Breaking news – Duke offers 2013 stud Jabari Parker

Shortly after taking in the 2013 young stud Jabari Parker’s game, the Duke staff did not hesitate to pull the trigger with an offer, according to BDN's Mark Watson. [private] The Simeon sophomore put up 9 points, 5 rebounds, 2 blocks and 2 steals in front of the staff. The 6’-6" Parker is widely considered to be a top five talent in his class, and the Chicago native is impressing thus far. Parker is also being recruited by Kansas, Georgetown and Illinois. [/private]

Carson Ginn Interview

Head Coach David Cutcliffe and the Duke coaching staff have been busy on the recruiting trail, while also hosting several prospects for official visits on campus. Among them were four of Coach Matt Luke’s impressive offensive line prospects, including in-state prospect Carson Ginn. Carson is a 6’5” 265 pound offensive lineman from Belmont, who committed to the Blue Devils back in July and hopes to compete for playing time at left guard in 2011. Blue Devil Nation caught up with Carson shortly after his visit to Durham.

BDN: Can you recap your visit last weekend and describe how that went?
I had a great time up in Durham. They showed me a lot of the hotspots around town and what to do on campus. It was a great experience from the coaches, and from the players, too. Honestly, I didn’t expect the players to be as kind and as nice to the recruits as they were. I expected it to be kind of a challenge to get them to accept us and spend time with us, but they were real nice and understand what’s going on I guess because they’ve already been through it. I really, really loved it and didn’t want to go back home, if possible. It really got me ready to go back up there and be a part of that family.

BDN: Can you talk about your relationship with some of the other offensive line players and commits?

Each of us got paired with an offensive lineman that is there now, and they’re so close that they all stay together so we, in turn, were together the whole time, and that allows us to get to know each other a little bit better. They’re a great group of guys. You have to be close on the offensive line to plug up holes and trust each other, with the blocking scheme and everything – to know that he’s got my back if the defensive lineman goes inside, and I’ve got his if the guy gets outside. We spent a lot of time together, which is great as offensive linemen.

BDN: How would you describe your relationship with the Duke coaches and where do they see you fitting in with the program?
I’ve had a great chance to talk to pretty much every one of the coaches. I’ve talked to Coach Cutclife a couple times, face to face. Coach Hobby, the defensive line coach, came down here, Coach Luke has came to see me, Coach Lubick has came to see me, he’s the recruiting coordinator for this area. They’re all pretty excited about it, they are. Coach Hobby is excited about how much I’ve grown, Coach Luke – he’s excited about how big I’ve gotten. Coach Luke sees me as a tackle – he’s got one player at every position coming in this year on the offensive line, and he sees me as a left tackle, and we have a senior left tackle now as you know, and hopefully I’ll be one of the people fighting for that spot next year.

BDN: How much were you able to follow Duke’s season and what were your impressions?

We have nowhere to go but up. We had a great season this year. I’ve seen a lot of great things in the few years Coach Cutcliffe’s been there. Playing teams like Wake Forest down to the last minute. Playing teams – really great teams – down to the wire with a bunch of young players and a couple older players. I’m really looking forward to what we can do later on, especially on offense, and our defense is pretty young, too. Just can’t wait to see what we can do – I really believe we will go really far – we’ll definitely have a bowl game in the next few years, so I’m pretty excited about that.

BDN: It looked like South Point had another good season, making the state playoffs again. Can you give us a brief recap of how your senior season went?
Well starting off this year, I was playing defensive end, which I have been for the past two years. We won the state championship last year, and we were expected to come back and do it again, returning so many people. Our offensive line just wasn’t there and even before the start of the season Coach wanted me to play offensive line and I was pretty excited because I got to switch over the first three or four weeks into the season to offensive tackle. It really gave me insight into what I would be doing in college, but we as a high school team, ran the triple option, so we were a running team, not so much a passing team. I didn’t get to really work on how to pass set and get ready for the passing game at college, but it gave me a great insight into how to run block and I had a lot of fun. Honestly, I wasn’t looking forward to playing offensive line, I didn’t know what to expect, so it was a pleasant surprise that I had that much fun being on the offensive line this year. We made it to the playoffs, but were stopped short in the second round by a passing team, and we lost 56-57 in overtime, because our coach elected not go for two in the first overtime. If that sounds like we’re placing blame on the coach, we’re not. As an offense, we turned the ball over a couple times when we shouldn’t have. We were just really running all over them and it was just a bad circumstance where our defense couldn’t stop them.

