Darius Philon Signing Day Video

Many of you have asked me about this video. All I can say is I feel for Darius Philon.

Philon committed to Alabama in September only to find out that Bama head coach Nick Saban asked him to grayshirt before his announcement on Wednesday... one can see the pain and frustration built up on Darius' face.

I will let you watch the announcement and make your own decision.

You can read the entire story and see additional footage at: http://www.al.com/sports/index.ssf/2012/02/alabama_commitment_darius_phil_1.html

Darius, a 3-star defensive end, ended up signing with Arkansas and following his Vigor, Alabama high school teammate Ja'Michael Winston to Fayetteville.

Will Darius' heart always be with the Tide or will Darius turn that National Signing Day slight by Saban into motivation to become the best player possible at Arkansas?

Check out Philon's highlight reel. He can play!

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Arkansas Razorback Recruiting: Hogs Add another Verbal Commitment

Linebacker Vin Ascolese from North Bergen, New Jersey made an official announcement on Friday that he will be calling the Hogs on National Signing Day.

Ascolese is listed at 6-foot-2, 215 pounds and runs a 4.5 40-yard dash. He was the only New Jersey high school player that made the Parade All-American list this season.

Ascolese played in the Semper Fidelis All-American Game in Phoenix, Arizona January 3. He was one of 100 players selected for the game.

Vin Ascolese reported offers from South Carolina, Illinois, Cincinnati, and Michigan State. Texas A&M offered a scholarship on Jan. 24 but to no avail.

The Illinois coaching staff did an in-home visit on Thursday with Ascoles followed by an in-home visit from Arkansas head coach Bobby Petrino.

The Razorbacks have four scholarships remaining. Speculation is the Hogs have four private commitments waiting to announce on National Signing Day.

Edward Pope, a 4-star athlete from Carthage, Texas was scheduled to visit Fayetteville this weekend but the coaching staff canceled his visit. Chances are the Hogs would not have canceled his visit if they did not think they were set come Feb. 1.

Pope committed to TCU on Feb. 27, 2011.

Here’s a list of the 21 verbally committed Razorbacks recruits:

OG Cordale Boyd, 3-star, 6’3”, 290 pounds, Memphis, TN

OG Jeremy Ward, 3-star, 6’4”, 275 pounds, Pottsville, AR

WR D’Arthur Cowan, 3-star, 6’1’, 175 pounds, Olive Branch, MS

WR Keon Hatcher, 4-star, 6’1”, 195 pounds, Owasso, OK

WR Eric Hawkins, 3-star, 6’5”, 220, Longview, TX

RB Nathan Holems, 3-star, 6’1”, 180 pounds, Port Arthur, TX

RB Donovan Roberts, 3-star, 6’0”, 200 pounds, Norman, OK

TE Jeremy Sprinkle, 3-star, 6’6”, 215, White Hall, AR

RB Jonathan Williams, 4-star, 5’11”, 205 pounds, Allen, TX

WR Courtney Gardner, 4-star, 6’3”, 215, Rocklin, CA

CB Ray Buchanan Jr., 3-star, 5’10”, 170 pounds, Suwanee, GA

CB Jared Collins, 3-star, 5’11”, 170 pounds, Tulsa, OK

DE Brandon Lewis, 3-star, 6’5”, 220 pounds, Memphis, TN

DB Defonta Lowe, 3-star, 6’2”, 180 pounds, Bearden, AR

LB A.J. Turner, 3-star, 6’3”, 200 pounds, Lepanto, AR

DE JaMichael Winston, 3-star, 6’6”, 230 pounds, Prichard, AL

DE Deatrich Wise Jr., 4-star, 6’5”, 220, Carrolton, TX

FS Will Hines, 3-star, 6’1”, 175 pounds, Waco, TX

LB Vin Ascolese, 3-star, 6’2”, 215 pounds, New Bergen, NJ

DE Taiwan Johnson, 4-star, 6’3”, 230 pounds, Manvel, TX

DE *Austin Flynn, 3-star, 6’4”, 250 pounds, Los Angeles Harbor CC

*Already enrolled at University of Arkansas

Arkansas has five 4-star and 16 3-star commitments.

Position by position breakdown of Arkansas 2012 verbal commitments:

Offensive line: two

Running backs: three

Wide receivers: four

Quarterbacks: none

Tight ends: none

Defensive line: six

Linebackers: two

Safeties: two

Cornerbacks: two

Kickers: none

Arkansas fell in the recruiting rankings from No. 13 to No. 17 on Scout.com. Rivals.com dropped the Hogs one spot from No. 29 to No. 30.

All verbal commitments are non-binding until a letter of intent is signed. 

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Mississippi State Recruiting: The Bulldogs Fall in Rankings

The volatile and ever changing landscape of college football recruiting can be best represented by the situation in Starkville. Less than a week ago the Bulldogs’ 2012 class was ranked No. 20 by Rivals.com giving fans hope for the future.

