Texas Longhorns: Michigan Wolverines
FRISCO, Texas -- Soso Jamabo (Plano, Texas/Plano West) would have liked to be a part of this weekend’s Nike EYBL series playing with the Texas Titans. With a sling on his right shoulder, however, the 2015 two-sport star was reduced to watching the Titans on the bench, offering instruction to teammates and being the team’s biggest supporter.
For the rest of the spring and most of the summer, Jamabo’s focus will be on rehabbing after undergoing shoulder surgery on April 30. Jamabo broke some bones and damaged some ligaments in his shoulder during a Texas Class 5A Division-I state quarterfinal playoff. The 6-foot-3, 200-pound athlete is expected to miss 6-10 weeks but is projected to return a couple of weeks before Plano West’s first scrimmage in August.
“It’s early in the process, but it’s going well,” Jamabo said of the rehab process. “I’m just trying to get the shoulder back to usual, if not better. Right now, I’m just doing basic stuff and keep everything as minimal as possible.”
Exactly what kind of football player will Plano West look to see back on the field? Jamabo’s first rush as a varsity player was against Flower Mound (Texas) Marcus on Aug. 31. It went for 12 yards. His second rush: A 75-yard touchdown run.
Since then, Soso has been ... well ... anything but.
Only the shoulder injury managed to slow the electrifying 2015 running back down. He rushed for a team-leading 1,697 yards and 24 touchdowns and also caught 20 passes for 453 yards -- an average of almost 23 yards per catch -- and four touchdowns. On the basketball court, Jamabo averaged 13.8 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.6 assists in 11 games.
For the rest of the spring and most of the summer, Jamabo’s focus will be on rehabbing after undergoing shoulder surgery on April 30. Jamabo broke some bones and damaged some ligaments in his shoulder during a Texas Class 5A Division-I state quarterfinal playoff. The 6-foot-3, 200-pound athlete is expected to miss 6-10 weeks but is projected to return a couple of weeks before Plano West’s first scrimmage in August.
“It’s early in the process, but it’s going well,” Jamabo said of the rehab process. “I’m just trying to get the shoulder back to usual, if not better. Right now, I’m just doing basic stuff and keep everything as minimal as possible.”
Exactly what kind of football player will Plano West look to see back on the field? Jamabo’s first rush as a varsity player was against Flower Mound (Texas) Marcus on Aug. 31. It went for 12 yards. His second rush: A 75-yard touchdown run.
Since then, Soso has been ... well ... anything but.
Only the shoulder injury managed to slow the electrifying 2015 running back down. He rushed for a team-leading 1,697 yards and 24 touchdowns and also caught 20 passes for 453 yards -- an average of almost 23 yards per catch -- and four touchdowns. On the basketball court, Jamabo averaged 13.8 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.6 assists in 11 games.
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#BlueChipBattles: ESPN 150 release edition
April, 19, 2013
Apr 19
11:49
AM CT
By RecruitingNation | ESPN.com
Student Sports, ESPN, ESPNSpeedy Noil, Adoree Jackson and Da'Shawn Hand are three of the most coveted recruits in the Class of 2014.
: RecruitingNation summoned its writers from around the country to outline the recruiting battles for the ESPN 150's top 10 prospects.
Plus, rank the battles in SportsNation.
#TopFBMixtapes: Athlete mixtapes are all the rage in this highlight-crazed era of sports. We reached out to our Twitter followers to find out which 2014 football stars had the best highlight reels on YouTube, then had our staff rank and comment on the top submissions.
Tom Luginbill writes
: After talking to many coaches across the country and hearing their frustrations, here are their five biggest complaints about homemade highlight videos.Plenty of reasons to like 2014 DE Garrett 
March, 27, 2013
Mar 27
8:33
PM CT
By
Damon Sayles | ESPN.com
The Twitter account for Myles Garrett (Arlington, Texas/Martin) tells half truth.
Garrett’s bio reads, “The big silly guy who plays football? Yea thats me,” and those who know Garrett know he enjoys to laugh and joke around. What the Twitter page doesn’t tell is just how athletically gifted the ESPN Watch List defensive end is. In fact, in addition to being the silly guy, friends have a nickname for him that seems to fit.
“They call me Superman,” Garrett said. “I guess it’s cool. It makes me laugh.”
Garrett’s bio reads, “The big silly guy who plays football? Yea thats me,” and those who know Garrett know he enjoys to laugh and joke around. What the Twitter page doesn’t tell is just how athletically gifted the ESPN Watch List defensive end is. In fact, in addition to being the silly guy, friends have a nickname for him that seems to fit.
“They call me Superman,” Garrett said. “I guess it’s cool. It makes me laugh.”
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ATHENS, Ga. -- ESPN Watch List wide receiver Demarre Kitt (Tyrone, Ga./Sandy Creek) recently cut his mammoth offer list down to a top-15 group of schools that he will consider.
