Recruiting Notebook
Prospects continue to fly off the board in the state of Illinois! Last week the #1 senior committed, this week it was the #2 senior. We have that and a ton more in our latest Recruiting Notebook!
DePaul Lands Local Star
After Uplift 2019 point guard Markese Jacobs and Kansas parted ways post summer there were quit e a few schools involved early on. Then things were very quiet for the last month as there wasn’t a ton of information coming out of Jacobs or his camp. DePaul was thought to be in good position however. Once they secured an official visit it was inevitable that he was going to commit. That is exactly what he did on Sunday as the state’s #2 senior and top guard made his commitment to DePaul. The top 100 prospect nationally is a compact guard with plus athleticism, toughness, and scoring ability. Big pick up to add to a class that already includes top 50 national forward Romeo Weems from Michigan. They are still heavily in the mix for former commit Terrence Shannon who was travel teammates with Jacobs on the Mac Irvin Fire.
Update with Top Available 2019
With Jacobs off the board Bloomington power forward Chris Payton becomes the top prospect available in the state. The #5 overall prospect and #2 power forward has taken official visits to Valpo, Southern Illinois, and Middle Tennessee State. Murray State is another program working to secure a visit. On Middle Tennessee State he said, “It was really good. I loved everything about it.” How was that SIU trip? “Me and my family had a great time down there. Also my dad loved it so much.” Middle Tennessee State and Southern Illinois appear to be the leaders at this stage. An official to Murray State would give them a shot. He isn’t 100% locked in on making a decision and signing in the early period, but said that if he figures it out before then he could do it.
UAB Active in 2020 Class
UAB has been a staff in recent years aggressive in pursuing Illinois prospects. They showed that again this past week by throwing out a trio of offers to top 15 prospects. Curie’s Ramean Hinton is a scoring wing that has really elevated his stock and we feel schools are sleeping on. UAB offered the #5 in-state junior. Also on the perimeter they offered Bloom scoring two guard Keshawn Williams who is a smooth bucket getter. Naperville Central post Chris Conway is a skilled and athletic post with considerable upside on both ends of the floor. He also landed an offer from UAB.
Miami (OH) Returns Favor
Three of the top eight prospects in the PHI 2021 rankings visited Miami (OH) unofficially a week ago. A week later they all had offers after Miami (OH) came into Illinois and extended scholarships to Schaumburg center Chris Hodges, OPRF shooting guard Isaiah Barnes, and Fenwick forward Bryce Hopkins. The trio all play for the Illinois Wolves on the UAA circuit.
Holt Updates Process
Gibson City 2019 combo forward Ryland Holt saw his stock soar in July where he moved up to the #25 overall spot in the senior class rankings. Floor spacing forward that shoots it and has plus athleticism. Holt wrapped up a visit to Winona State over the weekend. The next two weekends he tells PHI he will head to Brown and Wisconsin Parkside. On Sunday he landed another D2 offer from Drury. Several D1’s are showing heavy interest including Chicago State, IPFW, and North Dakota State. Others that have reached out include Furman, Elon, Persbyterian, and Army. In our eyes he is a no doubt D1 prospect especially at the low-major level. Right now he holds double digit D2 offers, but none from D1 schools. He is not planning on signing early at this time and is targeting sometime in the middle of the high school season perhaps in February.
Verge to Arizona State
A bit of a blast from the past. Former Willowbrook and Thornton scoring point guard Alonzo Verge committed to Arizona State. He is currently in his sophomore year at Moberly JC. Verge is an exciting playmaking point guard that has speed and puts the ball in the hoop. As a freshman he averaged 20 points, 6 dimes, 4 rebounds, and 2 steals per game. Also had over two turnovers a game and was suspended for the middle portion of the season. If he can stay on the floor and keep his turnovers in check he should be a nice addition for ASU.