Simpkins headed to Utah
Demari Simpkins’ recruitment didn’t end the way many Wisconsin fans expected when the three-star athlete committed to Utah on Sunday. Talking to a few people close to the situation, we gathered the following:
1) Simpkins just really liked Utah. Wisconsin, we’re told, didn’t cool and him and he was still a take as of Sunday, though he alerted the Utes coaching staff of his decision earlier this weekend. In the past two classes, Utah has recruited Florida very well with commitments from Devontae Henry-Cole, Tyler Huntley and now Simpkins in 2016, with Tyson Cisrow and Christopher Hart already on campus from the 2015 class. Not to mention Andre Godfrey from the 2014 class, who chose Utah over UW and a few others.
2) Early playing time was a big factor for Simpkins, who plans on graduating early in order to enroll in spring classes. At Wisconsin, not only would he behind a decent stable of upperclassmen, he’d likely be in direct completion with four-star A.J. Taylor at the slot position. Utah also allows Simpkins to play with his high school quarterback, Huntley, who committed Sunday.
3) Wisconsin, we’re told, took the full-court press off. We reported that Simpkins felt the pressure to commit to UW during his unofficial. And it’s important to note that Taylor’s decision was already provided to the staff during that time. But when Simpkins returned home to Florida, the Badgers let off the gas just a bit. Probably not the biggest factor, but it did affect Simpkins’ decision.
So where does Wisconsin go from here at a position with two more spots still available? We’re told the staff feels very good after landing their top target (Taylor) and getting their No. 2 and No. 3 options, Lil’Jordan Humphrey and Malik Harrison, respectively, on campus in July.
It’s tough to get a read on Humphrey, who was on Texas’ campus this weekend, but Harrison is quickly trending towards Wisconsin after his unofficial. After seeing him in person, UW feels the 6-foot-4, 205-pound senior can begin at receiver with the potential to grow into an H-back, depending on how his body matures. Indiana could very well be the Badgers’ top competition at this point.
Finally, position coach Ted Gilmore has put the Badgers in a very good spot with Texas wide out Davion Curtis. The three-star prospect recently included UW in his top 12 and there’s a very strong chance he visits officially this fall.
Projected wide receiver big board:
1) Lil’Jordan Humphrey
2) Malik Harrison
3) Davion Curtis
4) Anthony Julmisse
5) Thomas Geddis
The other side of the ball… it’s a little trickier
Wisconsin has 16 commitments in the 2016 class but there’s still a big hole at cornerback, a key position for the staff in this cycle. And while recruiting fans want some clarity, that probably won’t happen until official visits start this fall.
Here’s a quick rundown:
*Florida prospects Carlos Becker and Ke’Shan Pennamon have both penciled in official visits for the weekend of Sept. 25 (Hawaii). Becker, who is believed to favoring N.C. State right now, ranks higher on Wisconsin’s board in comparison to Pennamon, who has listed UW as one of his top schools since the spring.
*Armunz Mathews, who recently visited, has scheduled his official for the weekend of Oct. 3, which is shaping up to be a huge recruiting event for the staff with Iowa coming to Camp Randall. Mathews is currently committed to South Florida but has not been shy about visiting other schools. We’re hearing his parents want him closer to home but he wants to explore options outside of the state, with Wisconsin being one of his top choices.
*Therran Coleman is another name to watch and a visit from him could come as early as this week, he told BadgerBlitz.com. West Virginia and Pittsburgh are two of the other big players in his recruitment.
*K.J. Sails, who also visited this summer, remains a top option. Look for the three-star prospect to visit officially on Oct. 3 as well.
*Lorenzo Burns is also looking to visit in the near future, but his preference may be wide receiver at the next level.
*Eric Burrell now lists UW in his top 4 along with Duke, Nebraska and Syracuse. He’ll almost certainly take an official visit this fall and could play safety or corner in college.
*Sean Mahone, who planned to visit this past Monday, told us that trip was cancelled because the coaches told him they are full at his position. That would indicate the Ohio standout was being looked at as a safety, which is now full with Patrick Johnson on the commit list.
