State blue-chippers get away, but Rutgers lands monster quarterback

By Darrell Laurant  |   Thursday, February 14, 2008  |  Comments( 0 )

Rutgers Scarlet Knights
Got something to say?

Sign Up and be the first to comment on this article!

(Second in a series on Big East football recruiting.)

OK, let's start with the bad news.

Of the 10 senior football players generally regarded as New Jersey's top recruits, Rutgers signed only one -- mammoth (6-foot-8, 288 pounds) offensive lineman Art Forst from Manasquan. Michigan came away with three, Boston College two, Florida, Penn State, Oklahoma and Connecticut one apiece.

Obviously, that dreamed-of time when all of the state's best athletes will be drawn to New Brunswick like iron filings drawn to a magnet isn't here yet.

On the other hand, however, Greg Schiano and his staff did pick up two other four-star recruits besides Forst -- defensive lineman Scott Vallone from Central Islip, N.Y., and WR Keith Stroud from Fork Union Military Academy in Virginia, and an imposing physical specimen of a quarterback in 6-6, 230-pound D.C. Jefferson of Winter Haven, Fla.

"When you look down the street and see him," Schiano said of Jefferson, "you'd think he was with some pro franchise."

He was almost with LSU -- not surprisingly, considering Jefferson has been compared to JaMarcus Russell and Rohan Davey in both playing and body style. But after decommitting to Rutgers and flirting with the Bayou Bengals, Jefferson decided to sign with the Scarlet Knights, after all. With Mike Teel returning for his senior season, Jefferson should have a year to ease in gradually.

Stroud, meanwhile, is a big (6-3, 205) receiver with excellent hands. He played high school ball in Brooklyn before his prep season, and he was recruited by Connecticut, Syracuse, Purdue and Temple, among others.

Connecticut and Rutgers fought to almost a standoff on the recruiting field -- the Huskies spirited away a Top 10 New Jersey defensive back (Dwayne Gratz), while Rutgers signed one of Connecticut's best wide receivers, Marcus Cooper of Bloomfield, and a New Jersey player who prepped at Avon, Conn., 6-2, 195-pound "athlete" Khaseem Greene.

Two of Rutgers' more intriguing recruits are linebackers. Eric LeGrand, from Colonia, N.J., is 6-3, 263, and given high marks for sideline-to-sideline mobility. He was mobile enough to rush for over 800 yards as a power running back, while racking up 150-plus tackles on the defensive side.

Piscataway's Marvin Booker, meanwhile, is already a polished and dangerous outside pass rusher.

With Ray Rice gone to the NFL, Teaneck product Rashad White should be in the mix for playing time at running back. He's undersized at 5-11, 164, but has been clocked at 4.4 in the 40. The trick will be adding bulk without subtracting speed.

The class was heavy on wide receivers, with five listed at that position and three others as "athletes" who can either catch or defend against passes. Three of that group, Morgan Carter of Woodbridge, Va., Malcom Johnson of Bartow, Fla., and Timothy Wright of Wall, N.J., were given three stars by Rivals.com, as were White, LeGrand and Salisbury, Md., QB Wayne Warren.

The biggest recruit is 6-8, 325-pound Devon Watkis of Middle Island, N.Y.

Forst, Stroud and QB Steve Shimko have already enrolled at Rutgers and will be eligible to participate in spring practice.
Got something to say?

Sign Up and be the first to comment on this article! (0)

About Darrell Laurant

Sorry, Darrell Laurant's bio is currently not available. Please check back soon!
read more
Article Tools Share!   |  RSS  |  Bleacher Report About Bleacher Report