Football recruiting: Will in-state IU commits stick through coaching change? QBs in flux.
The early signing period for college football begins in less than three weeks (Dec. 20). There are still a lot of decisions to be made in the coming days as coaches are hired and recruiting classes are finalized. Here are five pressing questions as the clock ticks down to signing day:
Will the in-state Indiana commits stay with Hoosiers?
The firing of coach Tom Allen and Thursday’s hiring of James Madison coach Curt Cignetti obviously leads to some questions for the current recruiting class, which has four players from Indiana: Speedway offensive lineman Adedamola Ajani, Fishers running back Khobie Martin, Carmel cornerback Christian Peterson and Danville offensive lineman Evan Lawrence.
All four players are considered three-star recruits in IU’s current 18-player class, which is certainly subject to change in coming days. Martin, who rushed for 1,379 yards and 19 touchdowns in nine games as a senior for Fishers, picked IU in September after he was previously commit to Miami (Ohio). Martin said this week he is planning to stick with IU.
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Lawrence, a 6-7, 250-pound offensive tackle, committed to the Hoosiers in June after earning an offer at a camp in Bloomington, his first from a Power 5 program. Danville coach Jayme Comer said Lawrence is planning to stay committed to IU and find out more about the direction of the program.
The same goes for Ajani, who is the highest-ranked of the in-state prospects at No. 11 in the state’s senior class by 247Sports. Speedway coach Shane Clampitt said Ajani remains committed and is waiting to find out more in coming days.
Peterson, who committed to the Hoosiers in June, said he is waiting to talk to the new coach and then make a decision from there. Peterson has some other Power 5 programs interested if he decides to go a different direction.
Those are just the four who are committed to IU and does not include other in-state players who might be swayed by the new hire. However, the clock is ticking and decisions will need to be made sooner than later.
Two of area’s top QBs in limbo
Coaching changes have created a new reality for two of the state’s quarterbacks.
Cathedral senior Danny O’Neil, who had been committed to Colorado and coach Deion Sanders said earlier this week that “there are some things going on behind the scenes with the possibility of coaching changes and instability across the board” that led him to decommit from the Buffaloes.
One of those things, certainly, was the demotion of offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Sean Lewis from playcalling duties during the season. Lewis, a former head coach at Kent State prior to Colorado, was introduced Wednesday as the new coach at San Diego State. That does not necessarily mean O’Neil is going to San Diego State, but expect Lewis and the Aztecs to be a factor in the recruitment of the Cathedral senior, who completed 61.6% of his passes as a senior for 2,068 yards and 31 touchdowns and rushed for 722 yards and eight TDs.
Another program to watch for O’Neil could be Northwestern. Illinois and Kentucky were among the other schools he considered before committing to Colorado.
Center Grove senior Tyler Cherry, a four-star prospect, is still committed to Duke as of Thursday. But Mike Elko’s departure as coach at Duke for Texas A&M has created “a lot of unknowns,” Cherry said. “I’m not sure what else will change.”
But for now, Cherry is Duke commit. The 6-5 senior, who had offers from Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Missouri, Penn State and Pitt, among others, completed 72% of his passes for 3,156 yards and 34 TDs as a senior.
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Corey Smith back on the market
Brownsburg wide receiver Corey Smith announced his decommitment from Minnesota over the weekend. The three-star prospect caught 29 passes for 694 yards and seven touchdowns as a senior.
A possibility to keep an eye on for Smith is Tulsa, which offered Smith a scholarship Monday. Tulsa is coached by former Indiana coach Kevin Wilson, who was 4-8 in his first season.
Top uncommitted prospects still out there …
In addition to some of the prospects who have committed to schools going through coaching changes, there are a few who are currently uncommitted. Two of those:
∎ Donovan Hamilton, Hamilton Southeastern: The 6-4 wide receiver, also a standout basketball player, caught 47 passes for 934 yards and 11 TDs as a senior. The three-star prospect has offers from several Mid-American Conference schools, in addition to Army, Pitt and others.
∎ Lane Wadle, Greenfield-Central: The three-star tight end, who caught 24 passes for 240 yards and four touchdowns as a senior, decommitted from Georgia Tech in October. He visited Central Florida and was offered in late October.
December changes
There is bound to be something surprising in the next few weeks leading up to the early signing day. Other than O’Neil, the top-10 prospects (ranked by 247Sports) are committed:
No. 1: New Haven WR Mylan Graham to Ohio State;
No. 2: NorthWood WR NiTareon “Nitro” Tuggle to Georgia.
No. 3: NorthWood CB Jo’Ziah Edmond to Michigan.
No. 4: Fort Wayne North Side DB Brauntae Johnson to Notre Dame.
No. 5: New Palestine OL Ian Moore to Ohio State.
No. 6: Center Grove QB Tyler Cherry to Duke.
No. 7: Hamilton Southeastern OL Styles Prescod to Notre Dame.
No. 8: Cathedral QB Danny O’Neil uncommitted.
No. 9: Franklin Central CB Hudauri Hines to Purdue.
No. 10: Noblesville OT Ransom McDermott to Louisville.
Will they all stay this way on Dec. 20?
Call Star reporter Kyle Neddenriep at (317) 444-6649.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indiana football recruiting: IU commits wait and see wit Curt Cignetti
