Thursday, September 15, 2011

Vandy stockpiles defensive ends and trades up on a WR

You've probably heard that we've traded wide receivers and added yet another defensive end.

By traded receivers, I mean that verbal commitment Jaydrick Declouet jumped ship to Houston but then we quickly got a verbal from Andre McDonald of Minnesota.

Declouet is 5-10, 175, a consensus three-star recruit with his best offer from Pittsburgh. McDonald is 6-3, 210, with four stars from Rivals and ESPN and his best offer from Ohio State.

Um, we'll take McDonald.

As for getting a verbal commitment from a sixth defensive end, we're not that disappointed. Sure, we really need another offensive lineman or two in this class, but I love the idea of getting Tommy Agee's son. Agee, you may remember, was the fullback in an Auburn wishbone attack that featured three future NFL running backs: Agee, who played for the Cowboys; Lionel "Little Train" James who had a long career with the Chargers and gained a bazillion all-purpose yards; and some guy named Bo Jackson.

Anyway, Agee's son Torey is 6-4, 250 pounds and could end up playing defensive tackle. And really, why should we not be stockpiling a bunch of long athletes who could end up playing everything from linebacker to defensive or even offensive tackle?

Here's how our six defensive ends stack up:

1. JOSH DAWSON
Hgt/Wgt: 6-4, 225
SEC offers: Georgia, South Carolina, Auburn, Miss State
BCS offers: Virginia Tech, Notre Dame, Michigan State, NC State, South Florida, Illinois, Purdue, Wake Forest, Virginia, Duke
Others: Central Florida
ESPN: Three stars (79 rating); No. 43 defensive end
Rivals: Three stars (5.7 rating); No. 33 defensive end
Scout: Four stars; No. 28 defensive end

2. CALEB AZUBIKE
Hgt/Wgt: 6-5, 240
SEC offers: Miss State, Kentucky
BCS offers: Miami, UCLA, Northwestern, Boston College, Louisville
Others: Memphis, Marshall, MTSU, Arkansas State
ESPN: Three stars (76 rating); No. 110 defensive end
Rivals: Four stars (5.8 rating); No. 18 defensive end
Scout: Three stars; No. 115 defensive end

3. STEPHEN WEATHERLY
Hgt/Wgt: 6-5, 197
SEC offers: Ole Miss, Kentucky
BCS offers: NC State, Wake Forest, Georgia Tech, Boston College, Illinois, Purdue
Others: Memphis, Western Kentucky
ESPN: Four stars (79 rating); No. 22 defensive end
Rivals: Three stars (5.6 rating); unranked linebacker
Scout: Two stars; No. 150 defensive end

4. TOREY AGEE
Hgt/Wgt: 6-4, 250
SEC offers: None
BCS offers: Stanford, Louisville, Duke
Others: Southern Miss, Western Kentucky, South Alabama
ESPN: Three stars (77 rating); No. 95 defensive end
Rivals: Three stars (5.5 rating); unrated defensive end
Scout: Two stars; No. 134 defensive end


5. LADARIUS BANKS
Hgt/Wgt: 6-2, 265
SEC offers: None
BCS offers: Illinois, Cincinnati
Others: Southern Miss, Troy, Florida International, UAB
ESPN: Three stars (75 rating); No. 140 defensive end
Rivals: Three stars (5.5 rating); unranked defensive tackle
Scout: Two stars; No. 163 defensive end

6. TRE GRIFFIN
Hgt/Wgt: 6-2, 235
SEC offers: None (committed in April)
Other offers: None
ESPN: Three stars (77 rating); No. 87 defensive end
Rivals: Two stars (5.4 rating); unranked defensive end
Scout: Two stars; No. 156 defensive end

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