Thursday, September 8, 2011
TheRocketNation Now Live
TheRocketNation website on Rivals.com is now live. Go to www.TheRocketNation.com to view the site.
Friday, June 24, 2011
Rocket Football Update
With summer's second session of classes set to begin next week, this weekend will be a busy one for Rocket football players. The incoming freshmen that signed national letters of intent back in February will be getting to campus this weekend, as they will start taking classes next week to help get acclimated to college life.
Each recruit that signed in February is expected to be on campus this weekend, and be eligible to play this fall. That includes four star defensive lineman Andre "Tank" Sturdivant and three star running back Antwan Gilbert. One player that was rumored to be coming to Toledo after finishing his degree at a junior college, running back Josh Haden, will not be coming to Toledo after all. However, his brother Jordan is still at Toledo and a part of the football program. He is still awaiting word on an appeal to the NCAA's original decision to deny immediate eligibility. If he does not win the appeal, he will need to sit out this fall and will be eligible to play next year with sophomore eligibility.
On the recruiting front the Rockets picked up their first three commitments in the 2012 football recruiting class in the last week. Wide receiver Armani Miller is a 6-1, 180 pounder with 4.4 speed. The Huber Heights, OH native had 32 catches for 510 yards and 4 TD's last season.
Offensive lineman James Henry of Upper Arlington, OH also committed to Toledo. He is 6-7 and about 255 pounds. He has a big frame to grow into, and could be a beast by the time he has had a year or so in a college weight program.
Finally is three star quarterback Brian Blackburn of Detroit, MI. Blackburn chose Toledo over early offers from Central Michigan and Buffalo, but he has also received a lot of interest from some Big Ten schools. Blackburn, 6-6 and 215 pounds, has a lot of upside. He's got a strong arm and can run the ball also. He threw for 2,234 yards and 20 TD's, while rushing for 1,049 yards and 9 TD's on the ground.
Blackburn was so excited to commit to Toledo that, instead of calling up the coaches over the phone, he showed up at a football camp they were conducting and committed in person.
Each recruit that signed in February is expected to be on campus this weekend, and be eligible to play this fall. That includes four star defensive lineman Andre "Tank" Sturdivant and three star running back Antwan Gilbert. One player that was rumored to be coming to Toledo after finishing his degree at a junior college, running back Josh Haden, will not be coming to Toledo after all. However, his brother Jordan is still at Toledo and a part of the football program. He is still awaiting word on an appeal to the NCAA's original decision to deny immediate eligibility. If he does not win the appeal, he will need to sit out this fall and will be eligible to play next year with sophomore eligibility.
On the recruiting front the Rockets picked up their first three commitments in the 2012 football recruiting class in the last week. Wide receiver Armani Miller is a 6-1, 180 pounder with 4.4 speed. The Huber Heights, OH native had 32 catches for 510 yards and 4 TD's last season.
Offensive lineman James Henry of Upper Arlington, OH also committed to Toledo. He is 6-7 and about 255 pounds. He has a big frame to grow into, and could be a beast by the time he has had a year or so in a college weight program.
Finally is three star quarterback Brian Blackburn of Detroit, MI. Blackburn chose Toledo over early offers from Central Michigan and Buffalo, but he has also received a lot of interest from some Big Ten schools. Blackburn, 6-6 and 215 pounds, has a lot of upside. He's got a strong arm and can run the ball also. He threw for 2,234 yards and 20 TD's, while rushing for 1,049 yards and 9 TD's on the ground.
Blackburn was so excited to commit to Toledo that, instead of calling up the coaches over the phone, he showed up at a football camp they were conducting and committed in person.
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Signing Day, going into Spring Practice
Tomorrow's press events mark the start of Spring Football Season for the UT Rockets, with the first practice slated for Thursday morning. That being the case, it may be a good time to clean out the recorder, including an interview with Coach Beckman on Signing Day this year.
