Ducks make new offer at OL

Good to see us getting in on some of these kids early. We'll see if it pays dividends next February

at this point only the super elite kids that put out tapes, have good recruiting coaches, come from bigger programs, and have been to camps are ranked. There are plenty of kids that end up as 4* that aren't ranked at this point in the game cause they are just too new to the process

The comment alone probably means you're a bit of a star gazer. It should be a rule at Duck Territory that if a kid gets offered by Oregon early on in the process (or at least early for Oregon), it's understood that it means the coaches REALLY like the kid and want him as part of the program. It should also then be assumed that the coaches see the talent and potential in the kid, regardless of what recruiting services and websites think of him. And, as Timbaland points out, it may just be a case of the player not getting evaluated yet.

Just to kind of snowball off this comment by Mitchski...a question for JHop or CC, is it safe to assume that these kids receiving these first, early offers, are highest on the board? There seems to be no science behind the offers, such as; region, position of need, etc.

Tons of future 4 star athletes are not ranked yet. It's not like being unranked in December.

Don't you wish there was a method to the madness? How sweet would it be if they just gave us access to their big board and evals and plans?

This kid is VERY good, despite not being ranked yet. I have a good friend from HS who is a coach at Grandview HS whose team lost to Jones' Thunder Ridge team in the CO state quarterfinals last year. Thunder Ridge went on to lose (badly) to Valor Christian (where Christian McCaffrey plays) in the 5A semifinals game. Anyways, my friend said that he thinks Jones is easily the second best player in the state of CO (behind McCaffrey) next year. He said he's extremely mobile and quick on his feet for his size, has the frame to easily add another 25-35 pounds with another couple years of developing and training without losing his mobility, and is one of the most athletic lineman he's seen in all of his years of coaching. He also mentioned that while he's not the strongest lineman he's seen, he makes up for it with great hand work and quickness off the snap. One more thing he noted is that he will be an extremely versatile lineman who could play anywhere on the line, though he eventually sees him best suited as a RT at the college level.

Now granted, CO might not be known for their stellar level of competition like some of the powerhouse states like OH, TX, CA, or the South, but Thunder Ridge did play against some top-notch competition last year. Their only two losses on the season was their first game against Vista Murrieta, CA (who was 13-1 last year and only lost in the CIF Southern Section Championship game to Centennial by 2 points) and their eventual loss in the 5A (the top division in CO) semifinals game to Valor Christian who went on to win state. Thunder Ridge had been ranked #1 in state all year prior to their loss in the playoffs.

Anyways, back to Jones. When all is said and done, I think he will end up being a mid to high 4* (around a 90-95 rating) at best, or at worst if he has a horrible senior season possibly a high 3*. I could easily see him getting offered by at least 9 or 10 PAC-12 teams as well as getting a smattering of other offers from BIG 10 and BIG 12 teams and possibly even a few SEC teams. I think there's a good reason our staff has targeted him as one of their top early offers for OL and I think we have a very legitimate shot at landing him based off his initial excitement. In my mind, he would be a great addition to the team as part of the 2014 class despite where he ends up in his final ranking.

Great info

*didn't mean to quote entire post, my bad

Kid looks solid. Anyone else just extremely glad that we're sending out some early offers?

Will probably get some notoriety now that we have offered.

Saban recruits to be three deep on both the offensive and defensive lines at Bama. I like the attention this staff is placing on both lines. Big kids that can move are pivotal in January games.