga., has taken a liking to the Canes and defensive backs coach Wesley McGriff. Whitaker's coach, Bryan Way, said the Canes have worked hard since December 1st to convince Whitaker (also considering Auburn and Georgia) to give UM a look. Wednesday, new defensive line coach Rick Petri was at Warner Robins with McGriff to meet Whitaker.

"A month ago when McGriff came in here, I told him coach, I really don't think you should bother," Way said. "But since that time, their chances have definitely gone up. I still think it's probably going to be Georgia or Auburn. I'm not sure Jeff wants to go that far from home. But then again, a month ago, I wouldn't have even considered Miami. Jeff is definitely intrigued by it and wants to see how it's going to be down there. So, I'd give them a chance."

Whitaker is planning to announce his decision Monday during a press conference at his school at 2 p.m.

> Three other players are scheduled to make trips to UM: Olive Branch (Miss.) offensive tackle Shon Coleman, Fontana (Calif.) linebacker Josh Shirley and Decatur (Ga.) cornerback Marques Dixon. 

Coleman was committed to Auburn and is likely to end up there or somewhere else in the SEC; Shirley might not even make the trip after a "strong visit" at USC last weekend and Dixon, a Tennessee commitment, might not visit either.

> For those that are interested, three video segments I recorded this week have been posted on MiamiHerald.com. There is the Recruiting Report with Larry Blustein, a studio interview with Miami Beach defensive tackle and Canes recruit Delmar Taylor, and another I shot with 2011 quarterback Teddy Bridgewater. Check it out. 

Northwestern coach: "There is no rift with UM"

Miami Northwestern, the elite high school football program in Miami-Dade County, has long been a pipeline to the University of Miami. And despite what other "sources" may be saying, Bulls coach Billy Rolle, a longtime friend of Hurricanes coach Randy Shannon, told me Wednesday afternoon that won't be changing. 

"This thing is plain and simple: it's a big misunderstanding," said Rolle regarding reports that say a rift has been created between the Canes and its biggest feeder school. "I don't have any problem with the University of Miami, no matter what anybody might think or say. No one here does. The recruiting process is the recruiting process and sometimes kids don't know what it's about. They don't know it's a business. And some of our guys had to learn that, the hard way."

Rolle is of course referring in part to the recruiting saga of highly-touted defensive tackle Todd Chandler, who committed to Miami as a junior (right after the Bulls won the mythical national title with Jacory Harris and seven other future Canes in 2008) but is no longer a Canes recruit. 

Tuesday, ESPN.com ran an article, quoting Chandler (as I did back in December) voicing his frustration with the Hurricanes and his understanding that he once had a scholarship offer from Miami, but had it taken away." The article also quoted Terrence Craig (as a Northwestern assistant) saying "the people in the community here at Northwestern won't forget this." Other news outlets later quoted sources saying a rift between UM and Northwestern had grown so big, the Bulls wouldn't send future players to UM until Shannon and Rolle resolved the issue. 

According to Billy Rolle, all of it is hogwash. Craig, he says, wasn't even a part of his staff this year at Northwestern. Craig, a former Bulls offensive line coach, left the program last year for Miami Southridge, which is closer to his home. And those sources, Rolle said, "I'm not sure sure who they are."

"Some people do a lot of talking, they like to be spokesmen," Rolle said. "But they don't know. You know me. I don't like talking on the phone. I'm a face to face guy. I talked to coach after I read something in the paper... We ironed it out."

What also got ironed out, Rolle said, was the situation regarding Chandler. Rolle admitted he was shocked when he first heard Chandler was no longer headed to UM. But he said after he looked into the situation, spoke to Shannon and Chandler, Rolle said he came to "a clear understanding" of why Chandler won't be playing for the Hurricanes.

"A kid may commit early, but a school can change their mind the way a kid changes their mind," Rolle said. "It was just one of those things, a kid commits early and trusted the situation. But it's a business. s years go by, the recruiting process changes. Unfortunately, the recruiting process probably changed for Miami. Like coach told me, they had a lot of injuries this year, young guys and old guys coming back. It was a numbers thing. At first, Todd was kind of distraught, he really didn't understand it. But after we talked to him and things like that, he understood by taking trips to other schools -- he understood what went down with him.

"I was just shocked because he wanted so badly to go there because of the guys who were there previously. He had a nice little bond with the guys who were here before and because he was one of the younger guys who started and played here a lot when they were here. He had decided before anything that's where he wanted to go play. At the time, it was something big going on with us, winning the national title. So, everybody was excited, thought it was only natural Todd would go to Miami too. He made a commitment to himself to commit to Miami because he was sold on it.