BDN: That sounds like a fun game to play in, but a tough one to lose.
It was a heartbreaker. Everybody was so excited at the end, because we were down basically two touchdowns all game and we came back and scored, and had a deep pooch kick that landed at about the four and we picked it up, so we got to score right before the end of the game and force it into overtime. It was a heartbreaker, but it was a great game to play in. I’ve been on both sides of blowouts and a close game, and a close game is by far more fun to win.

BDN: What are your plans for the rest of your senior year?
Just kind of enjoying my last year at home. I’m excited to leave, but I want to enjoy the little bit that I have left.

BDN: When can Duke fans expect to see you on campus?
Our school doesn’t graduate until June 15, so I won’t be able to make it to the first summer session, but I’ll be there July 5 or 6, when the second summer session begins. I’m just counting down the days.

BDN: Thanks so much, Carson, and best of luck with the rest of your senior year.
Thank you so much for your time.

Bookmark Blue Devil Nation as your source for Duke football recruiting updates all off-season.

Cody Robinson Interview

On Saturday, Duke had two commitments play in the annual Tennessee East-West All Star Game in Jefferson City, Tennessee. Lucas Patrick suited up for the West, while Cody Robinson took the field for the East. Fellow Duke commit Nick Hill was invited to play, but unable to attend. Blue Devil Nation was able to catch up with Cody Robinson just before he took the field to get his thoughts on his recent official visit to Duke and his senior year.

BDN: Can you recap your recent official visit to Duke for us?
The visit – it went great. I had a great time and met a lot of great people.

BDN: Can you talk about your relationship with the other offensive line commits?
I know all those guys now – Lucas [Patrick], Carson [Ginn], and Marcus [Aprahamian] and Matt [Skura], all those guys are really good guys. They’re really good players and great people.

BDN: Who was your host for your official visit?
John Coleman

BDN: Did you get to spend some time with the Duke offensive linemen and coaches?
I spent a lot of time with them. I met with the coaches and went out with the players, mostly the offensive line. It was really good.

BDN: What do you and the coaches expect your role to be at Duke?
Right now, I’ll be playing left guard most likely. As far as my role, we’ll see when I get up there. I mean just make the older guys better, learn the system, and try to contribute in any way I can.

BDN: Can you tell us a little bit about your experience at the Tennessee East-West Game this week?
It’s been a lot of fun. There are a lot of good players up here and it’s been really good. Yesterday we got to go to the hospital and spend time with the kids, which was a lot of fun, just to see them happy.

BDN: Are there any other Duke commitments or prospects at the game?
Lucas Patrick is up here. Nick Hill was supposed to be up here, but he didn’t make the trip. Cam Clear isn’t at this game, I think he’s playing basketball, but I’ve been keeping a close eye on him, encouraging him to…well, come to Duke.

BDN: How did your senior year end up at Warren County?
The team had some trouble, you know, we ended up 3-7, and it was a growing year. I had a good year, I ended up with just over 100 tackles and some sacks and tackles for loss. On offense, I averaged grading out in the 90s, so I had a good year on offense too.

BDN: What are your plans for the offseason?
Just working out and stuff. Working on getting stronger and faster. I’ll start track – shot put and discus - probably the end of February.

BDN: When can Duke fans expect to see you on campus?
Most likely May 15.

BDN: Thanks so much, Cody, and best of luck in the East-West game.
Thanks a lot.

Jamison Crowder Interview

Jamison Crowder is one of the top athletes in the state of North Carolina, having starred on championship-caliber football and basketball teams at Monroe High School. In his senior football season, he played in all three phases, totaling 23 touchdowns and 55 tackles on the season. He was recruited heavily by all of the North Carolina schools, and committed to the Blue Devils in July. Blue Devil Nation checked in with Jamison to recap his senior year and his plans for the New Year.