Projected cornerback big board:
1) Aaron Robinson
2) Armunz Mathews
3) Therran Coleman
4) K.J. Sails
5) Carlos Becker/A.J. Green
Basketball news
Bo Ryan and Greg Gard invited JaQuori McLaughlin to take an official visit on Sept. 19, JaQuori’s father, Jason, wrote in a text message to BadgerBlitz.com on Thursday. There is still the possibility that the date will be changed, but for now that seems like the date the two sides are working with.
McLaughlin recently trimmed his list to Wisconsin, Oregon State, Gonzaga, Washington and Utah.
On Saturday morning, Vitto Brown sang the national anthem at a local Madison swim meet. Nice to see him sticking with singing after his rap battle with other members of the team earlier in the week.
Nigel Hayes has been in Long Beach, Calif., working as a college counselor for the adidas Global Nations camp. The camp, which is for the premier high school talents, is held from July 31-Aug. 3. There are three teams of counselors, with Yogi Ferrell, Troy Williams of Indiana, and Aubrey Dawkins of Michigan joining Hayes as Big Ten representatives on Team Mavs.
Next in-state offer?
After the July evaluation period, two new in-state offers surfaced with 2017 guard Kobe King and 2018 forward Joey Hauser on the receiving end.
So what prospect from the state could be next in line? We’re told that while nothing is guaranteed, 2018 point guard Jordan McCabe could be close. The staff still needs to lock down a lead guard in the 2016 class but once that’s settled, McCabe could be the next option at the position down the road. The Kaukauna native already has offers from West Virginia, Missouri and DePaul, among others.
Odds and ends
Running back Theo Anderson, who was once thought to be close to an offer from Wisconsin, is set to announce his decision on Aug. 14. Pittsburgh is now considered the leader after the Badgers didn’t follow through with a scholarship after Anderson’s visit.
Linebacker commit Dallas Jeanty recently received an offer Tennessee. And he quickly put to bed any interest in the Vols.
Four-star offensive lineman Michael Alves has UW in his top five along with Oregon, Boston College, UCLA and Washington.
Demari Simpkins’ recruitment didn’t end the way many Wisconsin fans expected when the three-star athlete committed to Utah on Sunday. Talking to a few people close to the situation, we gathered the following:
1) Simpkins just really liked Utah. Wisconsin, we’re told, didn’t cool and him and he was still a take as of Sunday, though he alerted the Utes coaching staff of his decision earlier this weekend. In the past two classes, Utah has recruited Florida very well with commitments from Devontae Henry-Cole, Tyler Huntley and now Simpkins in 2016, with Tyson Cisrow and Christopher Hart already on campus from the 2015 class. Not to mention Andre Godfrey from the 2014 class, who chose Utah over UW and a few others.
2) Early playing time was a big factor for Simpkins, who plans on graduating early in order to enroll in spring classes. At Wisconsin, not only would he behind a decent stable of upperclassmen, he’d likely be in direct completion with four-star A.J. Taylor at the slot position. Utah also allows Simpkins to play with his high school quarterback, Huntley, who committed Sunday.
3) Wisconsin, we’re told, took the full-court press off. We reported that Simpkins felt the pressure to commit to UW during his unofficial. And it’s important to note that Taylor’s decision was already provided to the staff during that time. But when Simpkins returned home to Florida, the Badgers let off the gas just a bit. Probably not the biggest factor, but it did affect Simpkins’ decision.
So where does Wisconsin go from here at a position with two more spots still available? We’re told the staff feels very good after landing their top target (Taylor) and getting their No. 2 and No. 3 options, Lil’Jordan Humphrey and Malik Harrison, respectively, on campus in July.
It’s tough to get a read on Humphrey, who was on Texas’ campus this weekend, but Harrison is quickly trending towards Wisconsin after his unofficial. After seeing him in person, UW feels the 6-foot-4, 205-pound senior can begin at receiver with the potential to grow into an H-back, depending on how his body matures. Indiana could very well be the Badgers’ top competition at this point.