"But usually, when a school offers a kid, the coach gets a letter. That's the thing. I never got a letter for Todd. I looked for it, didn't find it. That's how [UM] covered their butts."

Rolle said the situation with Chandler proved to be a valuable lesson for his entire team. He said he recently had a scout explain how programs "have different needs" each and every season. 

"People assume the best players at Northwestern should go to Miami. And to me, that's how I believe it should be," Rolle said. "When you go to Alabama, the best players from Alabama go to Alabama. Same at Texas, LSU, Georgia. You may see one or two guys from other parts, but that's it. Me, personally as a coach, I always tell the kids to look around, don't say no to a school just because you've chose one. You never know what can happen. A coach might get fired or leave to another school. Now, that school doesn't want you anymore.

"Sometimes, kids just love a school so much, they don't want to hear 'No.' If you look at Antonio Bryant and Torrie Cox, my guys here from the 1998 team. They were going to die if they didn't go to University of Miami. And here comes this guy from Pittsburgh. Torrie was going to die if he didn't play running back. I showed him a media guide of all these cornerbacks and their bios about how they were running backs. What happened? Torrie went to Pittsburgh, got drafted in the third round and is still playing. Same for Antonio. The point is, Miami ain't always going be ready for you. But I think us being right here in Miami, UM should get its choice and all the coaches around the county should support that."

Rolle insists the Canes haven't loss any ground -- or faith -- from other potential recruits at Northwestern. In fact, he said UM is on solid ground with three of the Bulls' premier 2011 recruits: quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, receiver Eli Rogers and linebacker Lyndon Edwards. In fact, Bridgewater, considered the top player in the state in 2011, told me his love for the Hurricanes hasn't changed.

"I've always a good feeling about the Miami Hurricanes," Bridgewater said. "They're my hometown school and I've watched them put a lot of players in the NFL. As far as Jacory, I watched him as much I could this season and picked up as many things as I could from him. I like the way he puts touch on his passes.

"What they did to Todd Chandler, it's just what college is. It opened some eyes. You may be committed to a college and you never know what can happen. In the end, Miami did what it had to do. Since my ninth grade year, I've seen a lot of my teammates go there and play. Right now, I'm wide open. I've got six offers -- Florida, Miami, Tennessee, West Virginia, Rutgers and FIU. My plan is to take as much time as I need to figure it out."

A FEW MORE TIDBITS...

> Rolle said he's been very happy with the Hurricanes have handled the current Bulls at UM and he hasn't heard any complaints from his players. When I asked him about receiver Kendal Thompkins possibly seeking a transfer, he said Thompkins continues to work out at Northwestern with his UM gear and hasn't mentioned a work to him about leaving the program.

"I tell the kids all the time, when you go to college there are going to be five, six guys just like you, you have to compete," Rolle said. "Personally, I think a lot of luck is involved. Injuries could get you. But luck is big. You might make one catch in a game or practice that catches the coaches eye. You just have to be ready when the opportunity comes. Kendall hasn't told me once he isn't happy there. I haven't asked him either. But the kids coming back to me complaining? No. It's not happening."

> If you are wondering where Northwestern's best players will be heading this year, it looks like Louisville is the destination. Coach Charlie Strong visited with Rolle Wednesday right before I got to Northwestern. Running back Corvin Lamb, offensive lineman Torrian Wilson, receiver Michaelee Harris and Chandler will likely be signing with the Cardinals. Oddly enough, former Hurricanes recruiting coordinator Clint Hurtt will be the guy coaching Chandler. 

For Nelson 'long battle' will be over soon

Kevin Nelson can't contain his excitement. In a week, the Gainesville Sun's Class 6A-3A Player of the Year will be able to put pen to paper, sign his name on a National Letter of Intent and officially call himself a Miami Hurricane. 

For Nelson, a 6-1, 215-pound middle linebacker, National Signing Day can't come fast enough. Neither can June 12th. That's the day he scheduled to graduate from Gainesville High. Three hours after he takes off his gap and gown, Nelson says, he plans to drive down to South Florida where he'll move in with cousin and future University of Miami teammate Demarcus Van Dyke. Soon after that, Nelson says, he plans on putting on an orange and white jersey with the number 52 on it. That would be the same number of his idol, Canes great Ray Lewis. 

Ask Nelson where he'll be come the season opener in September against Florida A&M and he's got a prediction on that, too. He says he'll be starting at middle linebacker, on his way to the ACC Rookie of the Year award and leading the Hurricanes to a national title. 