BDN: Can you tell us about your senior year, it looks like you had a really good year overall?
We actually lost a couple games early in the season and everybody didn’t think we were as good as we were last year, but we did pretty good. As the season went on, we ended up getting things straight and got in the playoffs, and then went further than we did last year, so it went real good this year. This year, for myself, I scored a few more times than I did last year, but I feel like I didn’t really have my breakout game, though, but it was still good.

BDN: Were you able to visit Duke during the season and what are your plans for an official visit?
I haven’t gone on an official visit yet, I’m supposed to be going January 14, I believe. I went to a few games over the season, I went to, I believe 3 or 4 games. I really liked it up there pretty good.

BDN: What did you think of what you saw of the Duke team this year and where do you think the program is headed?
I saw that in a lot of ballgames that they played, they were in it, but just needed a couple playmakers. I thought that as the season went on, they became more competitive with the teams they played and they lost a lot of close games. I feel like once I get up there and the people that’s coming in get up there, we’ll win some games.

BDN: Can you talk about your relationship with the coaches and what they think your role will be at Duke?
I’ve been talking a lot with Coach Lubick, we real close, and he talks to me every now and then or comes to visit, but I talk to him like almost every Monday. They want me to come and play special teams and a little bit of slot receiver. They’re just telling me to work hard in the classroom and get better every day so that when I come there I’m prepared to work.

BDN: I know you also play basketball, how is your season going so far?
Yeah, that’s right. It’s going pretty good. Right now I’m out with a pulled hamstring – I’m out for a few weeks. We look like we’ve got a pretty good team in basketball this year, so it’s going pretty good.

BDN: What are your plans for the rest of your senior year?
Right now, I’m just working in the weight room. I ain’t got too much planned, just the official visit, school work and weight room, trying to get better.

BDN: When do you plan to enroll at Duke?
I haven’t really thought about it, but I’ll probably enroll in the summertime. Probably that second session of summer school, I think it’s July or August.

BDN: Thanks for talking with me and best of luck with your basketball season.
Alright, no problem.

BDN checks in with Austin Rivers

- BDN Photo

Entering his senior season, Austin Rivers sits atop the charts of various scouting services as the top player in the country. The Florida native, and Blue Devils signee, has gotten off to a great start with his school, Winter Park. Currently Winter Park is 7-1, with one more game before the head into the City of Palms tournament where the Duke staff will be on hand to watch him. Austin is averaging 29.8 points per game while shooting an incredible 59% from the field including 47% from beyond the arc. Austin also sports a season high of 46 points against Montverde Academy. BDN got a chance to catch up with the future Duke superstar to hear his thoughts on his season, Duke and USA Basketball. Here’s what he had to say:

BDN: It’s been awhile since we last spoke and since then you inked with the Blue Devils. Can you give us some thoughts about that?
AR: It feels great just knowing where I’m going, especially a school such as Duke. I’m really excited to get there.

BDN: Being one of the top players in the country do you find others are trying to make a name for themselves against you?
AR: Oh yeah, of course. For the past couple of years people have been coming hard at me trying to make a name off of me. It makes everything more challenging and more fun to play. I think it is way more interesting to play against somebody who is coming for your spot and wants to knock you off. I enjoy it, it’s all good.

BDN: Your team, Winter Park, has had a great start to the season so far. What do you accredit this fast start to?
AR: I would say the hard work we put in before the season started. Everybody did a lot of conditioning. We ran a lot and got in the weight room and everybody was really working. I think we’re off to a great start heading into the City of Palms, and we are really confident and believe we can do well there.

BDN: You put up a big game the other night with 43 points. I also noticed you guaranteed it before the game. Did you just have a feeling going into this game?
AR: It was just really for fun. I was just talking to the camera guy and we’re just messing around. I was just saying it for fun and I actually ended up getting pretty hot and scoring 40 in three quarters. I like to have fun when I play basketball and I play better because of that.

BDN: Now you’re brother got called up this year and had a chance to play with you on the varsity team. Did he ask you for any pointers, and if so, what did you tell him?
AR: Nah, he didn’t really ask me for any pointers. The only thing I told him was just to relax and just have fun. I believe when people have fun, loosen up, and not be wound up and nervous they play better. That’s what he did and he played well.