The argument can be made that each of the recruiting classes of the Beckman era have gotten stronger. It's likely impossible to find a class more highly regarded out of high school than this one, and since it's the coaches' jobs to keep the talent coming, a certain amount of selling skills are required. "Our coaches, when we first got in here that first year, we were just scrambling. It was going, going, going, we had five guys that were recruiting at that time. So we're down, number-wise, but I think we have a fabulous staff that recruits extremely hard," says Beckman. "There's no egos. It's not about 'oh, I got this guy' or 'I got that guy'. It's about who WE got. They're TEAM recruiters and you don't see that all the time at different schools."
In remarks that many regular readers have already seen on the official site, Coach talked about filling needs, and I asked him to expand on that a bit, specifically in the area of kicking. "I probably should have hit on that a little bit more. The kicking situation isn't because we don't have some guys here that can kick. You don't want to use injuries as an excuse, but it is. When you lose one of your kickers, then you lose the next one, so you're kicking your 3rd guy...depth becomes an issue. J. D. Detmer is fabulous kicker. He's 97% kicker, kicking into the endzone, which we haven't had here, and it's been an Achilles heel for us in coverage. So we're excited about getting him here. Now we lost 4: we lost a guard and a center, an end, and a linebacker, and Westbrook played a lot too. So we got some big holes but some young men from the last class that we feel can come in, but there were definitely things we thought we needed to get with this recruiting class. Jordan Barnes should be one of those guys that can help where Archie Donald left. Tank Sturdevant is at end. He was right down to the wire. I've known Hank since he was a little guy. He understands us, he likes us, he likes the school, he likes the people, he likes the players and coaches that are here, and I think that was the final straw that made him say "you know, I can be successful at UT".
Beckman has preached competition since the day he started at UT, and this class is getting a full dose of it right through recruiting and signing day. There's no doubt it's been impressed upon each recruit from the beginning. "I can tell you our staff did a great job, but our kids did too; they recruited them too. They don't go home on weekends enjoying life. They stay and are involved in the recruiting process. So they're going to be here. And I always tell them that if there is anybody that they don't feel can be a part of this family, they need to text me, or let me know on Sunday. The first year that happened (was this year). I got a couple of texts that said 'I don't know if this young man is going to fit in our program'. And I did exactly what they said and told the young man they didn't have a scholarship (offer) anymore. Our players do an unbelievable job of recruiting. We have a mature team now. I'm very proud of how they've responded to losing Coach Court and so on."
There are 23 recruits in the class, but there are also some grayshirts. Matt Neal and Antwan Gilbert are the two players currently slated to grayshirt, with Neal coming in January. "They understand it's going to be a later time for them to come in."
The Rockets addressed some needs this year. The talent level appears to have improved yet again. Competition is still the key to playing time. The "young" label has been replaced by "mature". Certainly there are still a large number of underclassmen on the squad, but the maturity they've shown with recruiting alone, and the trust the coaches have shown in them, bodes well for the future.
The first wait is over. Spring practice begins this week. Can kickoff be far off?
The argument can be made that each of the recruiting classes of the Beckman era have gotten stronger. It's likely impossible to find a class more highly regarded out of high school than this one, and since it's the coaches' jobs to keep the talent coming, a certain amount of selling skills are required. "Our coaches, when we first got in here that first year, we were just scrambling. It was going, going, going, we had five guys that were recruiting at that time. So we're down, number-wise, but I think we have a fabulous staff that recruits extremely hard," says Beckman. "There's no egos. It's not about 'oh, I got this guy' or 'I got that guy'. It's about who WE got. They're TEAM recruiters and you don't see that all the time at different schools."
