I caught up with a few of the top prospects that were in attendance Saturday for the game against Richmond. Instead of posting individual updates on each, I decided to just put them all in a notebook for you guys.
For the record, I have spoken with Keith Simms, but I'm not going to bug him for a full interview. He enjoyed the game, caught up with the coaches and went home. There's really not much to add that I haven't hit on in the past. Maryland is the clear favorite.
LB Avery Roberts - Wilmington, Del. - Concord - 2017
Four-star outside linebacker Avery Roberts was, in my opinion, the most talented prospect in attendance Saturday.
Avery has been building a relationship with Lyndon Johnson throughout the summer, but Saturday was actually his first time on campus. As you can see from his offer sheet, many of the nation's elite are either monitoring him closely or have already offered, so getting him on campus now was important. The longer it took Maryland to get him on campus, the more difficult it would've likely been, so kudos to the staff for making a push early in the week and convincing him to make the trip on Saturday.
"I was able to talk to Coach Johnson, who's my position coach," Roberts said. "I talked to him for a good amount of time. I also got to briefly meet Coach Edsall and the inside linebacker coach, Coach Dudzinski.
"This was all before the game. When I was talking to Coach Johnson, it was mainly about football. They were saying that they could see me playing inside linebacker or outside linebacker. They think I have the athleticism to play outside, but I'm physical enough to play inside, so they're just recruiting me as a linebacker on their board. They would just like to get me and then figure out where I would fit best."
Roberts added that his conversation with Edsall was just a brief, 2-3 minute talk before the game. They basically just introduced themselves to each other for the first time.
Also, with everything else that was going on that day, Roberts wasn't able to really tour facilities, but he had good things to say about what he did see, plus the crowd.
"I got to tour a little bit of their football facility, but I really need to go back to get a good look at everything. With it being game day and all of that, I wasn't able to check out the weight room and some other things. There was just too much going on, but I did see where they work with tutors and things like that.
"I also thought it was a good crowd. It wasn't packed or sold out or anything like that, but I didn't expect it to be for a Richmond game. I thought it was good."
Roberts has been invited to come back to any game he wants this season. I think the game against Michigan in the first week of October is the most realistic weekend, so I'll keep an eye on him then.
If he does come back to campus this season, I'll begin to think that Maryland has real chance here. Right now, I think they should crack his top 10, but it'll be tough to crack his top five, especially once he's able to visit a bunch of other schools later this fall and into next spring. I expect Alabama and Ohio State to offer sooner than later. They've been talking to him all summer. Also, keep and eye on Baylor. The Bears have really stepped up interest recently. Roberts has made it clear that all three of those schools have his eye.
OL Ryan Solt - Wilkes Barre, Pa. - James M Coughlin - 2017
Saturday was offensive lineman Ryan Solt's first game in Byrd Stadium. Throughout the summer, I've tried to make it as clear as I can that the Terps are going to be a serious player here and I'm confident that Saturday's visit only helped.
"I met with Coach Stud for probably 30 or 45 minutes after the game," Solt said. "I also talked to the strength and conditioning coach, who was a great guy. Then, right before I left, I ran into Coach Edsall and talked to him quickly, so it was good. It's always nice to catch up.
"Honestly, Coach Stud is the main thing that's standing out to me right now. He's an amazing coach. I really, really like Coach Stud. We talked a lot about football this time. Things like, what he looks at in a football player, what he expects from his players and how he coaches his players. It was a really good talk."
Solt is also already beginning to familiarize himself with some of Maryland's current commits.
"I hung out with [Mike Viti] a little bit. He actually committed the day I got an offer. I hung out with him probably the most. I saw [Brain Pulmmer], too. I talked to him for a little bit."
As for the game itself, Solt went on to add that he liked the way the team rallied after a slow start.
"What stood out to me the most was how they rallied after a poor first half. Richmond took the lead at one point and you could tell that was a wake up call. I'm sure they went into the game thinking that, since it's Richmond, they'll be find. Once they got pushed back a little bit, they rallied and really turned it up a notch and that was good to see. They took it to Richmond in the second half."
However, out of everything we discussed, the biggest news, to me, is that Solt is now planning to return to Maryland for three additional games this season. That's very, very important in my opinion.
I do expect Ryan to add other offers later this fall, so multiple visits this season should put UMD at the top of his list, no matter who else offers between now and next spring. And for the record, I don't think PSU is close to offering Solt. They would definitely be UMD's top competitor if they do, but I don't think that's coming anytime soon. We'll see what happens.
