2014 Recruiting

[CameronBornAndBred]

Zavier Carmichael is now rated 4 Stars by ESPN according to threads on Scout. He is the #25 OLB in the nation.

Wow...rock on.

[Bob Green]

According to a thread on Scout (The Devils Den) free board, 3-Star Tinashe Bere just verbally committed to Duke. He is the #29 ranked MLB in the nation:

http://recruiting.scout.com/a.z?s=73&p= ... id=6007746

He is from Cincinnati and also had offers from: Purdue, Iowa, Indiana and Illinois. It is great to get quality defensive players in the truck.

[Very Duke Blue]

According to a thread on Scout (The Devils Den) free board, 3-Star Tinashe Bere just verbally committed to Duke. He is the #29 ranked MLB in the nation:

http://recruiting.scout.com/a.z?s=73&p= ... id=6007746

He is from Cincinnati and also had offers from: Purdue, Iowa, Indiana and Illinois. It is great to get quality defensive players in the truck.

I keep wanting to click "like" on this thread. I love what I'm seeing. Thanks for the postings.

[devildeac]

Many thanks to Bob for continuing to keep us updated on FB recruiting!

[Bob Green]

Things appear to be heating up with 3* QB Nicodem Pierre:

http://duke.scout.com/a.z?s=167&p=8&c=1&nid=5278663

He has us in his top three. We need to sign a QB every class, but I would really like to see us get a 4* or even a 5* with Coach Cutcliffe's background and reputation. Renfree was a 4*.

[CameronBornAndBred]

Things appear to be heating up with 3* QB Nicodem Pierre:

http://duke.scout.com/a.z?s=167&p=8&c=1&nid=5278663

He has us in his top three. We need to sign a QB every class, but I would really like to see us get a 4* or even a 5* with Coach Cutcliffe's background and reputation. Renfree was a 4*.

The last 3* quarterback we had from Miami worked out pretty well.

[Bob Green]

The last 3* quarterback we had from Miami worked out pretty well.

You are correct!!! It has been pointed out to me that Pierre is a 4* on ESPN. Additionally, rumors are starting to flow that Athlete Johnathan Lloyd (Southern Alamance HS) is about to decide and he is a Duke lean. Lloyd is a 4* on Scout and a 3* on ESPN.

[The Football Fan]

The last 3* quarterback we had from Miami worked out pretty well.

You are correct!!! It has been pointed out to me that Pierre is a 4* on ESPN. Additionally, rumors are starting to flow that Athlete Johnathan Lloyd (Southern Alamance HS) is about to decide and he is a Duke lean. Lloyd is a 4* on Scout and a 3* on ESPN.

A hoy coaches...we need all hands on deck...and extra attention placed on bringing this treasured recruit on board...

Sorry, didn't have much to offer....every time we bring in a top recruit, it makes us look a little better to the next one.

[Bob Green]

Center Zach Harmon to Duke:

http://duke.scout.com/a.z?s=167&p=8&c=1&nid=6655717

[devildeac]

Center Zach Harmon to Duke:

http://duke.scout.com/a.z?s=167&p=8&c=1&nid=6655717

6-4 and 265. Good sized young man. He's listed as an OG in that link. Good find, Bob.

[Bob Green]

Verbals are rolling in:

WR Chris Taylor and RB Kerrion Moore. Taylor has decent size and speed at 6'1" and a 4.50 40 time.

[Bob Green]

Obligatory YouTube highlight reels:

Chris Taylor: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2nhsMbaqybQ

Kerrion Moore: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WS7nxGiwSW0

[The Football Fan]

With the scholarship numbers being low this year, I had really hoped we wouldn't sign more than 1 or 2 players with <3 stars. I don't want to be too negative. For those kids getting signed, it's a great day. They've had great high school careers and they are about to embark on their senior year. I'd also bet they are really good guys that have character and will represent Duke well....but my sense is we need a better collection of players to get to that next level of competition.