“It got crazy at one point with almost everybody that offered me trying to talk to me,” Kitt said. “So I had to cut my list down to 15 schools. After spring practice I will cut it down to eight or 10. At the end of summer I will do five and then go from there.”
“It got crazy at one point with almost everybody that offered me trying to talk to me,” Kitt said. “So I had to cut my list down to 15 schools. After spring practice I will cut it down to eight or 10. At the end of summer I will do five and then go from there.”
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Watch List CB Watkins not deciding soon
February, 19, 2013
Feb 19
10:30
AM CT
By
Max Olson | ESPN.com
Nick Watkins understands there will be many recruits who hurry and make commitments this spring. That’s how recruiting works in the state of Texas. He just doesn’t see why that has to be the case for him.
He’s got offers from more than 20 schools, many of them elite programs, but the Dallas Bishop Dunne cornerback is in no hurry to pick one.
He’s got offers from more than 20 schools, many of them elite programs, but the Dallas Bishop Dunne cornerback is in no hurry to pick one.
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Watch List safety planning trip to Texas
February, 18, 2013
Feb 18
1:00
PM CT
By
William Wilkerson | ESPN.com
First the bad news: A certain Watch List safety won't be able to make it to Texas’ junior day on Saturday due to a track meet.
The good news is he’ll make his way to Austin at some point soon, most likely on March 2 to spend some quality time with the Longhorns coaching staff.
The good news is he’ll make his way to Austin at some point soon, most likely on March 2 to spend some quality time with the Longhorns coaching staff.
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Taking a look at no-visit policies
February, 12, 2013
Feb 12
1:00
PM CT
By RecruitingNation | ESPN.com
Texas is joining the likes of Michigan, Oregon and Georgia Tech in instituting a no-visit policy for its commits. Is this hard-line stance a good idea for elite programs? RecruitingNation writer Mitch Sherman takes a look the trend.
Read the story here.
Read the story here.
Join ESPN RecruitingNation's Jeremy Crabtree, Brandon Oliver, Mitch Sherman, William Wilkerson and Tom VanHaaren at 2 p.m. ET Tuesday for a special edition of "On The Trail TV."
We'll discuss the no-visits for commits policies of Michigan, Oregon and Georgia Tech and the new stance to mirror that approach by Mack Brown and the Texas Longhorns. Tweet questions to @RecruitingESPN or tune in for the live discussion.
We'll discuss the no-visits for commits policies of Michigan, Oregon and Georgia Tech and the new stance to mirror that approach by Mack Brown and the Texas Longhorns. Tweet questions to @RecruitingESPN or tune in for the live discussion.
2014 DB talks Michigan offer, junior days
February, 1, 2013
Feb 1
1:25
PM CT
By
Damon Sayles | ESPN.com
Ask ESPN Watch List safety Jamal Adams (Carrollton, Texas/Hebron) about Michigan and two words instantly come out of his mouth.
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Longhorns 11th in Way-Too-Early Top 25
January, 8, 2013
Jan 8
5:00
PM CT
By RecruitingNation staff | ESPN.com
Streeter Lecka/Getty ImagesAlabama, with three of the past four national titles, is No. 1 in the Way-Too-Early Top 25 for 2013.There's still seven months before the start of the 2013 season, and the teams and their order figure to change frequently, but it's never too early to take a look at the Way-Too-Early Top 25 for 2013.
And with three national championships in the past four years, there's no reason to change the team that's on top. Texas, with plenty of talent returning, is 11th in the rankings.
Also see:
2014 QB Cornwell with plenty of options
January, 6, 2013
Jan 6
3:00
PM CT
By
Bob Przybylo | ESPN.com
Quarterback David Cornwell (Jones, Okla./Jones) came out of nowhere to have an exceptional junior season and is now unquestionably one of the top in-state prospects for the Class of 2014.
Problem is, though, neither Oklahoma nor in-state power Oklahoma State have shown much interest. Cornwell camped at OU and had good contact with former OSU quarterbacks coach Todd Monken.
With Monken’s departure to become the Southern Mississippi head coach combined with little interest from OU quarterbacks coach Josh Heupel thus far, right now it looks like one of the state’s best prospects will have to look elsewhere.
Problem is, though, neither Oklahoma nor in-state power Oklahoma State have shown much interest. Cornwell camped at OU and had good contact with former OSU quarterbacks coach Todd Monken.
With Monken’s departure to become the Southern Mississippi head coach combined with little interest from OU quarterbacks coach Josh Heupel thus far, right now it looks like one of the state’s best prospects will have to look elsewhere.
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Recruiting set to pick up for Braden Smith
January, 4, 2013
Jan 4
4:37
PM CT
By
Corey Dowlar | ESPN.com
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- ESPN Watch List offensive tackle Braden Smith (Olathe, Kan./Olathe) has taken the last few weeks to sit back and relax.
