2008 Recruiting Wars

[CajunT]

_ Cajun T, you might have some insight in this question I have. We are recruiting a lot of DB's this year, is this because we are going to try to make the switch to the 3-3-5? We ran it a lot last year but with the type of guys we are recruiting it leads me to believe we are moving towards that. _

We lost Ward,Jones and Kingsby this year. Smith will not play football again, so that is four athletes. Rogers and Branden are seniors. That leaves the Cajuns with Jean,Accime,Auriene and the 2008 signees.

They are all needs right now.

[NewsCopy]

UL plucked another football recruit from the talent-rich state of Florida. Rodney Gillis, a cornerback from nationally ranked St. Thomas Aquinas High in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., committed Monday to sign to play football for the Ragin' Cajuns. The earliest he can sign a binding letter of intent is Feb. 6. The 5-foot-11, 175-pounder picked UL over offers from Iowa, Toledo and Central Michigan. After visiting Toledo on Jan. 11, Gillis visited UL on Jan. 18 and Iowa last week. "He's a good player," St. Thomas Aquinas coach George Smith said. "He turned down Iowa (for UL), so that tells you he's a pretty damn good player." The rest of the story Joshua Parrott jparrott@theadvertiser.com

[CharlieK]

We need as many of those Destrehan kids as we can get. That was one of the best high school football teams I have ever seen. They KILLED Westgate in the semi's, and Westgate had a solid team. The Demarius kid was probably the third best athlete on offense, and he will start for the Cajuns next year if he signs. The linebackers were very good. We need a pipeline into that school, hopefully this linebacker/safety we signed will get that going.

[CharlieK]

We NEED to get this kid.....

http://www.hsgametime.com/neworleans....59e3df40.html

[zephyr]

_ Damaris Johnson. It sounds like he isn't showing his cards until the very end. I don't know if we have a solid shot or not, but it cannot hurt that Chris is going to suit up for the Cajuns... nothing like having a friend to hang out with right off the bat in your college career. I hope Damaris decides that UL is a great place for him to showcase his skills as well. _

I think he is weighing his options and seeing which of the bigger programs will use him earlier. He has offers from several pretty decent sized programs and I think we may be more of a fallback than anything. I hope I'm wrong but that's what it seems like

[BrockMeaux]

_ I think he is weighing his options and seeing which of the bigger programs will use him earlier. He has offers from several pretty decent sized programs and I think we may be more of a fallback than anything. I hope I'm wrong but that's what it seems like _

Yeah, I get the feeling that he'll end up at Illinois with the Fightin' Zooks (not knowing anything obviously). He's visited/interested in a few Illinois schools and the Illinis are coming off a Rose Bowl appearance, even if they did get embarassed there. He could come here and be a focal point of our offense for four years, especially with increased looks after Fenroy graduates, and dominate the Sun Belt, but its my natural inclination to believe he's going to opt for the bigger program until we have a fax with his signature on it in our (coaches') hands.

[zephyr]

_ Yeah, I get the feeling that he'll end up at Illinois with the Fightin' Zooks (not knowing anything obviously). He's visited/interested in a few Illinois schools and the Illinis are coming off a Rose Bowl appearance, even if they did get embarassed there. He could come here and be a focal point of our offense for four years, especially with increased looks after Fenroy graduates, and dominate the Sun Belt, but its my natural inclination to believe he's going to opt for the bigger program until we have a fax with his signature on it in our (coaches') hands. _

I guess the question is, what do we have to offer over the others besides being close to home? Maybe thats all we need in a way but Memphis and Illinois are in better conferences with more visibility(although I think that is overrated). I hope we are able to pull this one out of the hat.

[Cajun Express]

_ I guess the question is, what do we have to offer over the others besides being close to home? Maybe thats all we need in a way but Memphis and Illinois are in better conferences with more visibility(although I think that is overrated). I hope we are able to pull this one out of the hat. _

He, Johnson, has an opportunity to start on the other side of Cherry. That would be a very fearsome pair with Des, and Fenroy doing some fancy running.

He should consider that vs sitting and waiting for his turn.

[J-Town Cajun]

_ He, Johnson, has an opportunity to start on the other side of Cherry. That would be a very fearsome pair with Des, and Fenroy doing some fancy running.

He should consider that vs sitting and waiting for his turn. _

Derrick Smith will be our leading receiver next season and I will go out on a limb and say that Lance Kelly will be our #2. Don't get me wrong I think Johnson would be a great addition to our team. I think he would be used to return every kick and we would design plays to get the ball in his hands on offense.

[Just1More]

_ Derrick Smith will be our leading receiver next season and I will go out on a limb and say that Lance Kelly will be our #2. Don't get me wrong I think Johnson would be a great addition to our team. I think he would be used to return every kick and we would design plays to get the ball in his hands on offense. _

Not that I disagree with you, but if the guy has wheels and great hands, he can compete for a WR position immediately. And, with a new passing coordinator, existng depth charts for WRs are null and void.

There are no guarantees to anyone... but a superstar skill player has a much better chance of displaying his wares at UL than at some other places Johnson is considering. With all things considered, staying in south Louisiana, living in Lafayette, and attending UL, are favorable points.

[CrazyCajun]

i think chery's psition would be taken before smith's considering smith is one of our most consistent receivers

[zephyr]

First of all, Smith is our leading receiver threat and most talented WR at that. His job is not in jeopardy unless he has some other issues going on like his attitude which has been spotty at times.

I'm not sure about this L. Kelley thing. He hasn't even seen the field yet and I don't know if he has anything that will separate him from Verlin Moore, Marlin Miller or Aubrey or Falgout (who played well last year) so that may be a bit premature.

Johnson, assuming he commits, would be an invaluable addition to our team. He may not start at WR at first but he'd be used on special teams and different formations when we may want to spread the field. I'm just not that optimistic about his signing.