Simmons Scoop: Recruiting buzz after massive weekend of official visits

We are approaching the middle of June and after two massive weekends of official visits, there is an enormous amount of recruiting buzz across the country. Clemson got things off to a hot start last week with commitments from three of their official visitors. It’s only Tuesday, and we have already seen major commitments coming out of the weekend, including Georgia flipping running back Chauncey Bowens from Florida. Brent Pry and Virginia Tech have added commitments from Gabriel Williams and Marcellus Barnes, two four-stars that were in Blacksburg over the weekend as well. And that’s just the beginning of the buzz that was out there after this round of official visits.

On3 Director of Recruiting Chad Simmons has compiled the latest intel on some of the country’s best recruits coming out of the second weekend in June.

After a weekend at Georgia, Williams Nwaneri was back at Oklahoma over the weekend. The Sooners have always been a top school for Nwaneri and things haven’t changed. He probably has the best relationships in Norman, but will that be enough? Georgia is in this now, and Tennessee had some momentum earlier this spring. He will be in Knoxville this weekend.

KJ Bolden continues to trend toward the home-state school. Georgia checked all the boxes with Bolden and his family over the weekend. Ohio State is viewed as Georgia’s biggest competition and he is expected in Columbus this weekend. The buzz coming out of Athens has picked up a little more after the official visit.

Coming out of the NIL Elite Series in Nashville, I liked where Ohio State stood with Eddrick Houston. The Buckeyes and USC were the schools I was hearing about the most. He visited Clemson last weekend and Georgia a few days ago, but I still hear more about Ohio State. Larry Johnson has the Buckeyes in a great position with the official visit coming this weekend.

Official visits have made things a little more blurry for Mike Matthews. Heading into June, Tennessee was a school with some buzz around it. Clemson and USC were two others, especially the Trojans. After official visits to Clemson and Georgia, this has gotten a little tighter between all four schools. Georgia made a pretty significant move over the weekend, but official visits to Los Angeles and Knoxville are still to come. This one could go a few different ways.

Notre Dame has always been a school high on Elijah Rushing‘s list. Heading into the weekend, Notre Dame and Oregon were the schools with the most buzz around them. Nothing has changed. He is a west coast kid and his brother played for the Ducks, so there is a connection there, but the Irish check a lot of his boxes on and off the field. Dan Lanning and Marcus Freeman are putting a lot of effort into this one. Arizona is an in-state school that is trying to hang around.

Jordan Ross named Florida, Georgia and Tennessee as his top three coming out of the weekend. Based on what I am hearing after official visits to Gainesville and Athens, I give the Gators the edge. He is in no rush to make a decision, but the Florida coaches and players have done a great job making Ross feel comfortable. All three SEC schools are in this, but I am hearing the most about Florida.

Auburn and Ole Miss had Kamarion Franklin on campus last week for unofficial visits after he took an official visit to Miami. The buzz has been around Miami and Tennessee, but keep an eye on Ole Miss. The in-state program is still very much in this race. The Vols get Franklin back on campus this weekend and the SEC program in Knoxville has been a constant in this race for some time. Not long ago, two schools were being talked about in Franklin’s top group, now it looks to be three and the two SEC programs may be one and two.

Demarcus Riddick is still committed to Georgia. He visited Auburn over the weekend and he will be at Alabama this weekend. Based on what I am hearing, the Crimson Tide is the bigger threat. The question is; how big of a threat are they? Since taking the official visit to Georgia early in June, there has been a little more chatter about Riddick’s commitment being a little stronger than some may think. This one is still far from over. This weekend is huge for all parties involved.

Marquise Lightfoot trimmed his list down to six schools Monday, fresh off an official visit to Ohio State. The Buckeyes are setting the pace in this race. There is a lot of buzz around the Big Ten program in Columbus. A summer decision is likely after official visits to Miami and USC. Both have his attention with maybe the Trojans a little higher.

Kentucky had five-star offensive tackle Jonathan Daniels on campus for an official visit this past weekend. Georgia will host him this weekend. Then it is Florida State, the school that is — and has been — trending for Daniels. He is still taking the process in stride, but the Seminoles continue to sit in a good spot.

It was an unofficial visit, but the visit Nathaniel Frazier took to Georgia has created some buzz around the Bulldogs. He spent a lot of time with Bowens, the running back that committed to Georgia over the weekend, and Georgia has become the team to beat. Frazier is at Texas A&M for a mid-week visit, then he takes official visits to Oregon and Alabama to close out the month. A decision next month is possible.

Jordan Thomas has visited Georgia a few times this year and there has been some chatter around his name coming out of his last trip to Athens. Schools like Florida, Rutgers and South Carolina have been mentioned with his name, but Georgia has become the heavy favorite.

Walter Matthews returned to Florida for his official visit a week after visiting USC. He is expected back at USC for an unofficial visit this week around his participation at the Elite 11 Finals. Then a decision could come. He is not ruling out a decision next month, but this is a tight battle between the Gators and the Trojans.

Alabama has had Amari Jefferson on campus on campus a couple of times in recent months and the tide has starting to shift a little. Before those visits to Tuscaloosa, Georgia and Tennessee looked to be battling at the top with the Bulldogs maybe having an edge. After the official visit to Tuscaloosa, the Crimson Tide looks to be the team to beat. The two-sport star loves the Alabama offense and the chance to compete there.

There has been some buzz about Joseph Phillips nearing a decision. That could still be the case, but I am now hearing he may take more time. Georgia has become the favorite to land the Alabama linebacker, but Auburn and Tennessee remaining two to watch.

Not long after his official visit to Notre Dame, Tae Johnson set a commitment date for June 24. He is a defensive target for the Irish. Most of the other schools see him on offense. The Irish are trending here.

Sterling Dixon will be back at Alabama this week for an official visit. When he committed to Alabama, it was over LSU. At one time LSU was considered the favorite. He was back in Baton Rouge earlier this month and the Tigers are not going away. This will be a big visit for Alabama and Dixon this weekend.

Kylan Fox was at Georgia Tech over the weekend. The Yellow Jackets are an in-state school, but not viewed as much of a factor. UCF is though. He was in Orlando earlier this month and the Knights are Florida State’s biggest competition. This race is a little tighter than it was six weeks ago. I still like the Seminoles, but don’t sleep on the Knights. Fox takes his official visit to Tallahassee later this month.

Michigan had some big names on campus over the weekend and one was Boo Carter. Can Jim Harbaugh get this athlete out of Tennessee? This looked to be all Vols a couple of months ago, but the Wolverines have to be considered a threat. He will announce his commitment on June 17. Carter is expected back in Knoxville later this week for one more visit before his decision.

Ondre Evans has quickly become a hot name. The four-star cornerback in Tennessee has added offers from Alabama, Georgia and LSU this month. NC State had been considered the favorite heading into June, but since the new offers, there has been buzz around the Tigers of Baton Rouge.

I have liked Michigan for I’Marion Stewart for about a year and the Wolverines are still in a good spot. Wisconsin has been in the mix. At one time Cincinnati was very much involved, but Michigan has been the most consistent. Stewart has visited close to double-digit times.

Miami had Elija Loften on campus for an official visit and the Hurricanes are trending since he left campus to head back to Las Vegas on Saturday. The tight end at Bishop Gorman who has visited Miami three times is set to commit on July 8. The Hurricanes are in a great position.

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