ESPN Recruiting Nation Football

SPARTANBURG, S.C. -- The Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas always features a good deal of talent, and this year is no exception with five ESPN 150 prospects taking part between the two teams. The North Carolina squad featured a good deal more four- and high three-star talent, so I spent the morning watching the Tar Heels squad and split time in the afternoon between the two teams.

Here are some players who caught my eye during the practice:

Tyrone Crowder (Rockingham, N.C./Richmond Senior): The top-rated player on the NC squad, Crowder is an interesting prospect. You often hear people say a prospect "passes the eye test," but that is not the case with the ESPN 150 guard, and he is a good example of why you shouldn't be too quick to judge a book by its cover. He is not as tall as listed and is actually closer to 6-foot than the 6-2 he can be listed at. On film he comes across as a player who could benefit from reworking his body composition some and someone who needs to be careful about adding weight, and that is the case when you see him in person. He carries some unnecessary weight in his upper body and could and likely will rework his body composition with time in a BCS level weight program. He might be lacking in ideals in some areas, but he can still play. While he might not stand out physically, Crowder does stand out when it's time to go to work. He possesses a thick, powerful base, demonstrates very good flexibility and short space quickness, and he can quickly get into defenders and gain position. He moves well and still looks comfortable when asked to pull and block at the second level. That should only improve as he further develops physically. The practice didn't allow us to see him in one-on-one work, and he is out of position at left tackle, but we certainly look forward to seeing more from him down in Orlando at the Under Armour All-America Game in more of a natural fit at offensive guard.

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After making it to the state championship game and losing a heartbreaker last season, Jaylen Miller (Gaffney, S.C./Gaffney) had high expectations for his senior season.

However, after a 3-3 start, the four-star defensive end knew he needed to take his focus off of recruiting and focus his energy on the field.

"If I took care of the season, the recruiting would take care of itself," Miller said.

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Coming off a single-game record 510 yards rushing in the North Carolina 3AA state championship game, T.J. Logan (Greensboro, N.C./Northern Guilford) found himself a little busy last week as two college coaches visited the high school.

"NC State came by the school the other day, and so did Ohio State [assistant] coach [Everett] Withers," Logan said. "We just talked a little bit, but not much about football."

Despite the renewed interest, the four-star athlete said he is still committed to North Carolina and plans to visit them in January, but might take one other official visit next month.

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When Clemson defensive backs coach Charlie Harbison announced he was taking a similar role at Auburn on Sunday, current Clemson defensive back commit Jadar Johnson (Orangeburg, S.C./Orangeburg-Wilkinson) was as surprised as anyone.

"I talked to Coach Harbison last night and he was telling me that he had a great chance at Auburn," said Johnson, rated as a three-star athlete on ESPN. "It was tough to hear that because I was expecting him to be my coach."

With coaching rumors swirling, Johnson is following the search for a replacement at Clemson while keeping in mind that little will change in his immediate future.

"I made my commitment to Clemson and not to a coach so I am keeping my commitment to Clemson."

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The sight of Jamar Winston (Columbia, S.C./Irmo) is certainly imposing measuring in as a 6-foot-8, 240 pound defensive end. Though committed to FCS school UNC-Charlotte, Winston has two other programs still making a decision about an offer.

"There is a lot of interest from a lot of other programs like Missouri and Clemson," said Winston. "They are telling me to stay focused in the classroom and they are watching me. They will call me soon enough, they say."

Winston plans to take visits to all three schools with hopes of coming away holding an offer from each.

"Missouri has talked to me about taking a visit, so I am taking a visit there in January and to UNC-Charlotte."

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As one of the bigger running backs in the current class, Harold Atkinson (Myrtle Beach, S.C./Carolina Forest) has attention from schools around the country as four schools already offered.

"I have a few offers from East Carolina, North Carolina State, Marshall, and Minnesota are all real strong right now," said the 6-foot, 205 pound Atkinson. "I haven't made my decision right now, but I am looking to make my decision close to national signing day."

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The North Carolina State Wolfpack has three defensive players on the North Carolina team at the Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas, and they are in waiting mode watching as new head coach Dave Doeren builds his defensive staff.

"I talked to the new head coach, Coach Doeren, and he reminds me of my current head coach," said cornerback Jack Tocho (Charlotte, N.C./Independence). "I think they are going to run the 4-3, but I don't really know much about the defense other than that."

Tocho planned to take his official visit to Raleigh two weeks ago, but had to cancel due to the firing of former head coach Tom O'Brien.

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When Korrin Wiggins (Durham, N.C./Hillside) took an official visit to Ohio State at the end of November, it caught nearly everyone off guard, as Wiggins committed to North Carolina in February and had not shown any evidence of changing that commitment.

"I am still considering Ohio State and I wanted to see what school fits me best," said the three-star safety. "I'm doing pros and cons with everything right now. It's pretty much Clemson, Ohio State, and UNC that I am weighing out. I am going to be picking from those three schools."

At Ohio State, Wiggins said he was surprised at how much he was able to learn while the Buckeyes took on Michigan.

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Though Davon Durant (Greenwood, S.C.) might not be at the forefront of recruiting conversations, his play on the field over the last two seasons has the attention of college coaches from around the country.

Admittedly not handling much of his own recruiting process, Durant is about ready to plunge headfirst into the offers he believes to be on the table after leading Greenwood to the South Carolina 3A state championship.

"I don't really keep up with it too much, I just go out there and play," he said. "So far, NC State, Wake Forest, South Carolina, Clemson and Vanderbilt offered sometime during the season."

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The outlook for Akia Booker (Duncan, S.C./Byrnes) seems to have changed considerably over the last month, as the wide receiver not only added a qualifying test score, but says four new offers arrived within the last week.

"Notre Dame, Clemson, South Carolina, and Florida me offered last week," said Booker, who added that he still holds offers from Tennessee, Arkansas State, and Auburn.

Standing at 6-foot-1, Booker also said he added 15 pounds since last spring and now weighs in at 205 pounds.

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Heading into the Shrine Bowl, the highest-ranked uncommitted prospect is Tyrone Crowder (Rockingham, N.C./Richmond Senior), and the four-star offensive guard prospect made waves by cutting his list of finalists from three down to two.

"I eliminated North Carolina from my final choices and right now Clemson and Georgia are my final two," said Crowder. "Clemson and Georgia have been recruiting me since my freshman year and we kinda built up that bond and relationship longer than UNC."

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