In remarks that many regular readers have already seen on the official site, Coach talked about filling needs, and I asked him to expand on that a bit, specifically in the area of kicking. "I probably should have hit on that a little bit more. The kicking situation isn't because we don't have some guys here that can kick. You don't want to use injuries as an excuse, but it is. When you lose one of your kickers, then you lose the next one, so you're kicking your 3rd guy...depth becomes an issue. J. D. Detmer is fabulous kicker. He's 97% kicker, kicking into the endzone, which we haven't had here, and it's been an Achilles heel for us in coverage. So we're excited about getting him here. Now we lost 4: we lost a guard and a center, an end, and a linebacker, and Westbrook played a lot too. So we got some big holes but some young men from the last class that we feel can come in, but there were definitely things we thought we needed to get with this recruiting class. Jordan Barnes should be one of those guys that can help where Archie Donald left. Tank Sturdevant is at end. He was right down to the wire. I've known Hank since he was a little guy. He understands us, he likes us, he likes the school, he likes the people, he likes the players and coaches that are here, and I think that was the final straw that made him say "you know, I can be successful at UT".
Beckman has preached competition since the day he started at UT, and this class is getting a full dose of it right through recruiting and signing day. There's no doubt it's been impressed upon each recruit from the beginning. "I can tell you our staff did a great job, but our kids did too; they recruited them too. They don't go home on weekends enjoying life. They stay and are involved in the recruiting process. So they're going to be here. And I always tell them that if there is anybody that they don't feel can be a part of this family, they need to text me, or let me know on Sunday. The first year that happened (was this year). I got a couple of texts that said 'I don't know if this young man is going to fit in our program'. And I did exactly what they said and told the young man they didn't have a scholarship (offer) anymore. Our players do an unbelievable job of recruiting. We have a mature team now. I'm very proud of how they've responded to losing Coach Court and so on."
There are 23 recruits in the class, but there are also some grayshirts. Matt Neal and Antwan Gilbert are the two players currently slated to grayshirt, with Neal coming in January. "They understand it's going to be a later time for them to come in."
The Rockets addressed some needs this year. The talent level appears to have improved yet again. Competition is still the key to playing time. The "young" label has been replaced by "mature". Certainly there are still a large number of underclassmen on the squad, but the maturity they've shown with recruiting alone, and the trust the coaches have shown in them, bodes well for the future.
The first wait is over. Spring practice begins this week. Can kickoff be far off?
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Signing Day News
It's signing day! As we receive news of signed NLI's faxed into the University of Toledo we will post them here. For now, here is a list of the players that signed during the early signing period in December, or grey shirts and transfers in from other DI FBS schools in January:
LB Jordan Barnes (** Rivals) (6-1, 240) Western Oklahoma CC (Sophomore eligibility)
TE Colby Kratch (** Rivals/Scout) (6-4, 245) North Dakota St College of Science (Junior eligibility)
DB Jordan Haden (**** Rivals/Scout) (5-11, 200) University of Florida (Sophomore eligibility in 2012)
DB Vladimir Emilien (**** Rivals/*** Scout) (6-1, 204) University of Michigan (Junior eligibility in 2012)
DL Keenen Gibbs (** Rivals/Scout) (6-3, 270) Cincinnati LaSalle High School (True freshman)
CB John James (** Rivals/Scout) (5-11, 163) Cleveland Adams High School (True freshman)
DL Phil Lewis (*** Rivals/** Scout) (6-3, 285) Grand Rapids CC (Junior eligibility)
CB Keith Suggs (** Rivals/** Scout) (5-10, 175) Indianapolis Ben Davis High School (True freshman)
February 2nd NLI's:
RB Antwan Gilbert (*** Rivals/Scout)
OL Ethan Wirth (*** Rivals/Scout)
OL Kyle Cameron (*** Rivals/Scout)
K JD Detmer (** Rivals/*** Scout)
CB Chris Dukes (*** Rivals/Scout)
DL Collin Perchinske (** Rivals/Scout)
DL Matt Neal (** Rivals/Scout)
OL Paul Wisniewski (** Rivals/Scout)
LB Gabe Gilbert (** Rivals/Scout)
DB Kishon Wilcher (*** Rivals/** Scout)
LB Trent Voss (** Rivals/*** Scout)
WR Alonzo Russell (*** Rivals/Scout)
WR Justin Olack (*** Rivals/Scout)
DB Cheatham Norrils (** Rivals/Scout)
DB Noah Key (** Rivals/Scout)
DB Johnion Sylvestre (** Rivals/Scout)
RB Josh Haden (**** Rivals/Scout)
DL Andre "Tank" Sturdivant (**** Rivals/*** Scout)
RB Robert Walton (** Rivals/Scout)
Class Complete!