With the dead period in full effect, he was given some time to himself. But now that the contact period is about to get going again and teams are finishing up their bowl schedules, it will pick up again.
"Pretty much it has been going slow," he said. "But I think it is going to pick back up in January after all the bowls and stuff. I will try to take some visits to Texas and Notre Dame, places like that."
With the dead period in full effect, he was given some time to himself. But now that the contact period is about to get going again and teams are finishing up their bowl schedules, it will pick up again.
"Pretty much it has been going slow," he said. "But I think it is going to pick back up in January after all the bowls and stuff. I will try to take some visits to Texas and Notre Dame, places like that."
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Army Bowl: Wednesday notebook
January, 2, 2013
Jan 2
2:08
PM CT
By
Damon Sayles and
William Wilkerson | ESPN.com
SAN ANTONIO -- Wednesday was a day off for the U.S. Army All-American Bowl teams. Instead of working out and participating in drills, the players took in visits around the city -- including a stop at the Alamodome for photo opportunities and to see their game apparel -- and used the day to recover from two days of practice.
The teams will return to the fields on Thursday in arguably the most important practice of the week. Here are five things to keep an eye on for Thursday’s practice:
The teams will return to the fields on Thursday in arguably the most important practice of the week. Here are five things to keep an eye on for Thursday’s practice:
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U.S. Army Bowl: Tuesday notebook
January, 1, 2013
Jan 1
6:52
PM CT
By
William Wilkerson and
Damon Sayles | ESPN.com
SAN ANTONIO – ESPN 150 wide receiver James Quick (Louisville, Ky./Trinity) has drawn plenty of attention for his play through two practices for the East team in preparation for the U.S. Army All-American Bowl.
He’ll garner even more eyes his way on Saturday when he announces his commitment during the game.
The 6-foot-1, 180-pounder said he is down to Louisville, Ohio State and Oregon. Though his decision will come Saturday, it could be finalized by Wednesday morning, as he sits down to discuss his options with his parents, who are in town for the event.
He’ll garner even more eyes his way on Saturday when he announces his commitment during the game.
The 6-foot-1, 180-pounder said he is down to Louisville, Ohio State and Oregon. Though his decision will come Saturday, it could be finalized by Wednesday morning, as he sits down to discuss his options with his parents, who are in town for the event.
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U.S. Army Bowl: Monday notebook
December, 31, 2012
12/31/12
7:51
PM CT
By
Damon Sayles and
William Wilkerson | ESPN.com
SAN ANTONIO -- ESPN 150 outside linebacker Mike Mitchell (Plano, Texas/Prestonwood Christian) isn’t big on speaking publicly. He’d rather let his game do the talking -- and it speaks volumes.
On Monday, the 6-foot-5, 222-pound linebacker officially confirmed that he will announce his college plans during Saturday’s U.S. Army All-American Bowl. Oregon, Texas A&M and Ohio State are his three finalists.
Mitchell said all three schools -- and even a fourth, Oklahoma -- had their positive qualities throughout his recruiting process. It was a feeling of comfort, however, that seemed to win him over.
On Monday, the 6-foot-5, 222-pound linebacker officially confirmed that he will announce his college plans during Saturday’s U.S. Army All-American Bowl. Oregon, Texas A&M and Ohio State are his three finalists.
Mitchell said all three schools -- and even a fourth, Oklahoma -- had their positive qualities throughout his recruiting process. It was a feeling of comfort, however, that seemed to win him over.
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ABOUT HORNSNATION
Sean Adams
Sean Adams has covered the Texas Longhorns and college football for the last 12 years as a writer and radio host. Sean co-hosts "The Big Show" with Erin Hogan each afternoon on ESPN Austin 104.9 The Horn. He lives with his family in Round Rock, Texas. Email him at thisean@gmail.com.
Max Olson
Max Olson joined ESPN in 2012 after covering the University of Nebraska for the Omaha (Neb.) World-Herald and high school and college sports for the World-Herald and Rivals.com. Olson is a University of Nebraska graduate and lives in Austin, Texas. Email him at maxolsonespn@gmail.com.
Carter Strickand
Carter Strickland joined ESPN.com in 2011 after covering the University of Georgia for Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the University of Oklahoma for The (Oklahoma City) Oklahoman and Washington State University for The (Spokane, Wash.) Spokesman-Review. Strickland lives with his wife and family in Austin. Email him at cstrickland70@gmail.com.
William Wilkerson
William Wilkerson joined ESPN.com in 2011 after covering high school sports, college sports and the Texas Rangers over four years at the Fort Worth (Texas) Star-Telegram. William is a University of Texas graduate and lives in Austin. He can be reached at wilkerson.espn@gmail.com.