49 Days 'til Kickoff!
Our first commitment was a QB we've been after for a while from New Jersey, Damon Mitchell. He stands at 6'3", 205lbs, which is huge for a high school quarterback. Last year was his first on the varsity level, and he ran for over 1,000 yards and threw for upwards of 900, which when combined with his reported physical running style and effectiveness at safety makes him sound like a nice Josh Nesbitt-in-training. His coach is quoted by the AJC as saying, "I think he's going to really surprise people with how well he throws the ball. He's barely played the QB position, and he's improved by leaps and bounds in such a short time." Hopefully we are able to see some big things out of him in coming years.
Commitment two and three, as well as a small touch of bad news, after the jump!
Commitment number two came from a wide receiver who received his first offer this weekend from Georgia Tech. Antonio Messick committed on the spot, and may be one of Tech's biggest steals in this class. He was pretty much entirely unknown on recruiting radars with Tech being only his second camp. However, he's said to have potential to be the "next Julio Jones". At 6'3", 195lbs, he has great size on the perimeter while still being able to retain speed. Paul Johnson has already told him he needs to get his grades up to qualify, which is a good thing to know up front (oh, Junior Gnonkonde, we hardly knew ye...).Hopefully Messick can further the stigma of excellent talent evaluation that our staff has and be one of the next big, dominant receivers to come from Georgia Tech.
Our final commitment was actually our first of the weekend, but has been saved for last for article organization purposes (more on that in a minute). The commitment was that of Tolando Cleveland, a defensive back from Hillgrove HS, which has been very good to us in recent years after sending Synjyn Days and Jabari Hunt-Days. At 6'0, 180lbs , he seems to fit the mold of "larger" corners that we like to recruit, and I've read comments of people finding him very similar in style to Jemea Thomas, who may be my favorite player in the secondary. He commits to Tech over an offer from Mississippi State among others.
The final piece of info that needs to be relayed after this eventful weekend in recruiting is that Brandon Facyson, one of Tech's top recruits at defensive back, has committed to the other Tech in Blacksburg, VA. He was there for camp this weekend, and after a bit of a freak medical incident that landed him in the hospital, he committed to play for Frank Beamer and the Hokies. This commitment likely has quite a bit to do with our acquisition of Cleveland's commitment, which fills us up at the defensive back spot in this class. Facyson was one of the recruits whose stories I was continually impressed with (both as a player and as a person), and I'm disappointed that he won't make it to play on the Flats. However, I do look forward to our receivers whipping his ass every year when we play those silly Turkeys.