LB Jordan Barnes (** Rivals) (6-1, 240) Western Oklahoma CC (Sophomore eligibility)
TE Colby Kratch (** Rivals/Scout) (6-4, 245) North Dakota St College of Science (Junior eligibility)
DB Jordan Haden (**** Rivals/Scout) (5-11, 200) University of Florida (Sophomore eligibility in 2012)
DB Vladimir Emilien (**** Rivals/*** Scout) (6-1, 204) University of Michigan (Junior eligibility in 2012)
DL Keenen Gibbs (** Rivals/Scout) (6-3, 270) Cincinnati LaSalle High School (True freshman)
CB John James (** Rivals/Scout) (5-11, 163) Cleveland Adams High School (True freshman)
DL Phil Lewis (*** Rivals/** Scout) (6-3, 285) Grand Rapids CC (Junior eligibility)
CB Keith Suggs (** Rivals/** Scout) (5-10, 175) Indianapolis Ben Davis High School (True freshman)
February 2nd NLI's:
RB Antwan Gilbert (*** Rivals/Scout)
OL Ethan Wirth (*** Rivals/Scout)
OL Kyle Cameron (*** Rivals/Scout)
K JD Detmer (** Rivals/*** Scout)
CB Chris Dukes (*** Rivals/Scout)
DL Collin Perchinske (** Rivals/Scout)
DL Matt Neal (** Rivals/Scout)
OL Paul Wisniewski (** Rivals/Scout)
LB Gabe Gilbert (** Rivals/Scout)
DB Kishon Wilcher (*** Rivals/** Scout)
LB Trent Voss (** Rivals/*** Scout)
WR Alonzo Russell (*** Rivals/Scout)
WR Justin Olack (*** Rivals/Scout)
DB Cheatham Norrils (** Rivals/Scout)
DB Noah Key (** Rivals/Scout)
DB Johnion Sylvestre (** Rivals/Scout)
RB Josh Haden (**** Rivals/Scout)
DL Andre "Tank" Sturdivant (**** Rivals/*** Scout)
RB Robert Walton (** Rivals/Scout)
Class Complete!
Monday, January 31, 2011
Three Star Running Back Commits
With signing day fast approaching, the Toledo Rockets have added another three star prospect, this time in Trotwood-Madison running back Antwan Gilbert. Gilbert is ranked the #39 running back prospect in the country by Scout.com and the #13 all-purpose back prospect in the country by Rivals.com. He committed to Toledo over offers from Bowling Green, Cincinnati, Indiana, Louisville, North Carolina, Pittsburgh, and West Virginia.
The 5-11, 185 pound Gilbert has 4.43 speed. As a junior in the fall of 2009, Gilbert had 2,531 yards rushing and 34 total touchdowns, earning Southwest District Division II Co-Offensive Player of the Year and First-Team All-State honors. Then as a senior in 2010 he rushed for 2,291 yards. Gilbert rushed for 5,731 yards in his high school career.
Antwan capped his high school career by rushing for 174 yards and a touchdown, as well as a 45 yard punt return for a touchdown, in the Division II State Finals, a 45-33 loss for Trotwood-Madison.
He has been recruited to Toledo as a running back, and looks to have the potential to be another great running back in a long line of great backs at Toledo.
The 5-11, 185 pound Gilbert has 4.43 speed. As a junior in the fall of 2009, Gilbert had 2,531 yards rushing and 34 total touchdowns, earning Southwest District Division II Co-Offensive Player of the Year and First-Team All-State honors. Then as a senior in 2010 he rushed for 2,291 yards. Gilbert rushed for 5,731 yards in his high school career.
Antwan capped his high school career by rushing for 174 yards and a touchdown, as well as a 45 yard punt return for a touchdown, in the Division II State Finals, a 45-33 loss for Trotwood-Madison.