To say Nelson dreams big would be an understatement. But if you ask his coach, his family and his friends, the fact Nelson is making bold predictions about his future is a welcome relief -- because it wasn't long ago that Nelson wasn't sure where he was headed. 

A troubled teenager, Nelson had trouble coping with the death of his mother, Bonnie Coleman, who died in 2002 after a long battle with brain and lung cancer. His biological father, Connie, who died last year from a stroke, didn't develop a relationship with him until he was older. Discipline and focus? It's taken time for Nelson to wrestle with that.

"It was crazy, man," Nelson said. "My brother was off to college so it was just me and my mother when I was little. My stepfather, when he was in the picture, was usually off to work. So, I'd come home and take care of my mom when she was sick. Sometimes, I wasn't able to do my homework because I was crying at night, trying to see if my mom was OK. It was hard. Things like that mess up a kid at that age. It takes time for them to learn how to be strong, realize that this happened for a reason. It was a battle. It still is to this day."

Nelson's battle became his aunt Shirley Williams' problem. Thankfully, he says, with his cousins off at college and plenty of room for him in her house, Nelson was able to grow up with plenty of support. He'd watch the Golden Girls with his grandmother, Irene Cudog, and his aunt, and iron out his behavioral issues. In a lot of ways, he says, he looks up to Hurricanes coach Randy Shannon, who grew up with plenty of his own family struggles. He considers the way both grew up "a deep bond."

"On Sunday, the last day of my official visit, we were talking about that," Nelson said. "He told me about how things were hard for him growing up, family members he lost. He told me situations like that prepare you for life, make you stronger. The way I see it, he never quit and ended up great. It took me some time to figure out how life is. In the ninth grade, I finally got control of it. I just turned a whole 180 degree turn and made some success in my life."

Now, Nelson says, he can't wait to go battle for Shannon. And the truth is, the Hurricanes might be stealing a superstar under Florida coach Urban Meyer's nose. 

Nelson, rated a four-star recruit by ESPN and the third-best inside linebacker in the country, has developed into a far better player than most expected. He finished his senior season with 141 tackles, three sacks, two interceptions, three forced fumbles and helped Gainesville High to its city championship since 1988. His coach, Ryan Smith, said Nelson and teammate/fellow UM recruit Devont'a Davis (a 6-1, 170-pound cornerback) are the two primary reasons why the program went from 1-8 to 5-5 to 10-2 and its first playoff victory since Clinton Portis was around in 1998.

"Great players make great coaches," Smith said. "Miami is getting great players. They led the way for us all year. Their leadership, work ethic and the ability to make plays is phenomenal. If you want to look at one game. Look at the win over Buchholz. We won 14-9. Kevin scored both touchdowns (interception and a fumble recovery) and Devonta intercepts a pass on a two-point conversion at the end of the game to clinch it."

Former UM recruiting coordinator Clint Hurtt jumped on Nelson early. But if you ask Nelson, it was his persistence that got the Hurricanes to offer him a scholarship his junior year after the Gators passed and UCF and Arkansas were the only programs who bit.

"Before Miami even recruited me, I had to call them," Nelson said. "I called Ms. Cindy in the office and got coach Barrow's office number. I kept calling it and calling it until I got coach Barrow on the phone. After that, It just went from there.

"I told him 'I want to be the guy you can count on in fourth down situations, you feel me? Or, the guy you want to put it on his shoulders and be the leader -- the whole season -- of the defense. I don't want to give up no rushing yards, no passing yards and have the DBs and safeties moving, the d-line moving and linebackers making plays.' I told him I wanted to be that guy. He said 'Dang man, I really like the way you're talking.' After that, he fell in love with the way I was talking. I sent him film and two or three weeks later, coach Shannon offered me."

Nelson didn't have to sell himself his senior year. LSU, Florida, and a number of other SEC schools came looking for him. Although the offer to play for LSU "and beat UF every year" was tempting, the Hurricanes stayed on him hard. And soon, UM could be reaping the benefits. With Darryl Sharpton gone, the Hurricanes do not have a bonafide starting middle linebacker. Going into the spring, most expect senior Colin McCarthy to slide over to the middle and Sean Spence, Jordan Futch and Ramon Buchanon to eat up most of the snaps at outside linebacker. Nelson, the only middle linebacker in a class with five outside linebackers, could ultimately find his way into playing time if he catches on quickly.