It's not like I've seen any of them play. Plus, Conner Vernon, one of the better players the ACC has seen was a 2 star recruit, but...the folks who do the evaluation do it full time. They know more of what they are looking at than me. So, it probably wouldn't do me much good to see them in action anyway. I also think some coaches push "their guy," when they may not be all that good.

I guess, I'm concerned the coaching staff is a little too inpatient. At least 2 of our recent signees here would likely have been around in another month. If we come out of the gate strong and win a few games, do a few medium interest turn to high? Do a few higher rated dudes on the fence commit?

I'm just not thrilled with the 3 recruits hauled in today.
They're blue devils now, so they have my full support, i'm just hopping they are better than the stars indicate.

[lawgrad91]

From what I've seen on Twitter, Taylor and Harmon are both 3 star recruits by 247 Sports, or they will be when they re-rank rising seniors.

That being said, I wonder as well. I've seen the schools we were recruiting against, and frankly, I didn't know some of them had football teams. (We out-recruited Fordham and Holy Cross for Chris Taylor. Can anyone name a Fordham football player after Vince Lombardi graduated? Holy Cross football doesn't exactly have the same ring as The Ohio State University, does it?)

It would seem that, with a small number of scholarships available, we would want to focus on fewer, but very strong, prospects. Are the strong prospects just not Duke material? Or do we still not have enough positives to entice them?

These are our guys, but it worries me when I see the sheep, year after year, bringing in nationally ranked classes when we are perpetually at the bottom of the ACC.

[Bob Green]

I agree with the apprehension being expressed. My desire is to see us sign some 4* talent. But go back to the very first post in this thread...it contains a link to a kick return specialist -- Kerrion Moore!

[captmojo]

Center Zach Harmon to Duke:

http://duke.scout.com/a.z?s=167&p=8&c=1&nid=6655717

Only one letter difference, the 'h', had me scratchin' my head for a minute.
I was thinking of this dude... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMhxJn7Eg0U

[Bob Green]

FWIW (probably not much), 247 Sports ranks Duke's 2014 class at #22. We are behind fellow ACC teams Florida State (7), Louisville (8), Miami (10) and Virginia Tech (20), but ahead of all the others such as Boston College (27)North Carolina (29), Clemson (30), Virginia (36).......

They ranked all nine of our recruits at 3-Stars.

http://247sports.com/Season/2014-Footba ... amRankings

We are off to a solid start so we need to keep up the momentum. Player development camps start in June so Duke will be hosting and evaluating lots of players.

[Bob Green]

According to The Devils Den, Duke is putting the fullcourt press on DE Harrison Phillips (6'4" 240) from Omaha, NE:

http://duke.scout.com/2/1292775.html

http://duke.scout.com/a.z?s=167&p=8&c=1&nid=6642635

Phillips has offers from Duke, Kansas St, Harvard, Yale and others.

[DevilWearsPrada2.0]

Jake Sanders, a 3 star offensive lineman (6'6", 320) from Georgia, committed to Duke.

Sanders is a big boy, imagine running the power sweep with him out in front as the pulling guard.

Need a few more like Jake!!!!

[CameronBornAndBred]

With the scholarship numbers being low this year, I had really hoped we wouldn't sign more than 1 or 2 players with <3 stars. I don't want to be too negative. For those kids getting signed, it's a great day. They've had great high school careers and they are about to embark on their senior year. I'd also bet they are really good guys that have character and will represent Duke well....but my sense is we need a better collection of players to get to that next level of competition.

I agree with the apprehension being expressed. My desire is to see us sign some 4* talent. But go back to the very first post in this thread...it contains a link to a kick return specialist -- Kerrion Moore!

Here is an interesting quote from Coach Cut...

"It's moving faster than we maybe even want it to," head coach David Cutcliffe said to Pete Thamel about Duke's recruiting. "You know we get more and more traffic. Our unofficial visit numbers here are probably 10-times as many as when we've started, of legitimate prospects. It's not even just basketball games. When they are on spring break, this is one of the destinations."

http://blogs.newsobserver.com/dukenow/d ... rylink=cpy