Message Board Geniuses

You wanna learn the first rule (of recruiting) you’d know, if you ever spent a day in your life? You never open your mouth, ‘til you know what the shot is.

Did your team just rack up another loss? Are your playoff dreams officially dead? Who cares! The coffee is hot and so is the hope for next year. We know what the shot is here and we’re talking about closing. Let’s talk commits and decommitts.

Clemson Double Dips with Tomarrion Parker (2023 4 Star – #88 overall, #9 DL) and Tavoy Feagin (2024 4 Star – #170 overall, #10 Safety)

Clemson got a double dose of talent last week.

Tomarrion Parker is out of Phenix City, Alabama and called Clemson a dream school.

Parker wasted no time in his announcement. No tricks, no hat fake out.

The only thing better than enjoying a new recruit? Enjoying another team’s misery of course.

Damn. Even off a win, the Aggies are catching shots.

The other commitment came from Tavoy Feagin out of Tampa, Florida. He is the first 2024 recruit for the Tigers.

Horned Frogs Land Markis Deal (2023 4 Star – #117 overall, #16 DL)

Markis Deal committed on Saturday night, shortly after TCU escaped Waco with a win. Lost in the excitement of the win and commitment, Deal forgot to tell his parents. “I got a little excited…I told [TCU defensive line coach JaMarkus McFarland] and I forgot to tell my family.” Deal is out of Garland, Texas and comes from an athletic family. His dad was an offensive linemen at UTEP and his mom played basketball and volleyball for Miners; Deal’s older brother Devean plays for Tulane.

With a last name like Deal, you had to know the puns were coming.

Closers close deals, and TCU gets theirs.

Jeremiah McClure Chooses Bruins (2023 4 Star – #262 overall, #34 WR)

Chip Kelly and the UCLA squad landed a big time target early last week. Jeremiah McClure, who goes by the nickname FloMo, is out of top high school Mater Dei Catholic. He picked the Bruins over a final four of Arizona, Washington, and Indiana.

McClure does have speed – you have to with a nickname like FloMo. Speed is what the Bruins have been missing.

Finally, UCLA is recruiting like they need to compete with USC. Supposedly.

Yup. Nothing else has separated the two schools…

Wallace Foster Takes LSU Tigers to Number One (2024 4* – #323 overall, #30 Cornerback)

Out of Warren Easton in New Orleans, Wallace Foster IV commits to Brian Kelly and the LSU Tigers. Foster battled some injuries his junior year, but dazzled coaches with 6 interceptions as a sophomore.

LSU had the third ranked class for 2024, but with Foster’s commitment they jump to number one overall.

Wolverines Bring in Nathan Efobi (2023 3 Star – #462 Overall, #31 Inside OL)

Large human beings. Efobi is 6’4, 280 but most think he has room to grow. Nathan comes from South Forsyth in Cumming, Georgia.

Efobi is projected to be best fit in a run-heavy offense. I think Michigan qualifies there.

But hey, you can’t get complacent in recruiting Harbaugh. Especially not if you want the approval and satisfaction of the Message Board Geniuses.

Michigan currently ranks 22nd…

Daniel Harris Turns Away from Georgia (2023 4 Star – #154 Overall, #18 Cornerback)

Daniel is out of Gulliver Prep in Miami, Florida. He had committed to Dawgs over the summer. But remember Georgia fans, when someone decommits it’s never about you. It just means someone better is coming.

Or someone else paid him more.

Or he didn’t want to compete.

Luckily, someone else will gladly take him off your hands and right now that place looks like Penn State. The all-knowing Steve Wiltfong put in a crystal ball to the Nittany Lions immediately after Harris decomitted from Georgia.

Harris’ combo of speed and size will make the Penn State fans happy…ya know…if he commits.

Mark Fletcher Decommits from THE Ohio State University (2023 4 Star – #261 Overall, #15 RB)

Fletcher is out of Ft. Lauderdale and projects to be a 3-down back with his size and power. This one is an interesting commitment between Ohio State and Miami. About Miami, Fletcher had this to say: “They’re never going to stop until I sign that paper…they just want me there. They want me to be a program changer and they believe I can do that.”

But do the Miami fans want him in Coral Gables?

He mentioned that he’s still open to returning back to the Buckeyes, but Miami has his heart. “At the end of the day, even if I go to Ohio State, I’ve always been a Miami fan growing up as a kid and I always want to see Miami do great things, so I hope (head coach Mario Cristobal) turns this around.”

Ohio State fans may not want him back either though.