2008 Recruiting Wars

[CajunT]

_ He was never offered by UL...he told scout and other services like that, that he was committed to UL but never was. Cajun T would be the best to answer the question but I believe that is the basics of it. _

You nailed on the head clutch, Laday told me in a phone interview that he was committed to UL. Laday has family in Opelousas and wanted to play close to them. The problem was, he had no offers from the Cajuns. He had a spring visit from one of the coaches and a few letters. He also told Rivals Pelican Prep that same thing in a phone interview as well. The one negative that came out of this whole story, we lost out on a very good WR from Florida.

[rhineaux]

The one negative that came out of this whole story, we lost out on a very good WR from Florida. _

How's that? The Florida kid thought we already had a commit from this Laday character, and so he decided to commit somewhere else?

[rhineaux]

_ We are going to be extremely happy seing Gautier play through his career as well as Dean, the DT. I agree, this recruiting class may be a sleeper class. Some of these guys don't get the "ratings" they probably should. A couple of sportswriters that cover him called Gautier a "special" player and I liked what I saw in the all-star game he recently played in against top LA talent. _

Sure does sound like a lot of talent is coming this way. Its nice to see some nicely regarded locals coming to play Defense over here.

Just makes me think, though, if Bustle has another poor year, reacord wise, he might not be around here to enjoy all of these recruits he's signing.

[CajunT]

_ How's that? The Florida kid thought we already had a commit from this Laday character, and so he decided to commit somewhere else? _

That is correct, C.Michigan. They came back on Gautier as well.

[zephyr]

Without a doubt. Bustle needs a good year this year, period. If he doesn't see 7 wins at least, he's probably out. The only problem is who could we possibly get to come in here. The program is much better than when Baldwin left but that's not saying much. We would finally have to tap into that larger operating athletic budget and pony up the dough.

[NewsCopy]

Two days after Christmas, UL football coach Rickey Bustle crossed another name off his holiday recruiting wish list. Dutchtown High's Sean Osborne gave a verbal commitment Thursday night to sign a letter of intent with the Ragin' Cajuns on National Signing Day, which is Feb. 6. Osborne, a two-star recruit by Rivals.com who played defensive end in high school, said there's a chance he could move to offensive tackle at the next level. He has been timed at 4.85 seconds in the 40-yard dash - an impressive time considering he carries 250 pounds on his 6-foot-6 frame. "(UL's coaches) told me I have good feet for a college defensive lineman, but that I could have really good feet for a college offensive lineman," Osborne said late Friday night. "I'll play wherever they need for me to play. I met with their strength coach and offensive line coach, and I think they could mold me into a pretty good offensive lineman. "I'm already pretty big, but they can put some more weight on me. If I can keep my quick feet I could be pretty good." Osborne, who attended several Cajun games during the season, made an unofficial visit to UL's campus during the weekend of Dec. 15. He becomes the 10th player to verbally commit to UL's recruiting class of 2008. The rest of the story Joshua Parrott jparrott@theadvertiser.com

[Just1More]

I don't know anything about Osborne, but will find out from Dutchtown friends. I like a guy with the frame to build on, but with natural speed and quickness. You cannot teach speed/quickness. On the surface, he sounds like a really good prospect. If this is what I read into it, I commend the coaching staff for looking at guys that are high performers in high school, but would be overlooked due to some height/weight issue. If I were a UL recruiter and were looking for a diamond in the rough... the very last element I would overlook is speed. Overlook the weight or the height... but never, ever overlook the QUICKNESS, SPEED, and God-given NATURAL INSTINCTS.

[DrumRoll]

_ I don't know anything about Osborne, but will find out from Dutchtown friends. I like a guy with the frame to build on, but with natural speed and quickness. You cannot teach speed/quickness. On the surface, he sounds like a really good prospect. If this is what I read into it, I commend the coaching staff for looking at guys that are high performers in high school, but would be overlooked due to some height/weight issue. If I were a UL recruiter and were looking for a diamond in the rough... the very last element I would overlook is speed. Overlook the weight or the height... but never, ever overlook the QUICKNESS, SPEED, and God-given NATURAL INSTINCTS. _

I would add "work ethic" and "character" as mandatory, and Osborne is a 5 star in both.

Sometimes what a guy does when nobody is looking, is far more important than anything else.

[1stTake]

Sometimes what a guy does when nobody is looking, is far more important than anything else. _

I might have to change my signature.

[NewsCopy]

Damaris Johnson, an all-purpose football player from Destrehan, is expected to visit UL’s campus the weekend of Jan. 19 or 26. Johnson, ranked a four-star recruit and the nation’s No. 31 athlete in his class by Rivals.com, recently visited Louisiana Tech. Grossmont (Calif.) Community College’s Ryan Glazer plans to visit UL’s campus on Jan. 12. The defensive tackle is a three-star recruit by Rivals.com ... The source Joshua Parrott jparrott@theadvertiser.com