He has been recruited to Toledo as a running back, and looks to have the potential to be another great running back in a long line of great backs at Toledo.
Signing Day is Almost Here
National Signing Day for high school seniors and JUCO's that intend to play college football next fall is this Wednesday. This is the day that many college football fans will be glued to their computers and/or ESNPU.
The University of Toledo is pretty much set on their 2011 class, but there are still a couple of questions. There are three Cleveland Glenville players that are still considering offers from Toledo, among other schools.
QB Cordale Jones is a three star prospect on the recruiting sites. Last week he announced that he was down to Toledo and Ohio State, but he did not have an offer from Ohio State at the time. He took an official visit to OSU over the weekend and received that offer, but did not commit. It appears to be very likely that he will commit to the Buckeyes, but don't count out the Rockets just yet. There are several Cleveland Glenville players on the UT roster. Head Coach Tim Beckman was an assistant coach for Jim Tressel at Ohio State, and he has done a fantastic job of improving academics from the football players, as well as winning on the field. Last year Toledo won 8 games and played in the Little Caesar's Pizza Bowl, and they return 9 starters on both offense and defense. Add that to the fact that the MAC has become known for developing NFL QB's (Charlie Batch, Chad Pennington, Byron Leftwich, Ben Roethlisberger, Toledo's Bruce Gradkowski, Nate Davis, and Dan LeFevour.....even the Browns' Joshua Cribbs was a QB in the MAC before the NFL).
DL Andre "Tank" Sturdivant appeared to be down to Toledo, Ohio State, Penn State, and Michigan State last week. Ohio State has not offered Tank and there are questions as to whether or not the offers from Penn State and Michigan State are still on the table. Even if they are, Sturdivant has liked Toledo for quite a while. Don't be surprised if he sits down at the table inside Glenville Academic Campus on Wednesday and pulls out a Toledo hat to sign his NLI for the University of Toledo.
WR Shane Wynn appears to be considering Toledo and Indiana the most. He's had a lot of offers, but again there are questions as to whether or not the other offers are still valid. It appeared that Hawaii and USC was still in the picture early last week, but Wynn decided to take his last official visit to Indiana which meant that of the four schools he only visited Toledo and Indiana. He also took a visit to Penn State earlier in the month of January, but they do not seem to be in the mix anymore. I think we will just have to wait until signing day to see if Wynn signs for the Rockets, Hoosiers, or possibly another school.
One commit that some had said was a soft commit for Toledo is prep school wide receiver Alonzo Russell. When he committed to Toledo in December he said he was keeping his options open. However, more recently it appears that he has closed the door on other options and is very happy and excited about becoming a Toledo Rocket on Wednesday.
Locally to the Toledo area, Central Catholic offensive lineman Kyle Cameron has been committed to Toledo for quite some time (June 2010), and he will sign his national letter of intent to Toledo this Wednesday. Scout.com has him rated as the 2nd highest ranked Toledo commitment. He is a three star prospect that is ranked the 20th best center prospect in the country. The only commitment ranked higher than Cameron is J.D. Detmer, a three star prospect and ranked the 9th best kicker prospect in the country.
One other local prospect set to sign with the Rockets on Wednesday is St John's Jesuit WR/DB Cheatham Norrils. Norrils, who has been committed to Toledo since early December, is expected to play on the defensive side of the ball at Toledo.
Keep a close eye on our Rocket Nation blog Wednesday morning, as we will be keeping you updated with recruiting and signed NLI's as the information comes in.
The University of Toledo is pretty much set on their 2011 class, but there are still a couple of questions. There are three Cleveland Glenville players that are still considering offers from Toledo, among other schools.
