So you're a big-time college recruiter and you need to get your hands on
a big, fast, studly linebacker to plug up some holes in the center of that
defense.Better book a flight to Memphis - if you haven't already.
"If you had to put your finger on a particular position of strength in Memphis, it would have to be linebacker," Rivals.com Southern analyst J.C. Shurburtt said of a 2008 Memphis-area recruiting class stacked with top-level prospects at the position.
"You have a guy like (Wooddale's) Marlon Walls (6-4, 225), who's one of the top 275 or so prospects in the country and has scholarship offers from all over the SEC. Certainly he's a guy that stands out. Then big guys like (Memphis University School's) DeAndre Jones (6-0, 223) and Antonio Harper (6-4, 220) from over at Melrose, they stand out as well."
Oh, and don't forget about Fayette-Ware's Ricky Holloway, a 6-2, 220-pound specimen ranked the No. 49 outside linebacker prospect nationally by Rivals.com; Whitehaven's Tenarius Wright, the Tigers' 6-2, 219-pound beast in the middle with scholarship offers from Arkansas, Indiana, Miami (Fla.), Mississippi State and Ole Miss; and White Station's Jordan Yarbrough (6-0, 225), a two-star prospect at outside linebacker according to Rivals.com.
"If you're looking for one position in Memphis this year, that would be it," Shurburtt said.
Yet it's an offensive lineman, Evangelical Christian School offensive tackle Barrett Jones, who Shurburtt and Co. have tabbed the state's No. 1 overall prospect.
A 6-5, 270-pound hulk, Jones' 21 scholarship offers - including ones from defending national champion Florida, Miami (Fla.), Michigan State, Stanford, Tennessee and UCLA - far outdistance him from the rest of a promising 2008 Memphis-area class.
"It's crazy," said Jones, the No. 17 offensive tackle prospect nationally according to Rivals.com. "I'm probably going to narrow the list at the end of the summer to like five, I think."
Scout.com ranks Jones the No. 28 offensive tackle prospect nationally and the No. 74 overall prospect in the Southeast.
"I got a chance to see Barrett in person a couple of weeks ago out at a Nike football training camp in Columbia, Mo., and his athleticism is just so advanced for a guy his size," Shurburtt said.
"He's got intelligence (Jones scored a 30 on the ACT), he's got good work ethic and he's got the frame. He's got long arms and good feet. He's a guy that I think could be an elite-level offensive lineman."
ECS football coach Jim Heinz called Jones the most coveted prospect he's had in more than 20 years as the Eagles' head coach.
"Every coach you can think of it seemed; every school that you can think of was here (during ECS's spring practice). As one got interested, another one got interested and another got interested," Heinz said. "I've had some good football players, but I don't think I've ever had one that had this much interest.
"Miami's been in. UCLA's been in. Stanford. The head coaches from Vanderbilt and Ole Miss. (Alabama coach Nick) Saban has been up here twice. (Auburn coach Tommy) Tuberville's been here. You just name them and they've been here and shown an interest, and it's been great to get to see some of them."
Other area prospects drawing major Division 1 attention include Wooddale wide receiver Sean Armstrong (5-11, 175), Arlington offensive tackle Alex Hurst (6-5, 300), DeSoto Central defensive end Devin Jones (6-2, 242), Kingsbury tight end Jamal Mosley (6-4, 228), Wooddale defensive tackle Dontari Poe (6-3, 330) and Hernando defensive end Andre Wadley (6-2, 245).
Mosley, a two-star prospect according to Rivals.com, made a verbal commitment to play football at Ole Miss during the Rebels' summer camp earlier this month.
"It was loyalty. When they first started recruiting me, I had bad grades. I didn't know how important it was," said Mosley, who added he has offers as well from Auburn and Kentucky and is still drawing interest from Indiana, Louisiana Tech, Memphis, Middle Tennessee State, Mississippi State and Tennessee.
"(Ole Miss) was still telling me, 'Get your grades up. We still want you.'"
Overall, Shurburtt categorized the area's 2008 recruiting class as typically good.
"Memphis typically is very underrated as far as putting out big- time football prospects. I don't know that they do as good of a job as some other areas do of getting the word out about the kid," he said.
"But make no mistake about it, Memphis and that area of western Tennessee and northern Mississippi that's close to Memphis certainly puts out great football prospects year-in and year-out. Memphis is what makes Ole Miss a good job. Memphis is what makes the University of Memphis a good job for a Conference USA school.
"So the Memphis area, shoot, it's stacked with talent. I wouldn't describe it as extraordinary, but I would describe it as typical and certainly not down."
- Jason Smith: 529-5804
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Shelby-Metro's class of 2008
A look at the area's top prep football prospects:
Barrett Jones / ECS / OL / 6-5 / 270 /
Rivals.com ranks him No. 1 overall prospect in state, No. 17 offensive tackle prospect nationally.... Scout.com ranks him No. 74 overall in the Southeast and the No. 28 OT nationally.
Marlon Walls / Wooddale / LB / 6-4 / 225 /
Rivals.com ranks him No. 5 prospect in state, No. 16 ILB nationally.... Scout.com ranks him No. 66 overall in the Southeast and the No. 11 strongside LB nationally.
Ricky Holloway / Fayette-Ware / LB / 6-2 / 220 /
Rivals.com ranks him No. 11 prospect in the state, the No. 49 OLB nationally.
DeAndre Jones / MUS / LB / 6-0 / 223 /
Rivals.com ranks him the No. 13 prospect in the state and the No. 47 OLB nationally.
Andre Wadley / Hernando / DE / 6-2 / 245 /
Rivals.com ranks him the No. 48 strongside DE prospect nationally. ...Scout.com ranks him No. 72 overall in the Southeast and the No. 32 DE nationally.
Tenarius Wright / Whitehaven / LB / 6-2 / 219 /
Rivals.com ranks him the No. 15 overall prospect in the state.
Antonio Harper / Melrose / LB / 6-4 / 220 /
Scout.com ranks him the No. 139 overall prospect in the Southeast and the No. 20 strongside LB nationally.
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