Cal Junior Day Recap

[Frontpaged to provide further discussion on the Cal Football Junior Day - TnH]

Thanks to the CGB community, we have gathered a great list of attendees to the Cal Junior Day held last weekend. We also found out that Darren Ervin was so impressed with Tedford & Co he committed on Monday.

Below is a list of notable Juniors who attended -

(HT oldschoolhk)
Mustafa Jalil, DT Cathedral Catholic
Chance Early, WR Cathedral Catholic
Jonny Martin, RB Cathedral Catholic

(HT MinerNiner)
Sheldon Richardson, DL College of the Sequoias
De’Anthony Thomas, ATH Crenshaw
Victor Blackwell, WR Mater Dei
Max Wittek, QB Mater Dei
Rob Hankins, LB Parish Episcopal Dallas, TX
Brandon Bigelow, RB Central HS (Verbal pledge to Washington)
Conor Loftus, LB Servite
Bryce McGovern, WR Monte Vista
Blake Renaud, LB De La Salle
Shaq Thompson, ATH Grant Union (Sophomore)
Nick Sherry, QB Casa Grande
George Atkinson, ATH Granada HS
Josh Atkinson, DB Granada HS
Robert Ash, OL Elk-Grove-Cosumes
Brian Farley, OL San Diego-Patrick Henry
Jordon Rigsbee, OL Pleasant Valley
Tony Popovich, DL Marin Catholic
Sam Atoe, LB Maria Carrillo
Lional Louis, LB El Cerrito
Jason Gibson, LB Serra

(Update from Scout.com)
Ray Hamilton, TE Strongsville, OH (to March recruiting thread)

After the jump, we'll have more info on some of these notable Juniors.

Shaquille Thompson, WR/DB (Sacramento, CA)

via media.sacbee.com

Just a sophomore, Shaq may be following his brother Syd's footsteps to Cal. Vei Moala was planning to come w/ Shaq, but didn't make it (HT MinerNiner).

Jason Gibson, LB (Gardena, CA)

via media.scout.com

Gibson is widely considered the top linebacker prospect in the state of CA. 

On the [2009] season, Gibson, who plays defensive end for the Cavaliers, had 94 tackles, 15.5 sacks and wreaked havoc onb every quarterback Serra faced. When he didn't get a sack, he often caused quarterbacks to leave the pocket and hurry their throws. - SCPlaybook.com / Scout.com

Rob Hankins, LB (Dallas, TX)

via api.ning.com

Junior linebacker Rob Hankins (Plano, Texas/Parish Episcopal) picked up his 10th offer on Monday. Arkansas is the latest program to offer the 6-foot-1, 214-pound hard-hitting defender. The Razorbacks join Purdue, Arizona, Miami, California, Texas Tech, Baylor, Nebraska, SMU and Colorado in extending written offers. Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Oregon and Kansas are also heavily recruiting him.

This weekend, Hankins will make an unofficial visit to SMU followed by a trip to California for junior day February 27-28. - ($)Gerry Hamilton, ESPN

Max Wittek, QB (Santa Ana, CA)

via media.scout.com

Wittek is following in the footsteps of Matt Barkley from Mater Dei.

"I would love to make my decision by the time our season starts. If not, I would like to do it very early into the season, to put it behind me. I'm just looking for a good atmosphere, somewhere that the staff and team gets along. I like to joke around and have fun, but when it's time to work, I'm ready." - ESPN On the trail

Steve Clarkson is well aware of Mater Dei’s legacy of quarterbacks.

The private quarterback coach has tutored many over the years, including Matt Barkley, Matt Leinart and Colt Brennan.

So when Clarkson says Mater Dei junior Max Wittek has a talent none of the predecessors had, it quickly grabs attention.

"Athleticism," Clarkson explained. "(Wittek can) be a game-changer with his legs."

Mater Dei coach Bruce Rollinson said Wittek has offers from Cal, Clemson, Duke, Florida, North Carolina and UCLA. Rollinson said USC also is interested in Wittek.

"He continued to grow as (his junior) year went on," Rollinson said of Wittek, who passed for 2,107 yards and 14 TDs. "I think the sky is the limit next year."

The Florida offer speaks to Wittek’s speed, which Rollinson estimates to be in the 4.6 range for the 40-yard dash. - OCVarsity.com

DeAnthony Thomas, RB (Los Angeles, CA)

via media.scout.com

For those who have been keeping up with the Class of 2011 since Scout's first release last September, the No. 1 prospect in the country should come as no surprise.

DeAnthony Thomas (5-11/185) of Crenshaw High School in Los Angeles, Calif. has been the No. 1 prospect on the West Coast for three years running. Thomas, dubbed the Black Mamba in middle school, is the best two way player I've seen on the high school level since Ernie Sims of the Class of 2003. Sims went on to star at Florida State as a linebacker before being drafted in the first round by the Detroit Lions.

Thomas has the speed and instincts that he could conceivably be a 5-Star prospect at three different positions, running back, cornerback, and safety. I say only three, because I've never seen him run routes and catch the ball as a wide receiver. - Scott Kennedy, Scout.com

Mustafa Jalil, DT (San Diego, CA)

via media.scout.com

Cathedral (San Diego, Calif.) defensive lineman Mustafa Jalil gave an early commitment to San Diego State. He has, however, opened things up and will be taking a pair of unofficial visits later this week.

It’s an unusually strong year for defensive tackle prospects out West this year and Jalil is a big reason for that. He’ll be a three-year starter for one of San Diego’s top programs and his recruitment has really picked up in the last month.

"I now have offers from San Diego State, Cal, Arizona State and Washington and I’m hearing from a ton of others," Jalil said. "This Thursday I’m going to UCLA’s junior day and it would be huge if I got an offer from them. - ($)Greg Biggins, ESPN

Jalil and Alex Crosthwaite (class 2010) are teammates at Cathedral Catholic in San Diego.

Sheldon Richardson, DT (Visalia, CA)

via missouricolumns.files.wordpress.com

The biggest catch in Missouri’s 2009 football recruiting class won’t be a Tiger anytime soon.

Team spokesman Chad Moller has confirmed to the Tribune that prized recruit Sheldon Richardson will indeed enroll at a junior college after failing to qualify academically, ending months of speculation over Richardson’s immediate future.

Moller confirmed that Richardson will attend College of the Sequoias in Visalia, Calif. Richardson and his family have not returned phone calls as of 1 p.m. Tuesday.

Richardson, a dominant athlete on both sides of the line of scrimmage at Gateway Tech High School in St. Louis, was considered one of the country’s elite recruits, ranking as high as No. 4 nationally by Rivals.com. Essentially, Richardson will have to follow the same route as other high profile Missouri recruits who failed to qualify and needed a detour through junior college, including defensive lineman Atiyyah Ellison, tailback Damien Nash and cornerback Darnell Terrell. Richardson will have to earn his associate’s degree before enrolling at Missouri, plus sign another national letter of intent. - Dave Matter, Columbia Daily Tribune 

Let's hope these fine Golden recruits follow the lead of Darren Ervin. GO BEARS!