BDN: Have you been able to watch Duke this season and what are your thoughts on the team?
AR: Yeah, I’ve watched most of the games. They look great right now. The sky is the limit for them. It’s going to be harder for them without Kyrie but I think they can still do it. They have a great team with great leaders so I think they still look good.

BDN: Have you had a chance to speak with Kyrie since his injury? Have you given him any advice?
AR: Yeah, absolutely. I’ve talked to him a couple of times just checking how he is physically and mentally. I told him to just keep his head up and keep working hard. He’s a great player so he shouldn’t have to worry about anything. It happens to certain players where they get injured but he has nothing to look down about. The great players have always come back and done just fine. You look at a player like Amar’e Stoudemire who has torn all types of ligaments and hyper-extended things, and now, if you had to choose an MVP in the NBA he would probably be it right now. I just told him to keep going and don’t worry. Injuries happen in sports and he is a great player so he’ll bounce back no problem.

BDN: Absolutely. We all wish him the best. Now flipping it around a little bit, have any of the players given you any advice on what to expect next year?
AR: They told me it’s a different level. Not just Duke but college basketball in general. They just tell me it’s a different speed in comparison to high school. You really notice it when you start practicing how much quicker, strong, and better everyone is. It’s kind of like playing in an All-Star game everyday cause everybody there is the top players.

BDN: Have you gotten a chance to speak with any of the coaches recently?
AR: Yea I have. We’ve just talked about basketball and how everything is going and how Kyrie is doing. Just basically how Duke is doing.

BDN: Switching back to high school for a second. You won a state championship last year and I’m sure this is one of your goals this year, but do you have any individual goals you’d like to accomplish in your senior year?
AR: Well our main goal right now is to win state of course, and to get invited to the National Title and hopefully win that as well. As far as individually, I see myself as Mr. Florida, Gatorade National Player of the Year as well as USA Today Player of the Year. I think I’m pretty good in regards to those I just have to keep doing what I do and I believe I should do just fine.

BDN: Good luck with those! Will you be attempting to make any trips to Duke this year if possible?
AR: Hopefully I can. My schedule is kind of crazy right now but as soon as I have time I’m going to try and make it up there. But my schedule is getting hectic now and that is really what I’m trying to concentrate on now. I still have another year to get better so that is what I’m focused on.

BDN: Heading into another direction of basketball, will you be playing for USA Basketball this year? And can you talk about your past experience with the team?
AR: Yeah, it looks like right now I’ll definitely be playing for Team USA. It is definitely a great experience playing with FIBA and getting to play against different countries. It gives you the chance to work and get better, it really is great. I’m really looking forward to that as far as this summer goes. It is a great experience getting to represent your country and put the USA across your chest.

BDN: I appreciate your time Austin and good luck with the rest of your season.
AR: Thank you very much.

Duke Basketball Recruiting Update

BDN Photo
With just two games left in December, the Duke Men's Basketball staff will be hitting the road to check out their main targets in Holiday Tournaments.  Coach K and company will start by viewing [private] Tony Parker tomorrow.  You might want to check out our recent interview with the big man and rest assured we'll follow up with him as the season progresses.

Duke will then take in Michael Gbinije's game where they'll check on their verbals progress to date.  Part of the staff will check out Marshall Plumlee at Glaxo later in the month but the first view of him will come during the City of Palms Tournament in Fort Meyers, Florida and that event is loaded.  Two of the Blue Devils main targets are Shabazz Muhammad and Alex Murphy and both play in the event as does Austin Rivers.

"The Dogg" Nate James will head to Washington, D.C. to see Rasheed Sulaimon and Coach K is likely to go as well in that he wants to see more of the guard in person.

Duke will be looking at some other names as well and we'll share them once we've confirmed the dates.  Duke will likely add some guards to the watch list as well, but they are in no way worried with Rodney  Purvis choosing Louisville.  Like I said before, a lot of names will crop up in due time.   Duke feels as if they are in good shape with Muhammad, Murphy and Sulaimon and they'll work to get closer with Parker. [/private]