"The only visit I have setup to another school right now is to Penn State for their game against Michigan. I know I'm going to go back to Maryland a bunch of times. I'm going to Maryland's games against Penn State, Wisconsin and Michigan, so I'll be back at Maryland at least two or three more times this season."
OL Jordan McNair - Owings Mills, Md. - McDonogh - 2017
I'm still trying to do a complete interview with Jordan McNair, but I wanted to pass on this quote that he texted me last night.
"The game was great. Me and my mom had a great time and they played a really good game. They really picked it up in the second half. I did talk to Coach Dudzinski, too. We really didn't talk about football when we talked. It was more about the education side. We talked about SATs and stuff like that."
As most of you know, I still believe that McNair is a bit underrated. I really believe he could blow up after he sends out his film from the first half of the season, so I want to keep a close eye on that before I try to predict much with him. Right now, Maryland, PSU and Virginia Tech are probably his top three schools. He should definitely be back at UMD for another game this season.
DE Lawtez Rogers - Greenbelt, Md. - Eleanor Roosevelt
I actually had contacts inform me that Rogers was supposed to be in attendance when I posted that update on Tuesday, but when I asked Rogers, he said he knew nothing about it. Well, sure enough, he ended up coming up to Maryland for the game this weekend and, as expected, had good things to say.
"I got there a little late, but when I got there, it was nice of them to give me a ride to the field house. I got a little tour then before the game and then I went to the game. I think that Mr. Cory Robinson is a really cool guy and I like the experience when I'm at their games."
Rogers didn't have an extended conversation with any of the assistant coaches or Edsall, but he did catch up with Robinson a bit while they toured facilities.
"He talked to us about my game and how I was doing. Just that kind of stuff. He said he was happy to see me and stuff like that."
Rogers should see some additional schools step up their interest later this fall, but right now, even after Sept. 1, there really aren't any other schools showing real interest. He gets letters from a bunch of schools, but that means nothing.
From talking to him over the summer, I've gotten the vibe that it may also be tough for him to travel to other schools, so that's something to watch down the road. I think a lot of schools will probably want to meet him in person before the offer, so if he does have issues traveling out of the DMV area, that's only going to help Maryland.
Right now, the Terps are clearly the early favorite and I do believe they should stay near the top of his list, no matter who else offers.
For the record, I have spoken with Keith Simms, but I'm not going to bug him for a full interview. He enjoyed the game, caught up with the coaches and went home. There's really not much to add that I haven't hit on in the past. Maryland is the clear favorite.
LB Avery Roberts - Wilmington, Del. - Concord - 2017
Four-star outside linebacker Avery Roberts was, in my opinion, the most talented prospect in attendance Saturday.
Avery has been building a relationship with Lyndon Johnson throughout the summer, but Saturday was actually his first time on campus. As you can see from his offer sheet, many of the nation's elite are either monitoring him closely or have already offered, so getting him on campus now was important. The longer it took Maryland to get him on campus, the more difficult it would've likely been, so kudos to the staff for making a push early in the week and convincing him to make the trip on Saturday.
"I was able to talk to Coach Johnson, who's my position coach," Roberts said. "I talked to him for a good amount of time. I also got to briefly meet Coach Edsall and the inside linebacker coach, Coach Dudzinski.
"This was all before the game. When I was talking to Coach Johnson, it was mainly about football. They were saying that they could see me playing inside linebacker or outside linebacker. They think I have the athleticism to play outside, but I'm physical enough to play inside, so they're just recruiting me as a linebacker on their board. They would just like to get me and then figure out where I would fit best."
Roberts added that his conversation with Edsall was just a brief, 2-3 minute talk before the game. They basically just introduced themselves to each other for the first time.
Also, with everything else that was going on that day, Roberts wasn't able to really tour facilities, but he had good things to say about what he did see, plus the crowd.
"I got to tour a little bit of their football facility, but I really need to go back to get a good look at everything. With it being game day and all of that, I wasn't able to check out the weight room and some other things. There was just too much going on, but I did see where they work with tutors and things like that.
"I also thought it was a good crowd. It wasn't packed or sold out or anything like that, but I didn't expect it to be for a Richmond game. I thought it was good."
Roberts has been invited to come back to any game he wants this season. I think the game against Michigan in the first week of October is the most realistic weekend, so I'll keep an eye on him then.
