Reply to thread

Message: [QUOTE="CuseLegacy, post: 2010860, member: 469"] [URL="http://www.stltoday.com/sports/college/mizzou/mu-s-odom-focuses-on-rich-supply-of-local-recruits/article_2608794e-8b62-5f9b-a79f-6441aba23b8f.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter"]Mizzou's Odom focuses on rich supply of local recruits for 2018[/URL] [B] COLUMBIA, MO. •[/B] While coach Barry Odom’s Missouri staff puts the final touches on its 2017 recruiting class, the 2018 collection of local talent never is far from his mind. As he comes off a 4-8 debut season, Odom understands it’s critical to capitalize on the talent that’s brewing in St. Louis. “You want those guys to come help you win a national championship,” he said last week during a stop at the Post-Dispatch on a media tour through the city. “I believe with that core group of kids that you expedite the process even more because they’re great players. And they’re still young. But you can look specifically at the defensive line position and see three to four guys just in this side of the state, see what they can do and how I can plug them into what we’re doing schematically, it’s exactly what you’re looking for.” That’s why Odom’s one staff hiring this offseason was so crucial. He fired defensive line coach Jackie Shipp late in the season and replaced him with Brick Haley, a 50-year-old who comes with strong recruiting credentials. Haley spent the last eight years at Louisiana State (2009-14) and Texas (2015-16). At both schools he recruited in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. Odom plans to dispatch Haley to those same areas, though he’ll also personally recruit the team’s top defensive line targets. In 2018, three of those targets go to school within 15 miles of each other in the St. Louis area: [B]Lutheran North’s Ronnie Perkins, Parkway North’s Michael Thompson and Chaminade’s Trevor Trout.[/B] Missouri has offered scholarships to eight in-state players for 2018, six from the St. Louis area, including all three defensive linemen. The other local juniors with Mizzou offers are CBC receivers Kamryn Babb and Cameron Brown and Hazelwood Central defensive back Dallas Craddieth. [URL='http:///'][U][/U][/URL] rates three of the six locals among the nation’s top 100 recruits for 2018: Trout (No. 32), Babb (68) and Thompson (92). “National signing day in February 2018 is going to be a real recruiting moment for the state of Missouri,” said local recruiting analyst Danny Heitert, who publishes the STC Grid Report. “This state is going to have a blue moon pool of talented players that’s deep and talented.” “It’s probably one of the better classes to come out of St. Louis in some time,” Lutheran North coach Carl Reed said. “And defensive linemen are at a premium.” Reed coaches one of the area’s best in Perkins, a third-team All-Metro selection and the older brother of Mizzou safety Ronnell Perkins, who became a starter this year as a redshirt freshman. Ronnie Perkins’ offer list includes Arkansas, Miami, Michigan State, Oklahoma and Wisconsin. “He’s as good as any defensive lineman in the country,” Reed said. “What sets him apart is his versatility. He can play inside or out. He can play end or tackle in a 30- or a 40-front defense. That makes him really valuable. He’s physically dominant.” In most years, Perkins would be the state’s No. 1 prospect, Heitert said. “Next year,” he said, “he may be fourth.” That’s because of the area’s rich supply of contenders to headline the state in 2018. For now, Heitert ranks Thompson ahead of the class. The first-team All-Metro pick had 14 sacks this fall. “This season he aligned at defensive end, but if he knocked down and aligned over the guard he’d be the grizzly bear from ‘The Revenant,’” Heitert said. [B]On Trout, Heitert said, “He plays hot and cold and inexplicably stays wired to high school blockers too often, but his ceiling is very high.”[/B] [B]Trout, who’s collected offers from national powers Ohio State, Michigan and LSU, recently tweeted that he’ll make his college choice after his senior season. Reed doesn’t expect an early commitment from Perkins, either.[/B] [B]“When we talked about it last week, he wants to take all his visits,” Reed said. “It’s going to play out over the course of next season. What I tell my guys, especially in his situation, ‘You want to take your time because of all the coaching changes that take place. A lot of guys recruiting you today, what’s the likelihood they’ll even be at the school coaching you next year?’”[/B] [/QUOTE]

Verification: What is a Syracuse fan's favorite color?