Campus Confidential

By Adam Abramson

Let's get into it...

1:25am: Jeremy Finch, one of the midwest's biggest prospects, will be a Florida Gator. Projected as a safety, Finch started out by saying he'd go to Michigan. Then he seriously considered Indiana (and I think verballed there), but it appears he'll end up in Gainesville. The rich get richer, we'll talk about this more later.

Also, Rhett Ellison switched his commitment from Virginia Tech to Southern California. The California native had hopped on board last summer to play TE for the Hokies but changed his mind Tuesday night.

There are a ton of big-time names announcing tomorrow such as WR Ahmad Paige (Florida, Tennessee, USC), RB Broderick Green (Ohio State, Penn State, USC), S Chad Jones (LSU, UF, USC), WR Deonte Thompson (UF, FSU, Miami, USC -- I saw this kid play a game on ESPN, he can flat-out fly) and Joe McKnight (Alabama, Auburn, Southern California). That's just to name a few. Check in now and again and we can talk and I'll let you know when I figure out where these guys will go.

10:21am: Joe McKnight, a running back out of Louisiana, looks like he'll pick USC. Pretty big loss for the Tigers considering the class doesn't have an RB locked up. However, they are loaded at every other position, or so it seems. As far as McKnight, if he indeed ends up at USC, does that mean Broderick Green (a long-time soft verbal to USC via the state of Arkansas) will end up in the Big 10? I think he should, and will, end up at Penn State.

McKnight to USC doesn't make a lot of sense to me. With Marc Tyler (teammate of future Notre Dame QB Jimmy Clausen) on board, why head to LA to play football? Tyler is the No. 2 RB in the country. Just go to LSU where you're guaranteed to be the man.

I also read that Marvin Austin (huge man in the huge picture), a consensus top-5 player in the country, is getting a really strong last-second push from USC now that McKnight is on board. USC's class isn't huge, but its firepower is astounding.

11am: Robert Elliot will be a Rebel and not switch his commitment to Florida State as some had expected. It's been a big morning for Ole Miss with Elliot and four-star WR Roderick Davis. Ed Orgeron is doing a fine job down there.

11:15: Now I'm hearing Marvin Austin to Florida State. Who knows. Last night it was a lock to UNC. I really don't know about this kid. But what I do know is that Dwight Jones, who apparently was torn between Clemson, UNC and Tennessee up until his decision will be a Tar Heel. He has 4.6 speed but is a 4-star WR (also been ranked a 5-star)? Maybe he has Calvin Johnson hands. Either way, it's a big get for UNC who has a huge class. They need to reel in Austin and DE Kourtnei Brown.

11:24: Things are cooking in Chapel Hill. Greg Little, who few thought would falter on his pledge to Notre Dame, is seriously considering becoming a Tar Heel. The WR from Durham would be a much bigger get for Davis' staff than Dwight Jones, in my opinion. Take that for what it's worth. Also, Rutgers lost a key piece of its recruiting class this morning. Defensive back Joseph Nicolas will attend hometown Miami instead of heading up to Piscataway. That's a pretty big miss for RU, he projects well with great size (6'3, 200) and speed (4.5). Rutgers still has an impressive class, nonetheless.

11:32: Still Notre Dame, still a Little, this time a solid decommit. Chris Little, an offensive lineman, will be attending Georgia. The Irish are lucky to keep Ian Williams. The Gators turned up the heat on the DT, but he stayed true to South Bend. Still waiting on word about Greg Little...

11:51: So, let's stay on the North Carolina wagon. The Heels picked up a verbal from OT Kevin Bryant. The Boyd Anderson product (plays in an extremely tough confernece in South Florida against Dillard, Blanche Ely, Deerfield Beach and the Plantation schools) is, get this, 6'7, 375. THREE SEVENTY FIVE. Butch Davis has to love this kid. The folks in Chapel Hill must be going nuts. What a fun day for them. That makes Bryant, Devon Ramsay (talked about him last night), Dwight Jones and the UNC Scout website is reporting Greg Little's flip-flop from Notre Dame to Carolina. And they're still waiting on a few more. Bryant's teammate, LB Josh Bynes, will be heading to Auburn. This kid looks ready to strap on the pads and play SEC football at 18-years old. South Carolina made a late push for him, but to no avail. See the video below, courtesy of the South Florida Sun Sentinel.

12:02: Athlete Ahmad Paige will be a Tennessee Volunteer. UT has a great class nobody is talking about (what else is new?). USC had him on campus last weekend, but I guess it wasn't enough. With official visits to Tennessee, USC, UF, FSU and Georgia, he must have loved the recruiting process.

12:12: Here's the plan. I'm going on a cruise tomorrow (pretty pumped about that), but I don't want to look ratty on the boat, so I need to get a hair cut. So the plan is to run up to the barber shop, trim the mullet, come back here and ready up for work tonight. I'll post an update when I'm back on what's happened. Once I get to work, I'll have recruiting tunnel vision. We'll talk about the late developments, how today impacts the big picture, my winners and losers of the day/year and maybe some rankings action. Send me questions if you have any...also, Greg Little to UNC is official per Rivals and I'm now hearing, per WTOP (a radio station in Washington DC), that Marvin Austin will be heading to THE UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA. Okay, I'm hanging around for a few, I'll let you know when I leave for sure.

12:15: I just want to say, for the record, I think this is a rumor the radio station jumped all over. We'll see though. 12:30 is the expected announcement, I'm guessing North Carolina, it's the Heels' day.

12:23: Boyd Anderson had another player commit, this time Louisville snagged defensive end Patrick Grant. Many thought he'd play for USF, but that won't be the case. UL missed out on Bynes, but they do get Willie Willliams, who signed his LOI today (see my post about him last week). UL had a good day, also getting Dale Martin, a four-star RB and athlete Josh Miller who runs a 4.3 40-yard dash. Martin chose the Cards over a host of other big-name programs. If I'm not mistaken, Miller chose the 'Ville over Miami. Big.

12:28: Not really a shocker, but Noel Devine is having second thoughts about West Virginia (read more about it in yesterday's preview post). One paper says he'll sign later or is expected to, another website said he talked to Deion Sanders who said wait, prep and weigh out the options (think he wants him at FSU???) I have always thought he'd end up at FSU. Maybe there was a maroon Hummer in the driveway this morning? Can I say that? Either way, don't expect him to sign today, it wouldn't be his M.O. He'll prep.

12:34: Joe McKnight will be attending USC (dumb move in my opinion), Kourtnei Brown will be attending Clemson (tough loss for UNC), DeMarcus Van Dyke will be heading to Miami (huge get for Randy Shannon). This is what I'm reading. Still waiting on Austin so I can get the haircut.

12:43: Marvin Austin will be a North Carolin Tar Heel. That's all, folks. We can all go on with our lives. I'll be posting some videos from some signings down in Florida today so you can get a feel for what it's like. The first two are courtesy of the Orlando Sentinel. The others come from the South Florida Sun Sentinel.

4:24: Sorry I was gone for so long, but I'm back to wrap up the afternoon and then I'll get into some analysis (I have some calls I want to place so I can get more than one voice on here).