QB Cordale Jones is a three star prospect on the recruiting sites. Last week he announced that he was down to Toledo and Ohio State, but he did not have an offer from Ohio State at the time. He took an official visit to OSU over the weekend and received that offer, but did not commit. It appears to be very likely that he will commit to the Buckeyes, but don't count out the Rockets just yet. There are several Cleveland Glenville players on the UT roster. Head Coach Tim Beckman was an assistant coach for Jim Tressel at Ohio State, and he has done a fantastic job of improving academics from the football players, as well as winning on the field. Last year Toledo won 8 games and played in the Little Caesar's Pizza Bowl, and they return 9 starters on both offense and defense. Add that to the fact that the MAC has become known for developing NFL QB's (Charlie Batch, Chad Pennington, Byron Leftwich, Ben Roethlisberger, Toledo's Bruce Gradkowski, Nate Davis, and Dan LeFevour.....even the Browns' Joshua Cribbs was a QB in the MAC before the NFL).
DL Andre "Tank" Sturdivant appeared to be down to Toledo, Ohio State, Penn State, and Michigan State last week. Ohio State has not offered Tank and there are questions as to whether or not the offers from Penn State and Michigan State are still on the table. Even if they are, Sturdivant has liked Toledo for quite a while. Don't be surprised if he sits down at the table inside Glenville Academic Campus on Wednesday and pulls out a Toledo hat to sign his NLI for the University of Toledo.
WR Shane Wynn appears to be considering Toledo and Indiana the most. He's had a lot of offers, but again there are questions as to whether or not the other offers are still valid. It appeared that Hawaii and USC was still in the picture early last week, but Wynn decided to take his last official visit to Indiana which meant that of the four schools he only visited Toledo and Indiana. He also took a visit to Penn State earlier in the month of January, but they do not seem to be in the mix anymore. I think we will just have to wait until signing day to see if Wynn signs for the Rockets, Hoosiers, or possibly another school.
One commit that some had said was a soft commit for Toledo is prep school wide receiver Alonzo Russell. When he committed to Toledo in December he said he was keeping his options open. However, more recently it appears that he has closed the door on other options and is very happy and excited about becoming a Toledo Rocket on Wednesday.
Locally to the Toledo area, Central Catholic offensive lineman Kyle Cameron has been committed to Toledo for quite some time (June 2010), and he will sign his national letter of intent to Toledo this Wednesday. Scout.com has him rated as the 2nd highest ranked Toledo commitment. He is a three star prospect that is ranked the 20th best center prospect in the country. The only commitment ranked higher than Cameron is J.D. Detmer, a three star prospect and ranked the 9th best kicker prospect in the country.
One other local prospect set to sign with the Rockets on Wednesday is St John's Jesuit WR/DB Cheatham Norrils. Norrils, who has been committed to Toledo since early December, is expected to play on the defensive side of the ball at Toledo.
Keep a close eye on our Rocket Nation blog Wednesday morning, as we will be keeping you updated with recruiting and signed NLI's as the information comes in.
Thursday, January 27, 2011
3 Star QB Down to Two Schools
The Rocket Nation blog has learned through various reports and sources that Cleveland Glenville QB Cordale Jones has narrowed his list down to two schools. He identified those two schools as Toledo and Ohio State. According to the Rivals recruiting service Jones has offers from Bowling Green, Cincinnati, Illinois, Iowa, LSU, Miami (OH), Michigan, Penn State, Toledo, and West Virginia.
Jones visited Toledo on 1/14/2011, and he is expected to visit Ohio State this weekend. It is rumored that he will be deciding between a grey shirt offer from Ohio State and an immediate offer from Toledo. The grey shirt offer would mean he would not enroll at Ohio State until January of 2012 and would go on scholarship then. In Toledo's case, he would enroll over the summer and go on scholarship then so he would be able to play in the fall of 2011.
Stay tuned over the coming days for more on this latest development.
Jones visited Toledo on 1/14/2011, and he is expected to visit Ohio State this weekend. It is rumored that he will be deciding between a grey shirt offer from Ohio State and an immediate offer from Toledo. The grey shirt offer would mean he would not enroll at Ohio State until January of 2012 and would go on scholarship then. In Toledo's case, he would enroll over the summer and go on scholarship then so he would be able to play in the fall of 2011.
Stay tuned over the coming days for more on this latest development.
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