Now Mississippi State has fallen to No. 30 with one week left before National Signing Day on Feb. 1. How far will the Bulldog’s recruiting class fall?

Head coach Dan Mullen’s early recruiting success has given way as the rest of the pack seems to be catching up to the Bulldogs. The only change on the verbal commitment list is the loss of 3-star linebacker Lelland Ducksworth from Hattiesburg, Miss and the addition of 3-star defensive end A.J. Jefferson from Summit, Miss.  

Per the state rankings on Rivals.com Jefferson is ranked No. 6 while Ducksworth is ranked No. 14. The thought upgrade in overall talent has not kept the Bulldogs ranking secure.

Of the 25 scholarships available three have already been claimed by junior college players. 3-star offensive linemen Dylan Holley and Charles Siddoway have signed their letter of intent.

East Mississippi Community College standout Denico Autry has signed his letter of intent as well. On Sout.com Autry is considered a 5-star recruit. Per Rivals.com Autry was the second best junior college player in the nation during the 2011 season.

With 22 available scholarships left Dan Mullen appears to be eager to sign a quarterback to this year’s class. Steven Bench, a 3-star Penn State verbal commitment from Cairo, Georgia as of Jan. 24, received an in-home visit from Mullen on Monday. Bench verbally committed to Rice in December. Mullen and his staff can only hope that Bench flips again.

Also on the Bulldogs radar is Nick Schuessler, a 2-star quarterback prospect from Loganville, Georgia. Schuessler does not have any reported offers to date. He was scheduled to take his first official visit to Arkansas this weekend but has changed his trip to MSU instead.

With the hard cap rule of only 25 recruits allowed to sign for any given SEC team, one of Mullen’s current verbal commitments may end up losing their scholarship offer if Schuessler’s visit goes well in Starkville.

Five other recruits are scheduled to join Schuessler on the MSU campus this weekend including:

OT Demitric Camiel, 2-star, 6’6”, 285 pounds, Houston, Texas

QB Forest Williams, Not Ranked, 6’1”, 175 pounds, Amory, Miss

TE Hunter Bradley, Not Ranked, 6’4”, 220 pounds, Collierville, Miss

K Michael Mordecai, Not Ranked, 6’4”, 185 pounds, Jackson, Miss

K Evan Sobiesk, Not Ranked, 5’9”, 185 pounds, Hattiesburg, Miss

Here’s a list of Mississippi State’s 22 verbal commitments:

DT Quay Evans, 6’3”, 295 pounds, 4-star, Morton, Miss

DT Nick James, 6’4”, 335 pounds, 3-star, Long Beach, Miss

RB Xavier Grindle, 5’10”, 190 pounds, 3-star, Columbia, Miss

RB Deonte Evans, 5’11”, 198 pounds, 3-star, McComb, Miss

S Adarrius Perkins, 6’2”, 185 pounds, 3-star, Brooklyn, Miss

OL Devon Desper, 6’4” 295 pounds, 3-star, Madison, Miss

DB Cedric Jiles, 6’0”, 180 pounds, 3-star, Clinton, Miss

DE Nelson Adams, 6’5”, 260 pounds, 3-star, Brandon, Miss

ATH Adairius Barnes, 5’11”, 180 pounds, 3-star, Port Gibson, Miss

WR Frederick Brown, 6’1”, 166 pounds, 3-star, Jackson, Miss

OT Justin Senior, 6’6”, 280 pounds, 3-star, Chatham, Virginia

DT Jordan Washington, 6’2”, 275 pounds, 3-star, Suwannee, Georgia

CB Kivon Coman, 6’1”, 190 pounds, 3-star, Florence, Alabama

RB Brandon Holloway, 5’9”, 165 pounds, 2-star, Tampa Bay, Florida

TE Gus Walley, 6’4”, 215, 2-star, Leakesville, Miss

DE Ryan Brown, 6’5”, 240 pounds, 3-star, Marrero, Louisiana

OG Cole Carter, 6’6”, 270, 3-star, Caledonia, Miss

DE Torrey Bell, 6’5”, 225, 2-star, River Ridge, Louisiana

S Quadry Antoine, 5’11”, 210 pounds, 3-star, Belle Chasse, Louisiana

P Devon Bell, 6’3”, 190 pounds, 3-star, Vicksburg, Miss

DE A.J. Jefferson, 6’4”, 240 pounds, 3-star, Summit, Miss

K Devon Bell, 2-star, 6’3”, 180 pounds, Vicksburg, Miss

To show the discrepancy in recruiting services, Rivals.com has MSU ranked No. 30, Scout.com No. 18, ESPN.com does not have MSU ranked in their top 30, while 247Sports.com has the Bulldogs ranked No. 24. 

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