If he does come back to campus this season, I'll begin to think that Maryland has real chance here. Right now, I think they should crack his top 10, but it'll be tough to crack his top five, especially once he's able to visit a bunch of other schools later this fall and into next spring. I expect Alabama and Ohio State to offer sooner than later. They've been talking to him all summer. Also, keep and eye on Baylor. The Bears have really stepped up interest recently. Roberts has made it clear that all three of those schools have his eye.
OL Ryan Solt - Wilkes Barre, Pa. - James M Coughlin - 2017
Saturday was offensive lineman Ryan Solt's first game in Byrd Stadium. Throughout the summer, I've tried to make it as clear as I can that the Terps are going to be a serious player here and I'm confident that Saturday's visit only helped.
"I met with Coach Stud for probably 30 or 45 minutes after the game," Solt said. "I also talked to the strength and conditioning coach, who was a great guy. Then, right before I left, I ran into Coach Edsall and talked to him quickly, so it was good. It's always nice to catch up.
"Honestly, Coach Stud is the main thing that's standing out to me right now. He's an amazing coach. I really, really like Coach Stud. We talked a lot about football this time. Things like, what he looks at in a football player, what he expects from his players and how he coaches his players. It was a really good talk."
Solt is also already beginning to familiarize himself with some of Maryland's current commits.
"I hung out with [Mike Viti] a little bit. He actually committed the day I got an offer. I hung out with him probably the most. I saw [Brain Pulmmer], too. I talked to him for a little bit."
As for the game itself, Solt went on to add that he liked the way the team rallied after a slow start.
"What stood out to me the most was how they rallied after a poor first half. Richmond took the lead at one point and you could tell that was a wake up call. I'm sure they went into the game thinking that, since it's Richmond, they'll be find. Once they got pushed back a little bit, they rallied and really turned it up a notch and that was good to see. They took it to Richmond in the second half."
However, out of everything we discussed, the biggest news, to me, is that Solt is now planning to return to Maryland for three additional games this season. That's very, very important in my opinion.
I do expect Ryan to add other offers later this fall, so multiple visits this season should put UMD at the top of his list, no matter who else offers between now and next spring. And for the record, I don't think PSU is close to offering Solt. They would definitely be UMD's top competitor if they do, but I don't think that's coming anytime soon. We'll see what happens.
"The only visit I have setup to another school right now is to Penn State for their game against Michigan. I know I'm going to go back to Maryland a bunch of times. I'm going to Maryland's games against Penn State, Wisconsin and Michigan, so I'll be back at Maryland at least two or three more times this season."
OL Jordan McNair - Owings Mills, Md. - McDonogh - 2017
I'm still trying to do a complete interview with Jordan McNair, but I wanted to pass on this quote that he texted me last night.
"The game was great. Me and my mom had a great time and they played a really good game. They really picked it up in the second half. I did talk to Coach Dudzinski, too. We really didn't talk about football when we talked. It was more about the education side. We talked about SATs and stuff like that."
As most of you know, I still believe that McNair is a bit underrated. I really believe he could blow up after he sends out his film from the first half of the season, so I want to keep a close eye on that before I try to predict much with him. Right now, Maryland, PSU and Virginia Tech are probably his top three schools. He should definitely be back at UMD for another game this season.
DE Lawtez Rogers - Greenbelt, Md. - Eleanor Roosevelt
I actually had contacts inform me that Rogers was supposed to be in attendance when I posted that update on Tuesday, but when I asked Rogers, he said he knew nothing about it. Well, sure enough, he ended up coming up to Maryland for the game this weekend and, as expected, had good things to say.
"I got there a little late, but when I got there, it was nice of them to give me a ride to the field house. I got a little tour then before the game and then I went to the game. I think that Mr. Cory Robinson is a really cool guy and I like the experience when I'm at their games."
Rogers didn't have an extended conversation with any of the assistant coaches or Edsall, but he did catch up with Robinson a bit while they toured facilities.
"He talked to us about my game and how I was doing. Just that kind of stuff. He said he was happy to see me and stuff like that."
Rogers should see some additional schools step up their interest later this fall, but right now, even after Sept. 1, there really aren't any other schools showing real interest. He gets letters from a bunch of schools, but that means nothing.
From talking to him over the summer, I've gotten the vibe that it may also be tough for him to travel to other schools, so that's something to watch down the road. I think a lot of schools will probably want to meet him in person before the offer, so if he does have issues traveling out of the DMV area, that's only going to help Maryland.
Right now, the Terps are clearly the early favorite and I do believe they should stay near the top of his list, no matter who else offers.
