Published Aug 2, 2020
Mailbag: Prep football, next offers and the future at QB in the 2022 class
circle avatar
Jon McNamara  •  BadgerBlitz
Editor
Twitter
@McNamaraRivals

BadgerBlitz.com dives into its message board to take questions from subscribers in this week's recruiting mailbag.


What verbals are having fall football seasons?

Advertisement

All of this is tentative to change, but here's the latest...

Wisconsin (Yes): "high-risk sports including football were pushed back from August 24 and now will begin on September 7"

Commits: Jackson Acker, Hunter Wohler, Ayo Adebogun, JP Benzschawel and Loyal Crawford

Illinois (No): "According to a new plan introduced by the IHSA, there will be a streamlined football season from Feb. 15 to May 1."

Commits: Bryan Sanborn

Minnesota (Undecided): "The Minnesota State High School League has yet to make a decision on fall sports. Practices are tentatively set to begin Aug. 17."

Commits: Riley Mahlman

Tennessee (Yes): "The order allows TSSAA football and girls soccer teams to begin practicing with full contact, following the organization's guidelines set July 22."

Commits: Antwan Roberts

Iowa (Yes): "The state’s boys high school association shortened the regular season to seven weeks and will include every team in a one-time playoff expansion to six rounds"

Commits: T.J. Bollers

Ohio (Yes): "The Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) reaffirmed their position Friday that the OHSAA fall sports seasons will go forward as planned"

Commits: Jack Pugh and Darryl Peterson

Florida (Yes): "The Florida High School Athletic Association’s football coaches advisory committee voted 9-0 Wednesday to put forward a plan that would kick off the 2020 season in September"

Commits: Jake Chaney and Ricardo Hallman

California (No): "the state’s governing body for high school athletics, announced that the fall sports season is being delayed until 2021 because of the coronavirus pandemic."

Commits: Deacon Hill

Next in-state 2022 commit?

Two prospects from the dubbed "Super 6" have already made commitments: Braelon Allen to Wisconsin and Jerry Cross to Penn State. From the people I've spoken to, it sounds like Carson Hinzman and Joe Brunner want to take some visits, though there's no guarantee when that will be possible. Fellow offensive lineman Billy Schrauth is getting some Notre Dame buzz recently, and he could be someone to watch.

But from a Wisconsin perspective, I'd keep an eye on defensive end Isaac Hamm. The standout from Sun Prairie High School also has offers from Iowa and Minnesota, but UW has been in the driver's seat since offering in January.

""My dad has always been a really huge Badger fan, so he's influenced me in that way," Hamm told BadgerBlitz.com. "His parents and my grandparents are also huge Wisconsin fans as well, and it's always been in the family. My dad is like 6-foot-10 - he's really tall. I see myself continuing to grow and becoming a pretty big dude."

Has the NCAA given any new indication if recruits will be able to make visits?

info icon
Embed content not available

Right now, there is no guarantee prospects will be able to take on-campus visits in September. There is also some talk that the December early signing period could be bumped back to February. Everything on that front seems to still be up in the air at this point.

From Wisconsin's 2021 commit list, Ricardo Hallman and Michael Jarvis have yet to visit Madison, in person.

"We're hoping to get up to Wisconsin sometime during the season," Ricardo Hallman told BadgerBlitz.com. "So whenever I have a bye week I plan to get up there. That's what the coaches are saying. My goal is to make an impact as soon as I touch down. No matter what they need me to do, I know I can come in and help the team and bring energy. I want to play right away if I'm able to."

Chance of Myles Burkett getting an offer? In-state kid, good mobility, and solid arm. I understand they're high on Devin Brown, but there's a 2022 kid right under their noses. Would be the perfect year to try it out. 

In-state quarterback Myles Burkett has been a popular name this summer, especially after Brady Allen's commitment to Purdue. As it stands, Wisconsin has one offer out to an uncommitted quarterback in the 2022 class: Arizona's Devin Brown, who camped last summer and visited last fall.

“It was amazing,” Brown told Rivals.com. “I had a really good time in Madison. I actually went there twice. I went for a camp and then I went for a game so that was really cool to see all the fans and how it was pre-game. I really loved the experience.

“I haven’t really ordered anything. I’m only totally informed on one school and I know about a couple other schools. I’m trying to do my research on all of them and my due diligence but I’ve only had the chance to see one campus.”

I've said for a while that I feel Burkett, 6-foot-1 and 203 pounds, is an FBS-caliber player at quarterback. Not being able to camp this summer was a huge blow for him and there are a lot of schools - Wisconsin included - that want to see him throw live. I can't say for sure exactly where Burkett stacks up on Jon Budmayr's board, but there is mutual interest between both sides.

Right now, there's really no rush for the Badgers. Burkett doesn't have any offers at this point, but I can tell you that a handful of schools - most recently Washington - are intrigued by his sophomore tape. The next step is Budmayr getting down to Franklin High School and watching him move and throw in person.

Burkett, who can make plays with his feet and arm, would be a nice compliment to Deacon Hill, a true pro-style quarterback in the 2021. But if new offers go out, Budmayr is going to cast a wide net in his search.

With a good chunk of high school football games coming off the schedule, will Rivals be looking to add any camps this fall? Ones that could be specialized by position to keep numbers down or something to that effect?

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, just five of the scheduled 14 Rivals Camp Series events took place earlier this year. After taking part in our publisher conference call Thursday, I can tell you that a relaunch has been discussed this fall, especially if high school football is shut down in certain parts of the country. Football in Illinois has been postponed, so a return to Chicago would make a lot of sense.

Listing all the Big Ten commits for that specific time period (two to three weeks).

Ohio State: Gabe Powers (8/1/20), Jordan Hancock (7/19/20)

Michigan: Andrel Anthony (7/31/20)

Iowa: No commitments since 6/21/20

Rutgers: Shawn Munnerlyn (7/18/20)

Maryland: Andrew Booker (7/29/20), Corey Coley (7/25/20)

Penn State: Jerry Cross (7/28/20), Kaden Saunders (7/25/20), Jamari Buddin (7/17/20)

Minnesota: No commitments since 5/30/20

Nebraska: Malik Williams (7/21/20), Marques Buford (7/18/20)

Northwestern: Jacob Gill (7/8/20)

Indiana: Josh Sales (8/1/20), Maurice Freeman (8/1/20), Jordan Grier (7/23/20)

Illinois: Tyler Strain (7/24/20), Zack Barlev (7/24/20)

Michigan State: No commitments since 7/4/20

Purdue: Rickey Smith (7/28/20), Brady Allen (7/15/20)

Wisconsin: Braelon Allen (7/14/20)