"I feel like I'm the best linebacker coming in this class -- and I feel like with the guys I've been around and the knowledge I'm going to be receiving it will be something great for the University of Miami," Nelson said. "It's about time for Coach Shannon to get another ring on his finger. I told him I'm going to do everything in my power, with the last breath in my body to get him that championship ring."

A FEW MORE TIDBITS...

> You can never get everything you want into a story or a blog. I've uploaded the complete audio interview with Nelson to our UM audio section. If you are a Canes recruiting junkie and want to get pumped up about this class, check it out. Nelson has a ton of passion.

> Check out this A to Z segment with Nelson in the Gainesville Sun.

McCartney: "I have to find a fit for me"

As a former college football star at West Virginia and professional football player, Damon Cogdell is trying his best to prepare Ivan McCartney for the tough decision he's going to have to make soon. As McCartney's football coach at Class 6A state champion Miramar High, Cogdell is also trying to toe the fine line of telling him what's right for him and letting him think all for himself.

 McCartney still hasn't decided whether or not to join the team he grew up rooting for in Coral Gables, his former high school teammates who are now Mountaineers, or fill some big receiver needs for Urban Meyer at the University of Florida. But after McCartney spends his last recruiting weekend at the University of Miami beginning this Friday, Cogdell expects him to be ready with a decision come Wednesday morning at 9:30 a.m.

"I think he kind of has his mind set of where he's going, but he'll know for sure by Monday," Cogdell said. "I told him he has to be thick skinned. This is a business decision, not an emotional decision. He's taking everything into account.

"He wants to go up to a place where he can play and make a big impact on that team right away. And if not right away, he wants to play the next year. I told him, he also has to look at the school with the highest graduation rate, which coach has been the most loyal to you and always been there. I don't like it when the coach calls you and just talks football. Neither does he. I told him you can't look at in terms of where you are going to live the rest of your life, just the next four years. At the end of the day, he knows it's his life decision."

McCartney, a 6-3, 180-pound U.S. Army All-American, hasn't spoken to reporters recently. But last week, when he came in to take his photos as an All-Broward First Team selection, he spoke to me for five minutes about what he was feeling. Ultimately, he wants to make the best decision for himself. Most experts believe with his coach being a West Virginia grad and two teammates already playing for the Mountaineers (current Miramar receiver Dante Chambers is a WV commitment), the Hurricanes don't stand much of a chance. But McCartney insisted when I talked to him the Hurricanes are very much in it.

"When I went to West Virginia, I felt like I was at home, especially with [quarterback Eugene] Smith and [receiver] Steadman [Bailey] up there," said McCartney, who caught 37 passes for 693 yards and 10 touchdowns -- including three in the state championship victory.

"West Virginia was a fit for Gino and Steadman. I'm not saying it's a fit for me or it isn't. I have to find somewhere that is a fit for me."

Although some might believe otherwise, McCartney said he is not turned off by the number of receivers currently on the Canes roster (1 senior, 4 juniors, 3 sophomores). "I feel like anywhere you go there are going to be receivers," McCartney said. "Depending on your work ethic, that will determine if you get on the field or not. I know anywhere I go, I'm going to work hard to get on the field."

Cogdell calls McCartney's relationship and his own with UM coaches "outstanding."

"Miami has been there loyally for a long time," Cogdell said. "Coach Shannon and I have a great relationship. We have history together. We both grew up at Scott Park. He recruited me coming out of high school. He coached me when he was an assistant with the Dolphins, when I was a linebacker there. We talk all the time about life, how we both grew up at Scott Park and became coaches. He's come by the school a couple times and had a great in home visit with Ivan. They've done what they've had to do."

The question remains, though, will it be enough to keep McCartney home? "I'll find out Monday, but you'll find out Wednesday like everybody else," Cogdell said with a laugh. "I told him to enjoy it, have a little fun with it."

A FEW MORE TIDBITS...

> Locally, McCartney might be the only player Hurricanes fans will be holding the breath for on National Signing Day. Although I haven't spoken to Hialeah defensive end Corey Lemonier of late, our Larry Blustein says it looks more and more like the No. 1 recruit in Miami-Dade County will be going to Florida State.

> Speaking of Mr. Blustein, he and I recorded three podcasts in a Countdown To National Signing Day on Monday night. They are all available for download on our high school podcast The Countdown. Part 2 of our discussion is on the University of Miami. 

> Two years ago, Jordan Futch became sort of the spokesman for the 2008 recruiting class. This year, I'd have to say that guy is Gainesville High linebacker Kevin Nelson. The more I talk to the kid, the more I'm reminded of the old school Canes mentality. The kid bleeds green and orange. I'll have a full interview (audio included) for you tomorrow.