Finally, position coach Ted Gilmore has put the Badgers in a very good spot with Texas wide out Davion Curtis. The three-star prospect recently included UW in his top 12 and there’s a very strong chance he visits officially this fall.
Projected wide receiver big board:
1) Lil’Jordan Humphrey
2) Malik Harrison
3) Davion Curtis
4) Anthony Julmisse
5) Thomas Geddis
The other side of the ball… it’s a little trickier
Wisconsin has 16 commitments in the 2016 class but there’s still a big hole at cornerback, a key position for the staff in this cycle. And while recruiting fans want some clarity, that probably won’t happen until official visits start this fall.
Here’s a quick rundown:
*Florida prospects Carlos Becker and Ke’Shan Pennamon have both penciled in official visits for the weekend of Sept. 25 (Hawaii). Becker, who is believed to favoring N.C. State right now, ranks higher on Wisconsin’s board in comparison to Pennamon, who has listed UW as one of his top schools since the spring.
*Armunz Mathews, who recently visited, has scheduled his official for the weekend of Oct. 3, which is shaping up to be a huge recruiting event for the staff with Iowa coming to Camp Randall. Mathews is currently committed to South Florida but has not been shy about visiting other schools. We’re hearing his parents want him closer to home but he wants to explore options outside of the state, with Wisconsin being one of his top choices.
*Therran Coleman is another name to watch and a visit from him could come as early as this week, he told BadgerBlitz.com. West Virginia and Pittsburgh are two of the other big players in his recruitment.
*K.J. Sails, who also visited this summer, remains a top option. Look for the three-star prospect to visit officially on Oct. 3 as well.
*Lorenzo Burns is also looking to visit in the near future, but his preference may be wide receiver at the next level.
*Eric Burrell now lists UW in his top 4 along with Duke, Nebraska and Syracuse. He’ll almost certainly take an official visit this fall and could play safety or corner in college.
*Sean Mahone, who planned to visit this past Monday, told us that trip was cancelled because the coaches told him they are full at his position. That would indicate the Ohio standout was being looked at as a safety, which is now full with Patrick Johnson on the commit list.
Projected cornerback big board:
1) Aaron Robinson
2) Armunz Mathews
3) Therran Coleman
4) K.J. Sails
5) Carlos Becker/A.J. Green
Basketball news
Bo Ryan and Greg Gard invited JaQuori McLaughlin to take an official visit on Sept. 19, JaQuori’s father, Jason, wrote in a text message to BadgerBlitz.com on Thursday. There is still the possibility that the date will be changed, but for now that seems like the date the two sides are working with.
McLaughlin recently trimmed his list to Wisconsin, Oregon State, Gonzaga, Washington and Utah.
On Saturday morning, Vitto Brown sang the national anthem at a local Madison swim meet. Nice to see him sticking with singing after his rap battle with other members of the team earlier in the week.
Nigel Hayes has been in Long Beach, Calif., working as a college counselor for the adidas Global Nations camp. The camp, which is for the premier high school talents, is held from July 31-Aug. 3. There are three teams of counselors, with Yogi Ferrell, Troy Williams of Indiana, and Aubrey Dawkins of Michigan joining Hayes as Big Ten representatives on Team Mavs.
Next in-state offer?
After the July evaluation period, two new in-state offers surfaced with 2017 guard Kobe King and 2018 forward Joey Hauser on the receiving end.
So what prospect from the state could be next in line? We’re told that while nothing is guaranteed, 2018 point guard Jordan McCabe could be close. The staff still needs to lock down a lead guard in the 2016 class but once that’s settled, McCabe could be the next option at the position down the road. The Kaukauna native already has offers from West Virginia, Missouri and DePaul, among others.
Odds and ends
Running back Theo Anderson, who was once thought to be close to an offer from Wisconsin, is set to announce his decision on Aug. 14. Pittsburgh is now considered the leader after the Badgers didn’t follow through with a scholarship after Anderson’s visit.
Linebacker commit Dallas Jeanty recently received an offer Tennessee. And he quickly put to bed any interest in the Vols.
Four-star offensive lineman Michael Alves has UW in his top five along with Oregon, Boston College, UCLA and Washington.
